Hong and Akil welcome SBCC football coach Craig Moropoulos to the show to discuss the football team's incredible season (Beach Bowl Winners!) and how the team builds off of its success; from there, the three take a walk down memory lane discussing Santa Barbara history and sports legends while tracing coach's path to SBCC before talking about Greek food, 80s music, and John Wooden's Success Pyramid.
Mentioned in this episode:
SBCC Athletics - https://www.sbccvaqueros.com/landing/index
SBCC Football - https://www.sbccvaqueros.com/sports/fball/index
SBCC Football wins the Beach Bowl - https://www.sbccvaqueros.com/sports/fball/2022-23/releases/202211271x0pha
CCCAA Recruiting Rules - https://www.cccaasports.org/Constitution/2021-22/Bylaw_2.pdf
College Football Transfer Portal Changes - https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/34967085/college-football-new-transfer-portal-windows-explained
NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Student_athlete_compensation
Mike Moropoulos - https://www.noozhawk.com/santa_barbara_sports_legend_mike_moropoulos_passes_away_at_90/
John Gilbert - https://sbroundtable.org/hall-of-fame/inductees/athletes/john-gilbert/
Sam Cunningham - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Cunningham
Tony Gilbert - https://sbroundtable.org/hall-of-fame/inductees/athletes/tony-gilbert/
Reggie Bolton - https://www.thechannels.org/uncategorized/2003/12/18/beyond-the-playing-field/
Charles Schwab (SBHS alumnus) - https://content.schwab.com/invested/author.html
Santa Barbara High School - https://sbhs.sbunified.org/about-sbhs
Jamaal Wilkes - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamaal_Wilkes
Booker Brown - https://www.noozhawk.com/mark_patton_football_star_booker_brown_completes_a_life_of_giving_20220724/
Dolmades - https://www.themediterraneandish.com/stuffed-grape-leaves-dolmades/
Mackenzie Market - https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g33045-d15131089-Reviews-MacKenzie_Market-Santa_Barbara_California.html
Italian and Greek Deli - https://www.yelp.com/biz/italian-and-greek-delicatessen-santa-barbara-2
Metropoulos - http://www.metropoulos.com/
Los Agaves - https://los-agaves.com/
Holdren’s - https://www.holdrens.com/sb/
Zaytoon - https://www.zaytoon.com/
You Don’t Mess With the Zohan - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Don%27t_Mess_with_the_Zohan
Tacos Arabes - https://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/tacos-arabes-recipe/
Baklava - https://www.themediterraneandish.com/how-to-make-baklava/
Kataifi - https://www.thespruceeats.com/kataifi-almond-and-walnut-pastry-1705359
Spanikopita - https://www.themediterraneandish.com/spanakopita-recipe-greek-spinach-pie/
Chitterlings - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitterlings
Hog’s Head Cheese - https://www.atlasobscura.com/foods/louisiana-hogs-head-cheese
Taza Mediterranean Street Kitchen - https://www.tazastreetkitchen.com/
Toum - https://www.seriouseats.com/traditional-toum
Zankou Chicken - https://zankouchicken.com/
Tino’s Italian Grocery - https://www.tinositaliangrocery.com/
Wooden on Leadership: How to Create a Winning Organization by John Wooden - https://coachwooden.com/bookstore
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lew Alcindor) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kareem_Abdul-Jabbar
Tears for Fears - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tears_for_Fears
New Order - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Order_(band)
The Smiths - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Smiths
Pet Shop Boys - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pet_Shop_Boys
Straight Outta Compton - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straight_Outta_Compton
Snoop Dogg - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snoop_Dogg
Ice Cube -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_Cube
Stay by The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTJczUoc26U
Electronic - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_(band)
The B-52s - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_B-52%27s
Thompson Twins - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thompson_Twins
Guilty by Barbara Streisand and Barry Gibb - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phh9B1-4EYs
Wooden’s Pyramid of Success - https://www.coachwooden.com/pyramid-of-success
Captions provided by Zoom
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Hong Lieu: Hello and welcome to another episode of SBCC Vaquero Voices - a podcast highlighting the unique voices that comprise our campus culture, and how we're all working together to serve our students and the community at large. As usual, I'm joined by Co-host to Akil Hill. What's going on? Yeah.
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Akil Hill: And today we were honored to welcome Craig Moropolis to the show. Welcome, Coach Craig! What up, coach! Great to be here! Great to be here
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Craig Moropoulos: Absolutely, man! This is this. I'll be looking forward to this, and this is good timing, because you are the the the coach of the football team, and I mean, is there a champ. Did you get a championship ring for win in that beach, or maybe can we call you the beach ball champions, or what are we?
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Craig Moropoulos: But this is not the ring, but it's just like this.
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Akil Hill: Oh, yeah, right there you all can't you? All can't see this at home, but it's it's the symbol of of a a hard, far season, a great season, y'all were a a straight buzz saw, I mean, let's let's talk about that. A little jargon. Not
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Hong Lieu: yeah, everything, everything I like. I I told the queue before I I I've never been out of school with a good football team like where I went to high school, where I went to college. I won't name names, but we were just all right.
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Hong Lieu: so having having this season or my belt, and feeling like kind of the air around his team kept winning, and you could just the scores he'd come in like you're not just winning. You're just like imposing your will on opponents, and, like
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Hong Lieu: you know, you look at the the the last season you had a you had a good year, you know, over 500 good season. I mean what W. What was the change? I mean? I know there's not one that you can point at. But I mean, did you feel something turn, or was there a moment where you just like this could be special? I mean what what happened, you know.
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, we had a pretty good group over the spring. We could see it coming, and when I say good group, I mean, you know a lot of guys that were mature. They've been here a year, and they've gone through the the ups and downs. We were 7 and 4 last year, and we could just see how it was developing.
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Craig Moropoulos: but you never can't guarantee anything, you know you just. But the season started out. We lost a tough game, and quarterback didn't play very well, and so it was. It was a setback. But you know our guys.
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Craig Moropoulos: we had a little. I had a little talk with my guys in game 2, because at half time we were up like
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Craig Moropoulos: 37 to to 7, and
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Craig Moropoulos: and you know, and they they thought they were going to have a nice little dance in the in the locker room with loud music. This is a half time, so trust me. They They felt my, They felt my raft because I told them they guys we got nothing to be guess about. We got to go out and finish this game, and it was really a turning point, because we went out and played really well in second half and specially defensively.
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Craig Moropoulos: and held on. Beat West La! And then it just kind of started after that start rolling, and and but ultimately it was just a case of of playing all 3 phases. You know. The offense was scoring, the defense was shutting people down and and best yet our special teams.
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Craig Moropoulos: We're legit
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Craig Moropoulos: the returns. Kit returns, part returns, and that's a huge part of man we can. When you can win that part of the game. All you gotta do is 1 one of the other phases, and most of the time we want all 3. So it was, you know, just transpired into a great year.
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Akil Hill: So the coach, in other words, they felt the team felt your turn up at half time. They thought they were. That's a good thing, Coach, you got turned up, and you guys.
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Craig Moropoulos: So yeah, it was a it was a pretty special moment because it it helped get them right. And then, of course, after that it was, you know, just a matter of, you know, 2 seasons we had. We played some teams that that weren't very successful, and my biggest, my biggest pitch to the team was, we need to play 4 quarters. I don't care who's in
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Craig Moropoulos: first team. Second team 13, You know. We're gonna play for 4 quarters. We're not going to try to embarrass anybody, but we're gonna play hard for 4 quarters, and I think they saw that the benefits of that, because some of the teams we played got behind. We just kind of gave up, and our guys never gave up, and then, of course, we played the
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Craig Moropoulos: the the more difficult teams, analogue valleys, more parks and desert and
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Craig Moropoulos: teams like that. And you know it just got us through some tough times there and and turned out. We won 10 games in a row. So it was pretty cool.
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Yeah.
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Hong Lieu: and so there, there's a classic sports I you know the the trope of like, you know. What do you do when you hit adversity, and this and that for you? You almost have the opposite problem. What do you do when you're rolling so much? How do you? Just how do you keep the the team? Just kind of rolling like that where
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Hong Lieu: guys might. I mean you could say the right things, and guys will respond the right way. But what if guys, how do you keep guys from coasting or just being like. You know. This is just how it is. We're just this good and getting like, you know.
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Hong Lieu: getting surprised. You know. How do you keep that moving like that?
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, it's there's no secret formula but one thing that or 2 things that I do is that you know Number one. I make sure they understand that when you're rolling
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Craig Moropoulos: everybody wants to beat you.
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Craig Moropoulos: Everybody that's that's their biggest game. Everybody wants to knock you off so to You need to be ready. And
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Craig Moropoulos: big thing for me is I just tell him, take one step at a time one day at a time. One play at a time. Don't get caught up looking outside, you know. Don't get caught up looking way too far ahead because you're going to trip on a bunk in front of you, and that's just something that we talk about every day through practice.
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Craig Moropoulos: and just you know one, you know.
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Craig Moropoulos: usually cliche one day at a time, but just every day, every play, every practice rep is super important, and so they, you know they bought into that, and it showed.
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Hong Lieu: So then the the question becomes, I guess, for for you know community colleges, because there's such quick turnaround players. How do you keep this momentum going into next season, I mean, I know you're You're at offices a program now, and things are going. But I mean I I is there even a way to you. Just never know. Or is there kind of pieces that you kind of latch on to
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Hong Lieu: to kind of ensure? You'll have decent decent track going forward.
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, first of all, in our in our
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Craig Moropoulos: in in the Southern California Football Association we call it the Sfa. They. They have to mandatory movement every 2 years. So if you do really well, you move up and levels. And so we're moving up, and and and that's all right, You know we you know you never! You're never upset. You can't be about getting moved up because you're doing really well, so we'll plan the top level this year this coming year. And
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Craig Moropoulos: and so it's going to be that much more challenging to one Matt. Try and match the the last year's.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, which is, you know very difficult, but it's all about one word. It's about recruiting.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and and we've got to recruit day tomorrow. We got 18 kids coming in tomorrow, and you know we it's all about getting them here, because in college and community college is tough. We have no scholarships. We have no signing date.
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Craig Moropoulos: so we don't have anything that locks them in, so we we have to do is we have to keep recruiting them all spring long all the way, until usually around June fifth. When they get here for summer school. Then we pretty much know we have them, but it's an it's a day like I said before, it's a step by step, day by day.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know we're working out in the mornings. Now we started this week. We're there at 6, 15 in the morning, and guys are working hard, but
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Craig Moropoulos: you know now you have ways looking at you. They want to knock you off, so you better get ready, and and recruiting is going pretty well, but just it's a it's a challenge. It really is
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Akil Hill: that that's was. I'm glad that you brought that up, because I had that. That's one question I wanted to ask you, you know, with the success of the program.
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Akil Hill: are people more students to showing up wanting to be a part of that success
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Craig Moropoulos: Absolutely, absolutely. We've had more responses, you know, and that's a great point, because that that part of it recruits itself. You 10 and one, you know we're getting probably double the interest which one is great.
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Craig Moropoulos: but the other side of it is, you gotta be careful because you got. We have to be really picky. You know about who we're going to focus on, because, you know, a lot of people come in. But a lot of people, Aren't. Necessarily, because you always want to try to get better, even though you were 10 and one. You're always trying to improve. And yeah, we're getting like, maybe double.
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Craig Moropoulos: maybe even a little more than double the numbers we've had. But we have to be even that, you know even that much better as sifting through the guys. And who do we like? Who do we want? We've gotta make sure that we recruit the 2 lines offense and defensive lines
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Craig Moropoulos: that's going to be huge, because that's where it all starts. We all know that that's what football is all about. And so yeah appeal. It's it's
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Craig Moropoulos: it's that's great, I mean I love it, but it puts a little bit more pressure on us as a staff to do to to be that much more thorough and picky
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Hong Lieu: A. And in terms of recruiting do you find that it gets like?
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Hong Lieu: Is it easier or harder because
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Hong Lieu: I mean it's one of the things where on the field physically, you can always tell what you want and what works, and you know what what goes. But in terms of a a complete player character, and how they fit in with the team. I mean it it as we get farther away from 18 to 19 years old. Is it harder to recruit and find
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Hong Lieu: find that character that meshes with the team? Or is it just the more rep the more seasons you go through? It makes it easier to see what mesh as well, and what fits and what works for for you and the team.
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, it's. It's one of the hardest things you got, and the people that are successful are the ones that are successful at recruiting in the State of California. This is the first year. Now that we can actually physically go to San Francisco
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Craig Moropoulos: and go rec recruit reared in high School or or Lincoln High School, or go to La or San Diego or Santa Clarita, and actually physically, go get eye to eye to a guy, and that's that's actually the key to good successful recruiting, because before you know it's most. Everything was by electronic, you know, emails calls.
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Craig Moropoulos: and you don't get a chance to talk to the counselor. You don't get a chance to talk to the teacher and say, hey, what does it kill a hill like in the classroom? Just like 4. Your schools coming to recruit here.
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Craig Moropoulos: I tell my guys, hey? They they've already watched you in film. They already checked the transcript. They're going to come as Craig Maroplas. What's he like in the practice? Field. What's he like in the wait room? What's he like in the locker room? And if I check that box
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Craig Moropoulos: just like, if I go talk about a keel. He's really good high school player, and the counselor says, well, he's got difficulty getting a lot of fights, hey? That's a red flag, you know, and and so we got. But if they check that box boom, that's that's the kind of guys we want to recruit.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and and and this year is a good example of it, because.
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Craig Moropoulos: even though we didn't, we couldn't go out physically. Recruiting, we did a good to our our Gpa. Average this year in this team. It's 3.2
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Craig Moropoulos: that's never happened before.
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Craig Moropoulos: and that's kind of evident in in their in their success on the field, you know, because we all know the If you don't have success in the classroom.
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Craig Moropoulos: not gonna have my success on the field because you're not going to get on the field. So again it gets back like you're saying the recruiting, you know. You know it's like, hey.
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Craig Moropoulos: you 10 and one and everybody. I'll really tell them what I want to. Oh, my gosh! Look at the beach, you know. Look at this. Look at that.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. Well, then, it's still. Hey? It cost what to live there. It costs how much to live there, you know it. It's and and academics is, is outstanding at at Santa Barbara City College, and some guys get intimidated by that. They'd rather go to a school that doesn't prioritize academics.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know it's all kinds of pitfalls in recruiting, and you have to. But now, at least, getting back to the original, we can at least go face to face in the State of California, plus we can't leave the State of California go recruit, but we can call first before they had to call us.
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Craig Moropoulos: But now that the whole country is open to first contact and then in the state you can actually make physical contact.
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Akil Hill: Why do you think? Why do you think the change happen now? I mean, is there a reason for that. I mean it's been so many years of not. And then all the the lids open.
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Craig Moropoulos: They've been talking about it for so long, but they had to, you know. They tried to look at all different, a lot of different possibilities. And finally the the push just came, for you know, and and the hard part is, Some schools don't have the the resources to go from La all the way up to Fresno.
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Craig Moropoulos: or all the way up to Sacramento, and that was a stumbling block. They're trying to make it equal, you know, and trying to make it fair.
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Craig Moropoulos: But finally I think they just got tired of all the things and the accusations, and this not they just said, hey, we're gonna open up the state of California.
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Craig Moropoulos: and you know
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Craig Moropoulos: they didn't ask me. I'm a member of all that i'm a representative in the State meetings. But
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Craig Moropoulos: at the end of the day the that's something the Co. A or the you know the 3, C 2 a.
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Craig Moropoulos: Voted on to try to make it all fair, and everybody can go recruit.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. Right or wrong, it's good, I think, but it still comes down. We don't have any signing date. We don't have any scholarships to offer. We have, you know, in Santa Barbara has no housing, but
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Craig Moropoulos: there's still a lot of challenges, even though we can go physically. Get more.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. Get him a kid, and and get to see their family and things, but it's still a big challenge, but it's helped by that.
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Hong Lieu: So I do want to highlight that 3.2 average Gpa. Better than any semes, any semester record I ever had in college. So the fact that the whole team is that that
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Craig Moropoulos: that's a that's a big thing, you know. And obviously we've got our guys that are challenged, and I've got our guys a little lower, Gpa. But that just means we've got a lot of a lot more guys at higher Gpas, you know. And and that's
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, if there's anything that's cool that's cool, that I just found that out yesterday from Michael Gambo came up and I went. Hey, what? That's all. That's our average. Now it's been 2, 6,
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Craig Moropoulos: 2, 8 things like that s 3, 2. So that's really proud of that really proud.
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Akil Hill: you know I I wouldn't.
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Akil Hill: I would say, you know i'm sure all that's related to the success on the field. And one thing that obviously we probably know, and you know better than anyone through coaching is.
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Akil Hill: you know, if there's someone that's having success, everybody wants to have success, right? And so I i'm sure. Once you get that.
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Akil Hill: you know that the word out 3, 2, 3, point 2, Gpa: Everyone's gonna be striving, striving for that 3.2 Gpa. And everyone's gonna be trying to out compete each other in terms of their academics. That's a huge that's a huge success for the program that makes me extremely happy as well.
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Akil Hill: So hong, you guys who you're doing in? You have right? What's that? I think 2 years of eligibility left.
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Hong Lieu: I got the I got the bulk of alignment, but I I don't got those quick feet. I don't got those quick feet. So yeah, I couldn't. I couldn't make it work. I mean, talk to talk about that point a little more.
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Hong Lieu: How do you support
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Hong Lieu: these guys as They're going through their academic careers and their their sports figures. Because you're talking about recruiting folks from out of the area when they get to the area. It can be a shot coming to Santa Barbara. I mean, the campus is beautiful. I mean, the area is great, but it's probably a big shift for a lot of guys so to talk about some of the support, and how kind of keeping keeping everybody on the level, so to speak, while while they're here, and and you know, going to school and playing for the team.
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, first of all, in recruiting we're very transparent, you know we have to be, you know, because and we have, we have presentation that we do. Our recruiting coordinator rob aid does a great job with being very thorough every from everything to from academics.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know the academic support to, you know, nutrition and strength conditioning. You know the football part of it takes care of itself. But one of the things that we do go really well is we'll. We'll put up the fast flow information. You know what the cost of out of state
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Craig Moropoulos: tuition is what the Council in State tuition is. So number one. We want to be really transparent. So somebody, you know somebody just can't, you know, gets blown away by that, then that's probably not somebody we want to try and follow through with, especially out of state, because it's so expensive.
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Craig Moropoulos: But we want to make sure, you know. Hey, you're gonna have to come here with, you know Probably 20,000 or a little over $20,000, you know, a year out of state, you know, and if that blows you away, if that you don't have the resources to do that.
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Craig Moropoulos: then this is probably not the place you want to go. But you know there's kids in Florida kids that has no Jukos that play football in the whole State of Florida.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. And so they see that they see that picture of the beach, you know, and they want to go there. I want to go there, but then we have them on recruiting visits
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Craig Moropoulos: usually zoom, and and we'll show them what they what the what the whole total costs are.
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Craig Moropoulos: Even with financial aid, you know it's it's it's a challenge. So with that being said, being being real transparent with the recruiting visit, and then showing them what resources we have. You know the mandatory 3 h of study hall.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and and then try to make sure they understand that you know number one. I don't want you to go into a study all hour, and just sit there, and you know, open up, open your computer and watch huddle, which is where our you know what? That's how we watch our opponents on video. We want you going in, and if you're struggling in English.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know we want to be able to send you to the to the writing lab, or if you're striking in mad, send it to the Idc. And get get a a math to you, you know, and so we try to show them. And also we also tell them that you know, in 2,019 I left my best running back and my best receiver home, because they got 2 h and 58 min
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Craig Moropoulos: of
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Craig Moropoulos: study all time. They didn't get their 3 out, and they were like Co. It. I got 2 58,
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Craig Moropoulos: I said, You didn't get 3, you know, if we're gonna have a rule, why have the rule
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Craig Moropoulos: But ultimately they got a what they got to realize that's not a punishment.
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Craig Moropoulos: The punishment is not 3 h. That's a that's a support system.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. That's a way of succeeding.
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Craig Moropoulos: and so you know it all adds up, and you want to try to be transparent. You want to try to be as informative as possible. Then, if they get here.
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Craig Moropoulos: which you hope. If the kid, you know, understands everything about what
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Craig Moropoulos: you know what the the
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Craig Moropoulos: cost is, and what the emphasis is, and they really like it, and they come here on a visit physically.
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Craig Moropoulos: That's when you got a real chance, because then they're going to see my defensive coordinator. Don, will. They're going to meet him. My my special teams Coordinator Jackson. We they're going to get a chance to talk and and listen and and get because that's the best thing about our program is my staff. You know our guys that are very committed.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know very loyal, which are 2 words that
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Craig Moropoulos: a big domain. And so that's kind of the process. If they can, we can get them, and they they understand what the cost and what the the challenges will be, and they still want to come. Check it out. I hope they bring your parents.
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Craig Moropoulos: I usually leave here going well.
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Craig Moropoulos: because we're very, very thorough, very.
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Hong Lieu: And then, once they're here, is it just a matter of hooking them up with the Mojo, hooking them up with academic counseling, hooking them up with whatever resources they need, you know
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Craig Moropoulos: exactly, and and it before they get here, because, you know, like I said, we got to recruit all all spring, so they come in like tomorrow they'll bunch of will come in, and and I always tell him, hey, one thing at the end of the visit
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Craig Moropoulos: all you gotta do it. You want to come here and I that I never One thing we don't do here in our staff. We don't bad mouth. Anybody at any other school. There's no reason to do that. If I can't sell them on Santa Border City College.
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Craig Moropoulos: they need to go someplace else.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. And so that's one thing. And then, if they decide, I always encourage them. Go! Other places go, look.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. Go, look, and and you know, so you can make a real informed decision at the end. And then, if and when you say you want to be, when you think you want to come here, you call me personally, and you tell him, coach.
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Craig Moropoulos: I want to be a back
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Craig Moropoulos: Don't. Tell me that until you're serious, you know. Because yeah, we don't have a letter of intent. We don't have a scholarship to give, but i'm a man of my word. So if you tell me you're coming, you're coming.
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Craig Moropoulos: And so that's that's really important. And that's a big part of our recruiting business. But the academic support the financial aid support. You know the the housing is the biggest issue, both, you guys know, you know that's a big challenge here.
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Craig Moropoulos: So what we try to do is we try to. We have a incoming players list
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Craig Moropoulos: where we can have, you know, a Keelhill puts his name, or he, You know we'll send a Keel Hill, the list of our our incoming players, and all of a sudden he looks on there, and he finds out a guy. There's a lot of information about him Guy wants, you know, just wants a you know, 2 bedroom.
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Craig Moropoulos: 4 people. One I I like to study. I like to be quiet. I like that. Okay, let me. And he's from. You know he's from San Diego and I'm from San Diego. I'm gonna reach out to him. He's got emails and twitter and phone numbers.
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Craig Moropoulos: and they reach out to them, you know, and then we supply them on the recruiting visit with that information on that Powerpoint of the local housing. You know, from our student website, student housing website, you know they can look, and you know they got. They got the money, and they want to be real close. You know each city is really close. It's right there.
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Craig Moropoulos: but it's high. It's high rent, so they might want to look somewhere else and ladera the brazer. So anyways it's a challenge, and it's an ongoing challenge. But trying to be thorough and upfront and and transparent is the is the best way to do it.
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Hong Lieu: A. And in terms of the football side. I mean
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Hong Lieu: you all had a a pretty power rushing attack, you know, this past season. I mean it. Do you folks just want to play spread and throw the ball around, or do you have to sell them on that? You can win playing this like you know Russian for 200 plus yards of game, or do they just kind of see the results themselves, like, okay, yeah, I'm: i'm ready to go like that.
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Craig Moropoulos: But be honest with you when they, when they ask me, what do you do on offense? I always tell them you know. First of all.
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Craig Moropoulos: I can't tell you that, because every year it goes to, because if you're if you're a good at especially at this level, when you can't sign people, if I sign 3 running backs and 4 linemen and one quarterback, and I know what I got in 2 tight ends.
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Craig Moropoulos: That'd be a lot easier. Then I could say, i'm gonna do this. I'm gonna do that, you know. So what we have to do is we have to evaluate what we have and what we? You know what we i'm gonna run the football. I mean, that's that's just something I believe in. But how much it's hard to say. This year we had an outstanding running back.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and and an experienced offensive line and a very mature quarterback, so i'm sure the receivers, you know receivers. They want to catch them all, you know, but I I I try to impress upon them the fact that the better we run the ball.
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Craig Moropoulos: the more I always use the word costing. It's like as it more more caustic. We are to a defense because they they'll sell out to try to stop the run. Oh, then they're giving up, but test down over the top. And so it's just a matter of you know, telling them, hey, we got.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, a bunch of receivers and outstanding quarter, but we're going to probably throw the ball more. But if we've got a running back and a good tight end and a good experience off the line offense. Why, we won't run it. And that was big for us this year because people had a tough time. Stop and our rungue.
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Hong Lieu: Yeah, that and some of those downfield pancake blocks those receivers would throw in a spring touchdown is probably pretty satisfying, too. So
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Craig Moropoulos: yeah, absolutely long as they get to the zone. I'm: Good.
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Yeah.
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Akil Hill: So
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Akil Hill: you're off into line, You guys, you have me. You guys got coming back
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Akil Hill: next year.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, we've got 5 right now. Queue. We just had a young man, Simon Jackson, State Joshua. He's already there. He got into spring, and he loves it, and he loves and they love him.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah.
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Craig Moropoulos: And so you know, and the other, the other 3 guys are.
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Craig Moropoulos: and and I don't want to change the subject, but it's very related to it. But the transfer portal has thrown the whole world of college football into a tizzy, and what I mean by that it's it's really affected our guys and some high school players locally, who would have been recruited back in December.
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Craig Moropoulos: But trust me, these big schools, man, they're gonna They're gonna recruit the portal first.
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Craig Moropoulos: and they're just telling our guys Wait.
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Craig Moropoulos: wait. Well, that's easy to tell somebody. You know guys are getting impatient.
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Craig Moropoulos: And and so, Josiah. Luckily they really liked him. They really like what he did.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and took him. And so we've got some other guys that are kind of waiting. You know they've gotten d 2 offers, but they're kind of waiting because I've told them I, your patient, get into school. Finish a class.
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Craig Moropoulos: If you're patient. Something will happen, especially if you're offense or defensive Once it's not enough of those guys around.
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Craig Moropoulos: and so
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Craig Moropoulos: you know we'll see what happens. But
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Craig Moropoulos: the recruiting part of it has really been kind of
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Craig Moropoulos: No, no, I wouldn't say it difficult, but challenging because of that portal issue.
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Hong Lieu: So, for folks that don't know, coach, what? What change in the transfer
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Hong Lieu: transfer portal, what's what's been going on?
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Craig Moropoulos: What's the big change?
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Craig Moropoulos: The the big change is
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Craig Moropoulos: that in the old days if you left.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, if you went from
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Craig Moropoulos: Fbs division one
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Craig Moropoulos: to another. Fbs school, for example, if you go Sc. To Georgia, you got a city
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, you had to. Or if you went down
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Craig Moropoulos: Okay, if you went from Fbs down to Fcs, you go from Sc. To Count Poly.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know something like that. Then you could play
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Craig Moropoulos: okay. But most guys, when they leave they want to go to another D one. So what they did is they changed it. Now you can go. Jt. Daniels. I get you guys remember him.
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Craig Moropoulos: He went to Georgia. Then he went to West Virginia. Well, he just made his fourth transfer.
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Craig Moropoulos: I'm not sure where, he ended up, but
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. So now you have no penalty you can. You can transfer, and you know there's talk about trying to restrict them. There's talk about what they're going to try to get to and try to adjust, and and then, of course, to throw in the name, image, and Lightness, the Nil's. It's kind of crazy, I just becoming a while while West
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Craig Moropoulos: all across the country.
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Craig Moropoulos: and so but it's affected us in recruiting, and that's that's the thing about the portal that has made made a really really challenge.
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Hong Lieu: Yeah, you definitely see a lot more movement in the off. Season around with with with big quarter. You know a lot of backup quarterbacks. You would be starters and other teams. But at the same time, yeah, it's just it just feels like like kind of like a soccer transfer window, or like a free agency that's not free agency. So I I definitely see
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Craig Moropoulos: it's close to free agency. It's not much for loyalty anymore. That's for sure.
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Akil Hill: I was gonna say Jt: I think Daniel's ended up. I think he's going to rice
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Akil Hill: he coaches face on this he went to S. I'm. A s guy, so I I see to Georgia to West Virginia, and then I think he's at right now.
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Craig Moropoulos: I mean, and he did pretty good. If i'm not mistaken. I don't know what his stats are, but he would get pretty good at West Virginia wasn't like he failed.
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Craig Moropoulos: But that's a that's a different, even though they're both the FBI schools. It's a different level. Nothing against rice. But that's a different level
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Akil Hill: purposes. It's hard, right? So you're but look you, so you're 4 years at 4 different schools. How are you really developing? You know you start thinking about? Yeah, go ahead.
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Craig Moropoulos: One of the worst things to kill is this: I had a guy from you and Lv. Into my office last last Christmas time, right before we we were preparing for our bowl game.
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Craig Moropoulos: and he sat right in here, and he was accepted because I didn't know a lot about the portal back, and then, and he told me that he says coach, he says there are 300
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Craig Moropoulos: wide receivers
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Craig Moropoulos: in the portal.
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Craig Moropoulos: and I looked at him. Almost my jobs dropped on my table. I said, what 300?
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Craig Moropoulos: And it goes. Yeah, but that wasn't even the the key thing. The key thing is, he said, we have a running back, or excuse me, a linebacker who is a red gonna be a red, Sir Junior, meaning he's got 2 years left, and they just, and he was their best defensive player.
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Craig Moropoulos: best defensive player, and he was.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, just getting coming into his own, and they had worked real hard with him, and it won't be bolted with Kansas state, you know. So, unfortunately, unfortunately for Kansas state.
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Craig Moropoulos: it's like oh, my gosh! That's a that's a hit that doesn't. That's not easy. When you lose your your best defensive player, you know. And look at that in Oklahoma they lost Caleb Williams, you know. Of course he had a coaching change, and I was tough. You know the guy like that.
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Hong Lieu: you know it Go Sc: right? Yeah, I feel like that's how you take that problem. Just follow the coach. Right? Yeah, too. Too bad for Boomer. Sooner it's it's it's challenging, you know. And and it's just kind of thrown the from college football in for a loop.
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Craig Moropoulos: We'll see what happens if they make any adjustments.
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Akil Hill: Yeah.
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Hong Lieu: it's definitely definitely a changing landscape for sure.
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, yeah, I mean it's like, okay, I I I'm: i'm old school. I've been here for 17, and I've been coaching for 37 now.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, i'm. Still, man, it's about loyalty, and it's about fighting through
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Craig Moropoulos: adversity, you know. And now quarterback, you don't give as many reps you want, or why receiver, You don't give them any balls as you want. I'm a transfer. That's it. I'm a.
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Craig Moropoulos: I just don't think that my opinion I just don't think that's good for a young man, but
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, hey?
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Craig Moropoulos: Unfortunately, a lot of guys go to schools for coaches.
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Craig Moropoulos: They shouldn't they shouldn't go for coaches go for the school, go for the city, go for the area, you know, and don't go for coach, because just like Josh Gaddis at at Miami got fired today, and you know Zoe, after one year
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Craig Moropoulos: and 3 years ago, I think he was a coach of the year.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know he won the broils award. So
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Craig Moropoulos: coaches are going to be here and gone so.
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Craig Moropoulos: And then guys all my coach left. So i'm going to leave.
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Craig Moropoulos: and it just kills programs. And and I think about the I think about the human cost of recruiting, too, because I mean not not like you all. You're all a flying
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Hong Lieu: plane trips all over the place. But some programs are. And you're recruiting guys really hard, and you're working hard to get folks, and they may leave after see, it's almost like you need a recruiting trip, and then you need like the one year. Follow up and the second year fall. It's like, Make sure Everything's okay, like everything. Okay, we good, you know, like so it's
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Hong Lieu: there's a lot of there's a lot of a human cost that goes with with the ability to freely translate that. But it is, it is changing landscape, I know, you know. Go ahead.
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Craig Moropoulos: It's just it's just really hard at at even at this level. Really, that's been this way since I came here, you know.
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Craig Moropoulos: because we have such big turnover.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, put in, and kind of. That's the that's a good thing in a way, because if the guys leaving after one year, that means one.
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Craig Moropoulos: If you didn't quit.
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Craig Moropoulos: that means he's probably a qualifier. You, which means he had really good grades in high school, and he get the the sat or act testing to qualify, and you know, and now he can leave after one season. If he gets recruited. He has a great season, and Sc. Wants to come in and take him.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. Then he can go, and then he'd have 4 years to play 3. And so that's a you know. But my my point is, my point is is that
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Craig Moropoulos: you know it's it's just hard to build a program and maintain that program
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Craig Moropoulos: especially, you know. And let's just be honest with that in this town, with the cost of living the way it is here some of the schools that we compete against.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know they it's not that expensive in riverside. That's not that expensive in, you know, Baker's field, and those are the kind of teams that we're going to have to compete with. You know we're not going to talk. We're not going to run from them, but it's challenging, especially at this level.
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Craig Moropoulos: and that's everybody thinks it's you know it's great. I get to coach it. I've you'll get a kick. I've told to kill this before. Man. You get a couple of losses. Your quarterback, those couple of picks, All I got to do, man is. I got a look. You'll see. My screen is the opposite, but I just look left.
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Craig Moropoulos: I love my office, and I look at lead. Better beach and I go. You know what things are. Okay, you know it's not Don't. Take it, don't take it too hard, but
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Craig Moropoulos: you know it's it is what it is, and and you know this whole thing. This will transfer a portal, and everything is really put it, you know. Put it into a kind of a tail spin, I think
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Hong Lieu: Well, at the least we can put this out there, because I know. Listen to you. Talked for the last half hour. I want to run through a brick wall for your coach, so we we put that out to help. We get some more recruits coming this way. Listen to you how much you left them. Well, you know.
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Craig Moropoulos: Oh, yeah, it's it's a you know, and it's good to have staff that believe in. You know what you believe in and have like minds. You know we we work hard, we don't, we don't get. I don't worry about getting paid. You know for how many you know how many hours. Trust me, man! I I broke down how many, what an hour per hour I get paid is like 23 cents an hour.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, but I don't do it for that. I really don't, you know I i'm just doing it because I love this game. I love this place. I love this town. I grew up here, and so it's. It's really cool. If I worried about how much I've got paid, I wouldn't be here. Trust me.
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Akil Hill: he does it for the culture a keel. You hear that he does it for the coach, and it you got the vip parking spot, too, because he's the first one in the last one. Now, hey, man, you come in. You come in at 5, 15 ain't Nobody here, Nobody here but
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Akil Hill: coach got that same smart man every day. One day I saw his car move. I had a cinema, and I said, Wait you all here in parking with the commoners man.
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Akil Hill: and I had to leave it back by. So what took my spot?
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Craig Moropoulos: I came, hey, man, I came down one day, and I swore to goodness I look at your chat. You didn't sweat your you got on so I don't know that Teddy bear or something, but I I freaking. I saw I i'm walking down and out of my corner. My eyes Something ran at me. It was a possum, you know, because it was dark. Nobody was around.
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Craig Moropoulos: It was a possible it's scared that daylights out of me. My gosh! So trust me nowadays. When I come around the morning i'm head on a swimming. I look at what's going on. I can't do the road to that size. No, no, no! Oh, that that could have bit me. I'd have been laying there for 3 h before
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Akil Hill: you know you earn in your you're worth if you're coming into work early in the morning. You've seen possums, man like. They only come out late at night or early in the morning. Do you just try to get back?
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Hong Lieu: Oh, and on that? No, that's a perfect perfect segue to our next segment. What brought you to Svcc. So, coach? I know that the Maropolis name carries a lot of weight in this town, so I mean, if you but but what brought you? I Pcc. Because, you know, like I know you got deeper in the community. But but let's talk a little about your path to get here, and I know you've been for a while now. But what brought you here?
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, first of all, if my name, my last name carries any weight. It's because of my father, because my father was a legendary coach at Santa Barbara High School, and he was legendary because of one word.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know he was fair.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. He was fair to me as a son growing up. He's fared me as a player playing for him, but he was just, and and people really really respected him. And so like I said, if there's any kind of you know, weight in this communities because of Mike Muropolis, and
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Craig Moropoulos: you know I I think about him every day, and if I have any positives because of him, and growing up, you know, under him. And
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Craig Moropoulos: but I I I
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Craig Moropoulos: went to school. Yeah, he grew up in a keel. Can appreciate this. Mac was back in.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, in our day, and i'm older than a kill by a lot.
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But
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Craig Moropoulos: i'm kind of like, you know what this this place was different. You know the Gilbert's and the the families that were here in this town. You know the Boldens and the Gilbert, and they're not a lot of people that we know that. But a kill, does.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know? And that made Santa Barbara High School a special place, and and you know the the football program when I was a kid, was just dominant
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Craig Moropoulos: it, Sam Cunningham, and you know people like that. And so what i'm getting at is as I grow up, you know. I'm I'm watching film as a 6 year old kid, 5 year old kid, with my dad in the living room real the real.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, real the real. It would terror, and you'd have to stop the film and splice it back to Colds, place it back together, turn it on, but you know I did it because I loved it, and it built it. You know it. It built a passion in my heart, you know, for the game, and then coming up I mean you could not wait to go to Santa Barbara High School.
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Craig Moropoulos: You could not I mean it was like, oh, my gosh! Sixth grade, seventh grade, eighth grade, ninth grade, and of course back then it was only 3 3 grades so man tenth grade year, I'm at Santa Barbara High School, and i'm in Shangri-la because that was a so anyways, it got there, and I couldn't wait for my time, and I had a a chance to to play quarterback at samurai my senior year. You know I had great players with the guy, Tony Gilbert, who was just one of the best athletes, one of the nicest young men I ever knew
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Craig Moropoulos: passed away from Cancer a few years later, after he'd gone to Michigan State, but it was just people like that all over the place in Santa Barbara High School, and so you go there and then I left Santa Barbara high with CC.
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Craig Moropoulos: Played there for 2 years right here in in the stadium. When it was, I'd say it was grass, but it was 50, 50% grass and 50% dirt.
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Craig Moropoulos: And so we were a little bit challenged. But we were really good there, because when your city, when and we only have 5 schools in this direct, immediate area, but they were strong, and so we went to City College. We went there, and now we couldn't wait to get there and play. And then I went on and played at Cal Luther in 2 years, and
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Craig Moropoulos: and then I was a golf professional, you know. But I I love playing golf, you know I but I want to teach golf that wasn't my passion, and so I had a chance to go to University of Arizona as a graduate assistant 1,985, and that started my my trek through. You know, college football and I. I worked there for 14 years.
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Craig Moropoulos: not in Arizona, but I worked in college football for 14 years, and then, after the fourteenth year, I just kinda got tired of moving around changing places in the State, I mean in the in the country, and just got old, and so I had an opportunity to go back to Santa Barbara High, and I coach there for 7 years the head coach.
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Craig Moropoulos: and then Reggie Bolton was the head coach here. He called me, says he. Says, Greg, how how long you gonna be doing that over there?
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Craig Moropoulos: Because he knew I wasn't happy. I You know
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Craig Moropoulos: high school at the High School in Santa Barbara is not the same anymore. You know it's still still the same. It's still the same. It looks the same, and it's a great stadium now, but it just wasn't the same, and and I wasn't happy, you know, teaching PE and high school, and he knew it. He said, Craig, what
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. How are you going to do that? And I said, Well, I don't know what you got. And he said, I want you to come here City College and be my off as a coordinator.
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Craig Moropoulos: And and I thought, okay, I could still keep my job at Santa Barbara high and get over to the cause anyways did that we were really good, had a great offensive season, and then Reggie left to go work at Bakersfield College, and I got the job here, and
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Craig Moropoulos: you know the rest is history. I've been here for 17 years. We've had some up. We've had some downs, but it's been a great place to work. I love coming here every day. I could. Probably
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Craig Moropoulos: I can. Probably I leave my house. I live out in, you know, by the Monte Cristo Country Club. I could probably back my car out. Stop it, close my eyes, put the put the tires in the grooves and just get off Bath Street, get up the hill and park up top there without even opening my eyes. I've done it so much in the last 17 years.
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Craig Moropoulos: I see him in the freeway. So those are my grooves right there. I'm right there.
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Craig Moropoulos: It's like, yeah, man, when you do that. Trust me now it's it's like
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Craig Moropoulos: Sometimes it's like you don't even have to think it's just automatic. If I if I need to go to Mission Street.
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Craig Moropoulos: I always gotta go. I'm off on Bath. Oh, now I gotta get back on the freeway because it's just automatic for me. But it's it's just a great place to work, and I i'm having a great time enjoy.
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Hong Lieu: and it's good to hear. The dad was fair to the players, and to you, because there's times where sometimes the balance is off for you, better to one side than the other. But that consistency is key. I mean that it just it, at least a true lead by example as a parent. And that's what I you know. As a you know I have a son. I you for that? I try to be as fair as possible. But to yeah, that's when you see that as a kid.
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Craig Moropoulos: I mean that just really, you know, like yeah, that that that's the true test. I I I tell you one of the one of the toughest questions my dad ever had to answer
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Craig Moropoulos: was, Who was your favorite player that you coast?
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Craig Moropoulos: You know, any to a audience or to a group? He'd never say
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Craig Moropoulos: because he just didn't want to say.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know this person? Because what about that person, you know? And what about this person? What about those people? And he just felt like, you know he couldn't say because he Co. So many great people thought so many great people, you know. I tell you, a person that was was at Santa Barbara High School when he was there. Is Charles Schwab.
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Craig Moropoulos: Charles. Why would Santa Barbara High School? He's a golfer, you know. And then all the way up all through his experiences there, you know, I know, deep down one of his favorites was Sam Cunningham.
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Craig Moropoulos: because Sam was such a high high integrity, high character, phenomenal athlete, you know, and the keel can relate to that. I mean just a phenomenal athlete. But
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Craig Moropoulos: you know just people that had high character and high integrity, you know, were were people that he really appreciated. But I will say this: that
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Craig Moropoulos: he, one of his biggest
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Craig Moropoulos: one of us, a couple of the biggest pieces of advice to me. When I decided to get into coaching
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Craig Moropoulos: he always said, hey.
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Craig Moropoulos: this is a great field because you get a chance to teach people about life through the game you love.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. You get to teach them about being tough and mentally tough and persevering, and things like that.
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Craig Moropoulos: And
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Craig Moropoulos: but he was. He was always fair, you know he was always fair about it.
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Craig Moropoulos: And he, the second thing he told me is, Don't ever give up on a guy.
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Craig Moropoulos: because, you know, the the challenges are the ones that you really appreciate later on down in life, you know, because you it's easy to give up.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know, if you're coaching a guy, he challenges you and this and that, and I try to teach that in my coaching class that I I teach here at the college, you know, and I use that situation. And I always thought, you know. Okay, that makes a lot of sense. Then when you get challenged.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know God, Mrs. Practice or Guy.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, quits, or says he doesn't have the passion anymore, you know, or different reasons.
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Craig Moropoulos: And you just you could sit there and go. Okay. Go ahead. Get out of here.
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, that's just the opposite of what Mike Morop was taught me. You know now eventually that might happen.
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Craig Moropoulos: But the fact of the matter is, you know those are the challenges those that make us get.
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Craig Moropoulos: You know. That's why the transfer portal is just so bad to me. It's like that doesn't to me. It doesn't do anything for learning perseverance, you know, and and getting through tough times. And so, anyways, I really valued his his advice, and
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Craig Moropoulos: and and it's fairness. And so it's very important.
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Akil Hill: Yeah, because there's so many great points, you know that you make about.
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Akil Hill: You know, being from Santa Barbara and and the history in the historical context, that sometimes that get lost. You know.
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Akil Hill: you know. I know our families are close, so you know i'm a i'm a Gilbert, and
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Akil Hill: you know, just realizing, and it's funny that you say that you could wait to get to high school, because I remember in eighth grade everyone would go to the football games and would play on the side of the football field, because that's where it was at when you were in eighth grade. And and just the historical references are significant, because.
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Akil Hill: you know, so many great memories have been made in this community with, you know, families just from a small group of families, and it's quite different from now, but it's it's a pleasure to kinda hear the the stories that Harley
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Akil Hill: are being told anymore, you know, like the Boldens, the Cunninghams, the the Gilbert's, there is assumes, you know, just a small group of families, all living close by
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Akil Hill: and just sh shaping this, this, this city, bringing everyone together Friday nights underneath the lights, you know.
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Akil Hill: So I appreciate that a lot.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, I mean it just it was a. It was a a track meat at Santa Barbara High School when I was. Let's see 1,967
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Craig Moropoulos: right. I'm, 7 years old. Track meets were
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Craig Moropoulos: events that's almost like a concert, you know. People would just go and remember, at Santa Barbara High School. They ran the 100 on the grass because they didn't they had the old oval right, and it wasn't you couldn't get a 100 yards straight away.
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Craig Moropoulos: but they had guys, and I don't know Hong. I I don't want to board you with names that you might not know, but I love it. They have.
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Craig Moropoulos: They had a 4 by 4 relay, a 4 by one relay team that was elite.
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Craig Moropoulos: and it was a a a young man named Lionel Lamb, who started it off, and Lionel Lam was a 110. I hurdle Guy, Who was he? Let it off Number 2,
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Craig Moropoulos: Sam Cunningham, number 3, Tony Jackson
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Craig Moropoulos: and Number 4 was a guy named Grady Hurst.
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Craig Moropoulos: who Grady was a tail back, you know, and and all 4 of those guys were on the football team, you know. All 4 of those guys were on the football team, and it was talk about pretty. It was pretty to watch that that was the event. It was always last.
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Craig Moropoulos: They always ran the 4 by last, and it was like my gosh! That was that just brings back memories, and always brings tear to my 64 feet shop clerk, Sam.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know state or c. I have champion
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Craig Moropoulos: shopper. So it was. It was a special time, and hey, i'm a don, and i'm still a dawn, and i'll always be a don, you know the same once don always a dawn.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know I I it's a different era, and it's a different situation. But i'm still a dawn. I still see that that that interlocking logo, the green, and go which my dad started way back in the seventies.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know that's
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Craig Moropoulos: It's just a special feeling, and I know we all have what you know. We're all alumni of some school, but it's a special school, I believe it's the second oldest school in State of California.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and and
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Craig Moropoulos: you know there's a lot of history there, lot of history, and I can remember the kill when the dot when they come out from the tunnel they come out from under the stadium.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, the pit, you know. I used to stand as a 6 year old, and i'd stand on the railing and they'd come out. I used to always wear a suit. My brother and I used to wear a suit and tie that's crazy right.
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Craig Moropoulos: I mean, and they'd come out from the toilet man. We beat them on top of the head. Just yeah, yeah, it was just an event, you know, and and so it was special, and then basketball would come around, man. You could watch them all, Wilkes, you know, and don forward play basketball for those guys, you know, and
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Craig Moropoulos: just and then baseball would come around. You know. Booker Brown was a phenomenal baseball player, you know, and and so, anyway, a lot of history and a lot of sports and a lot of great memories Special place.
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Hong Lieu: They wouldn't have that nice football stadium today, if not for the history of the All baked into there, and in that tradition, you know. So
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Craig Moropoulos: there's a lot of
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Craig Moropoulos: lot of lot of people in that state lot of. You know, a lot of people that that that put a lot of effort. It's a great stage. It's a beautiful stadium, but I hope people don't forget about the people that you know. Talk about blood, sweat and tears. There's a lot of them.
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Hong Lieu: and that is, that is one of those things where I I notice a lot a lot of folks that if you take the time to learn the history, that's where the richness comes in. You really like the context of things and and nuance we we're losing a little bit of that where folks aren't really trying to look back, and
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Hong Lieu: I mean it's so hard to stay folks in the present that I don't blame a lot of them. But the same time the true richness of a place, the true. If you try, we talk about being about the culture. You can't be about the culture. If you don't know the history of things, and and and how things came to be, and and the people that that paved the way for how things are today. So it's it's it's essential.
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Craig Moropoulos: I tell you it is. I want to beat it up too much, but it's like, hey.
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Craig Moropoulos: It's what I talked about when the in the first start of this today.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. You ask me, what how do you get your guys to get through a season like that.
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Craig Moropoulos: and I told you it's every day, every
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Craig Moropoulos: moment, every play. I wish young People now would take every day, so everybody I can't wait till I get to college. I can't wait till you get hey, Enjoy the day.
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Craig Moropoulos: Enjoy your time, you know. Play every sport you possibly can.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and enjoy it. I played football, basketball, and I I I can remember
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Craig Moropoulos: parts of plan. I can remember baseball, my Junior year. I can remember going to the Santa Maria Tournament. We always go to baseball. I can remember minutes of, you know, in city college playing. I can airplane sophomore basketball, you know, and I just enjoyed it so much. I just think people lose that they they don't.
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Craig Moropoulos: They don't just focus on every day. Every step is like they should.
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Craig Moropoulos: and that you know it's just that's my feeling. And and you know I had a different experience, and and then everybody else. I had my own experience, but it made me real passionate about that place and this place and this town love it absolutely love it.
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Craig Moropoulos: People ask me.
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Craig Moropoulos: People ask me, hey, where you going on vacation? I look at my go. Are you kidding me?
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Craig Moropoulos: Where am I going? I'm going to Santa Barbara.
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Akil Hill: I call the Santa Barbara for vacation.
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Craig Moropoulos: No, I mean, yeah, it's nice to get away every once in a while. But good Gosh, yeah, this weather, this place, this beauty view. Oh, my gosh.
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Hong Lieu: well said, couldn't have said any better. I mean that that just
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Craig Moropoulos: perfect right there.
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Hong Lieu: Thank you, coach, All right.
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Hong Lieu: Good evening.
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Hong Lieu: So in in your life, in in the history of end of our my my specialty, my specialty, so that you cooked, or somewhere you've eaten. If there's a dish that that you just jumps out your mind right now. You want to share with the listeners at home.
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Akil Hill: Coach your Greek right?
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Akil Hill: So i'm hoping you come in with something by. I've been waiting for this. So what you got for it? You know me and I ain't skinny. So
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Craig Moropoulos: okay, Yes, my favorite, My favorite food
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Craig Moropoulos: is
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Craig Moropoulos: a Greek food called domestic. Some of refer to it as domest. They are grape leads.
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Craig Moropoulos: but there's 2 types of great leaves. So you take the grape lead.
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Craig Moropoulos: and you mix the mix that goes in as rice, lamb, and lemon, olive oil and lemon. Now that's one way you can make it. My grandmother used to always add a a red sauce
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Craig Moropoulos: okay into it. So they had a red tent to it.
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Craig Moropoulos: But then you wrap it, you roll it up. It's like a it's like a mini little Greek burrito with that in it it's unbelievable, and then they I found it kind of close the place of Mackenzie.
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Craig Moropoulos: It's up by Mckenzie, the Mckenzie market. Yeah.
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Craig Moropoulos: yeah, the Mckenzie market. They used to get them in from Greece they bring in in a can, and they had that they were more the lemon and olive oil, which are 2 staples in my house, but they used them can, and they had like 24 of them. Now we'll be honest with you. It was hard for me. I'd stop on the 20 fourth one, and go. Oh, I better cut back.
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Craig Moropoulos: I need 23 to those bad boys.
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Craig Moropoulos: so we but yeah.
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Hong Lieu: that's one of my favorite that's one of my favorites. We got a poor one out for a Mckenzie market, and that old Greek Deli that was on State Street, where the rising store is now Italian market. So Where do you go today? Where?
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, that's hard to say, because there's nothing around. Really, you can go get a the the low market metropolis. They have really good, you know sandwiches and and don't let me ever hear you call it gyro.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, but they're good. They're good, they're good.
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Craig Moropoulos: but you know it, and I I like to venture out. You know i'm a big loser fan. I'm a big that's my favorite place, and then i'm a big holder, you know, because I like my steak. Everyone's Bob.
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Akil Hill: My mouth is watering right now.
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Craig Moropoulos: But yeah, I I I've got quite a you know, a range. I like to cook myself, you know I like to.
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Craig Moropoulos: I don't get too extravagant. I'd rather just throw some chicken on a on a barbecue and and do it a different way, or things like that, or you know I don't get too crazy. But I I do appreciate. I tell you, a a good place. What is that? It's it's down on a
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the Delaware.
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Craig Moropoulos: It's a a
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Akil Hill: it's Lebanese food. It's it's Middle Eastern.
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Craig Moropoulos: Hey? Tunes agent.
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Craig Moropoulos: I I get a kick I get a kick out of that, because
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Craig Moropoulos: I know we might have talked about movies. But
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Craig Moropoulos: I, you know, a silly movie, but I really like to the
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Craig Moropoulos: the Zohan right? The movie with Avenue Solar. Okay? Well, in that, in that some of the names of the characters in that movie
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Craig Moropoulos: are right off of a Lebanese menu.
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Craig Moropoulos: and you go in and you look, and you go. Wait a second.
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Craig Moropoulos: There's Baba canoe, you know. Hey? That's you know. That was somebody that that, and that was a a food in the movie. But
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Craig Moropoulos: there, and I I remember those because my grandmother was
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Craig Moropoulos: 3 quarters Lebanese. My grandfather was full Greek. He came. He came across to Ellis Island when he was 12,
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Craig Moropoulos: okay, and by himself from Greece by himself, and then he moved to la, and then started a little produce cart
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Craig Moropoulos: and kind of built it to a a little produce store.
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Craig Moropoulos: But so my grandmother cooked a lot of Lebanese food, and so I like that place. So those are my 3 favorite restaurants, if you want to, if you want to PIN them. But i'm not going to turn down the the mesa or the Milpa Street Tacos. They're pretty sweet, too.
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Hong Lieu: and I will say, stay tuned in terms of outdoor dining experience. It's probably one of the best places. If you want to take someone to have a good time, sit by a fire pit, you know, like it. It's probably one of the best outdoor dining experiences in town Bar. Not so
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Craig Moropoulos: absolutely, absolutely really good.
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Craig Moropoulos: How about you? A you?
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Akil Hill: What's your come on now.
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Akil Hill: I like you. You're up.
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Akil Hill: I mean I'm going to just pig it back off. All that I mean, I think Los Angeles is is is a brilliant choice of I mean, there's so many locations. It's always great to see local business starting off small. I think their first location. What was their first milk to street was their First they went to Della Vena, and then from Da Vina they went to Galita, and then now there's one in oxnard like, so it's it's i'm a always a fan of of local businesses like exploding like that.
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Akil Hill: That's a great choice. It's really interesting. I also I, one of my passionate I have with food is, I love Middle Eastern food as well, and so you know it's really interesting with
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Akil Hill: the the cross bleeding when you said the Lebanese and the Baba Ganesh and the T. Bully solid, and all these type of.
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Craig Moropoulos: And then she used to have the time the name is left me, but it was actually raw lamb mixed with Bulgar wheat. It didn't have to be it didn't have to be raw. You could cook it, but then you put it with onion in a pizza bread.
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Akil Hill: and then you eat it with the tabooly. And you oh, man, touched this on me right there. Yeah, yeah, no, no worries in the Lebanese food. Also, too, like it's really interesting. How you know we talk about cultures and mixing, and
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Akil Hill: and you know you we start talking about like Mexican food, and and how.
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Akil Hill: What's the how is I always forget the image just because I don't eat it because I don't eat pork, but it's the pork on the skewer where they kind of shave off
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Akil Hill: A. L. El. Pastor. Right? So how that influenced by Lebanese food. And so yeah, yeah, exactly how it's all mixed in, so I can. I can respect it all.
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Akil Hill: And so yeah, i'm a big fan of of of like Mediterranean food. One of my good friends, and i'll leave you. This will be the last thing i'll say is she's from Armenia.
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Akil Hill: and her mother, like
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Akil Hill: you know, makes it's not like the dormant, but it's the cabbage leaf with the stuff with beef and rice, and it has a red sauce. And I'm telling you man this is like like I'll put the i'll. I'll put the fist up, man, to fight for that last.
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Akil Hill: because, you know, you know, sometimes people at the table are like, No, you eat it. No, you eat it. I'm like, do you want this? No, okay, thank you. So next time she makes some, cause I always request i'm gonna bring you over a batch, you know, because he would definitely appreciate it.
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Craig Moropoulos: I tell you what, I, as a kid, I grew up because my like I said my grandmother. She cooked both Greek and Lebanese, and she kind of cross makes them a little bit the pastries, Baclava. Oh, yeah, she's never had baked a lot. Well, they they had. She used to make
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Craig Moropoulos: a version of baccala, because again it's what's inside. That's the big. But they use that Phyllo dough that paper thin dough.
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Craig Moropoulos: and they make it in a triangle.
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Craig Moropoulos: Okay, and they call it so. Bakla ball is roll, and it's rolled in it, and kind of like a long tube, and then they cut it right Well, the you! You wrap it up in a triangle. Oh, my Gosh, just I mean we used to, and you could freeze it.
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Craig Moropoulos: So we bring home just bunch of, and you could freeze it, and then just put them in the micro. Just don't go too much, but get them soft. Oh, man, just awesome.
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Craig Moropoulos: absolutely. It's a little noodly shaped one that's kind of round all. Yes, yes, and then there's I don't know if you've ever had, because of speaking of Phyllo, there's a a a a dish in Greek called Funny copied, and it's
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Craig Moropoulos: It's a it's spinach mixed with feta cheese in a triangle.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah. Oh, hey, okay, I got it. I gotta tell you this: I all my stops and call it a college football. I was. I was working to Alabama a. And M. University in Huntsville, Alabama.
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Craig Moropoulos: Great experience. It's an Hbc. You right, and so I i'm down there, and and
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Craig Moropoulos: and I was the only Anglo on staff
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Craig Moropoulos: right, and i'm out of my element that I didn't know I had never moved. I'd never lived in the South.
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Craig Moropoulos: but I got down there my first season. One of my coaches goes. This is like, maybe December right after Thanksgiving he goes. Come
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Craig Moropoulos: come on, let's go. Let's go. I'm going to go to my grandmother's house, and
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Craig Moropoulos: who I didn't. I didn't know what I was getting myself into, but she.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, they lived about. They lived up just in the bottom part of Tennessee, which was maybe 30 miles from where I was living, so we hop in the car. We go up there.
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Craig Moropoulos: and we go in there, and there's about 5 of us. We sit down at the table, and that grandmother opened up the fridge
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Craig Moropoulos: because it was just. It was a couple about a week after Thanksgiving
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Craig Moropoulos: she woke up. She broke out the and her fridge was you, and you talk about every part, every piece of of tupperware that you ever saw just in there, and she's pulling stuff out
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Craig Moropoulos: that she's good, and she's getting the stove on, and she's cooking this stuff the kill, I mean, you know I I got it. Yeah, because i'm in California. You don't give me soul food places that are really legit right.
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Craig Moropoulos: and but I mean I got it. Oh, my gosh! She pulled out things, ham, hawks, and and
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Akil Hill: you know, although, after all.
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Craig Moropoulos: I I I wasn't going to eat a couple of things I wasn't gonna try it. The
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Akil Hill: what do they call it the the chitlins?
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Craig Moropoulos: No, I couldn't. I couldn't go there, and I, you know i'm a little picky to certain things. I just don't like the look of, and but man, the food it was so good just everything was, and I mean when they feed you and and my my my Buddy said. My d line Code says you say it, Code.
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Craig Moropoulos: All I ask you is
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Craig Moropoulos: if she gives you more food, just eat it because you don't want to, he goes. You don't want to offend her by not eating her food. Oh, my gosh! You talk about overeating! Oh, just kept coming. It kept coming, and then that the other one that I couldn't eat.
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Craig Moropoulos: What's it called Hogg's head cheese.
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Craig Moropoulos: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't mess with that. No man. I. They used to go down the street from our office and get that, and i'd always give like a pepper, Jack cheese, or something to eat, you know.
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Craig Moropoulos: and just. I just wanted to be kind of fellowship with them. But, man, I love it. So. Food down there I mean, it's legit, and it was awesome.
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Akil Hill: Yeah.
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Akil Hill: Yeah. Great story.
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Hong Lieu: Oh, yeah. So my my pick this week is along those lines as well. There's a new Mediterranean restaurant. It's on Lower State Street
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Hong Lieu: called to the Mediterranean Street kitchen.
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Hong Lieu: and it's in a place that has had some turnover, so I don't know how long they'll be there, but hopefully. They'll be there a while, because they do have Dlamas, but they what they I really love there, and I mean they have form a utos and all that stuff but the tomb, the garlic sauce, the garlic sauce there is, like my my favorite garlic sauce in la is from Zank out chicken.
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Hong Lieu: and they're they're kind of known for that. They do. They do swarm up, but the it's also knocking on knocking on your butt. If you're not careful, and this place has that kind of God sauce that has that punch to it, that that where it just goes well with everything.
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Hong Lieu: Where, where is it? It's on. Next to what was it? The bars be like a blind tide? That 1 3 story bar that's a it used to be.
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Hong Lieu: It's like 4, I think 4 30 State. Let me get the address real quick, cause yeah, it's, it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's it's, it's, it's it's it's it's, it's it's, it's, it's, it's, it's it's it's, it'
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get that directions, real quick
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Hong Lieu: I can I this is yeah, for 13 state, so it's a
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Hong Lieu: it's it's, it's lower.
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Hong Lieu: Where is it? By like like hold rins, or or it's it's, it's where the shark is used to be. It's across the street from where the shark is used to be. So down there we're yeah, that that part, that part still open to cars and stuff. Yeah, okay. So do you remember? Here's here's exactly where it's right. Remember queues.
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Akil Hill: Yeah, yeah, it's next door to next door to the queues, though, the 3 story that used to be queues. Yeah, man, I used to.
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Akil Hill: I just I totally mind this. My, it left me because you know how you block out certain memories.
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Akil Hill: but it was like, what's the in that smile? I just totally boxed up. But yeah, it's right. Excuse.
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Craig Moropoulos: Did you ever go a a appeal. Did you ever go to the old Italian Delhi when it was on Olive Street? Yeah, of course, of course
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. Give me the the sandwich, and he go into the actual olive the big jars of all you know. I put that big. I was a real deal olive oil now. That was no joke.
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Akil Hill: We used to go. That was our thing. When we were high school, like we were playing football. We would go every Friday or every not Friday, but I I every Friday for lunch. That was kind of like the team thing where everyone walk over and
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Craig Moropoulos: so close by.
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Akil Hill: and that was awesome.
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Craig Moropoulos: And they've done a you know. My my guys, Dino and Ellie over the Italian Deli. Now they they tried to.
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Craig Moropoulos: They tried to keep the the real. Those sandwiches are are pretty. They're still good. Oh, yeah.
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Craig Moropoulos: yeah, they're they're and they're pretty true to what Gino used to make. A the taste is awesome.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, i'm gonna have to go there today. I'll just talk about food. Got me on your too. I would. Yeah, cause it. I there they close it. Really. Sometimes i'm always about that super deluxe life. I'll yeah, that's super deluxe is where it's at
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Hong Lieu: all right. Great Pixie, All Thank you so much. All right. We'll roll it along last second hire learning. So coach piece of culture, book, movie music to you anything that's touch your life throughout your life, or recently that you want to share with shares. Listen to home. You can kick us off.
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Hong Lieu: Oh, there it is! Oh, he! You don't want to see the Ucla love You don't want to see the Ucla love. But, John, what is universal? He's above it all, he's above it all.
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Craig Moropoulos: absolutely. You know this this book is my textbook for my class.
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01:06:00.300 --> 01:06:03.089
Craig Moropoulos: and you know it's not where he coached
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01:06:03.120 --> 01:06:13.369
Craig Moropoulos: It's not. You know who he was. It was just you want to talk about fair. I mean if somebody said, who's your 2 favorite people in coaching my dad's number one, John wouldn't second.
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01:06:13.500 --> 01:06:19.260
Craig Moropoulos: because if you read that book, or if you know anything about John Wooden, I mean, why would Lou? I'll send her
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01:06:19.490 --> 01:06:24.939
Craig Moropoulos: leave Power Memorial, which is back in New York and come all the way up to the West Coast
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Craig Moropoulos: and and go to Ucla.
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, it was because
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01:06:29.430 --> 01:06:48.369
Craig Moropoulos: Jackie Robinson Ray for Johnson, Dr. Ralph Bunch. Those people right there gave testimonial testimonials about John Wooden, and how he was blind to color. I mean, it is part of the books part of what I teach you about fair. I mean it's just a and here comes, you know, Lou, I'll send over out to and and does. Such a.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, has such a legendary career.
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01:06:51.160 --> 01:06:53.790
Craig Moropoulos: you know, but that's a heck of a move across the country.
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01:06:53.870 --> 01:06:56.560
Craig Moropoulos: you know. And and he turned down a recruit
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01:06:56.600 --> 01:07:09.940
Craig Moropoulos: one day, and it'll be going to Houston, and when they beat Ucla one time, because in his in his interviews recruiting interviews, he disrespected his mom. John wouldn't said that's it. Got up, walked out. Didn't recruit the guy, and I was a great player.
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Craig Moropoulos: But little things like that stick with me, you know. They stick with me, and that's Why, you know I read, but I I don't read a lot, but I read that book. That's my coaching Bible, you know, and it just means so much, because it's all about, you know character and integrity and the pyramid of success. It's just it's pretty pretty special.
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Craig Moropoulos: absolutely. I I I got to admit I mean i'm big on music, but the thing I like about my music is.
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01:07:41.850 --> 01:07:43.469
Craig Moropoulos: you know, there aren't too many
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01:07:43.590 --> 01:07:47.620
Craig Moropoulos: too many, you know, genres that I don't like and appreciate.
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01:07:47.690 --> 01:07:52.240
Craig Moropoulos: you know, like I love, I love
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01:07:52.300 --> 01:07:58.950
Craig Moropoulos: alternative. I love, you know, alternative music. I, one of my favorite bands, ever is tears for fears.
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01:07:58.970 --> 01:08:09.289
Craig Moropoulos: you know, and and the new order, and the smiths and and the PET shop boys. But I also am a big fan of
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01:08:09.310 --> 01:08:14.730
Craig Moropoulos: you know the the whole. I love the movie too straight out of Compton. I loved
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01:08:14.840 --> 01:08:20.900
Craig Moropoulos: the Nwa I loved, you know. I don't, you know. If I listen to it, it's just me. I I don't.
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01:08:21.080 --> 01:08:28.029
Craig Moropoulos: you know I got it. It's got to be clean because I i'm not a not that i'm a straight talking guy. I never cust, but I just like
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01:08:28.090 --> 01:08:44.299
Craig Moropoulos: the the music I love Dr. Dre. I love Snoop, you know, and and ice cue, and you know just I just love that. So I have a pretty wide range of music. I'm not a big classical guy. I'm not a big opera guy, but that's about it. Everything else I love.
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01:08:44.410 --> 01:08:45.309
Craig Moropoulos: How about
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Akil Hill: I can test it? I can testify to that, too, because I think what a few times I had to go down there for some work related stuff, and he's always like I'm always like astonished when I walk in. I'm like, hey?
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Akil Hill: You list the new addition
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01:09:00.260 --> 01:09:18.200
Akil Hill: like day. You the candy girl right now like. So I I I can testify to that, because i'm always like our own what he's listening to. So yes, that's that's a true I used. My My ring tone now is is
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01:09:18.510 --> 01:09:35.659
Craig Moropoulos: is Kilroy and Justin Bieber. You know it's a song right? And that kind of blows people away. But before that it was it was Snoop, do you know? And and hey, hey! When that comes on people around here like, who is it? Us. Cosm. Rocks Ring Tone.
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Craig Moropoulos: Oh, you came to blows the kids what they were, Coach, You listen to Snoop.
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Craig Moropoulos: Okay. What do you think, man?
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Hong Lieu: I I can just imagine practice starting, and they're like coach. Throw something on to really r the guys up and the PET shop boys and the kids or fears comes on. I I I love those bands full of Sc. I love petrified boys, and but also how can you put the disclaimer of
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Hong Lieu: It's gotta be clean, but your name in nwa Dr. Dre, it's not. You could just say it. It doesn't have to be clean. You can say you love hip, hop, you know, like we could just go. You know
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Craig Moropoulos: I it's just it's a it's a me thing I i'm not.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and I I don't need to profess anything here. I just i'm not a i'm not a fan of music to use the end. We're consistently, and we don't our football team, and they? And trust me for some guys. That's that's a term of endearment. They they use that all the time, and I just tell them I said, I don't care if you're white, brown, or black.
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Craig Moropoulos: You don't use that word not on my football program. So I just love the music. That's why I like to clean music, you know it's not the you know the f word we don't wanna we don't want to use that too much, but i'm not perfect, you know, but I don't use that word. I don't use it, and Mike and and I was brought up that way
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Craig Moropoulos: because I I hung around on Kenyatto Street with the fricking Boldens, you know, and I I just
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Craig Moropoulos: I You know they're just part of my family, and so I just. I just don't like it. And so that's why I use. You know the clean, and it's tough with Nwa. It was tough because it it it chops up a lot of this. But God, I love, I love me some snoop, and I love you some ice.
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01:11:16.420 --> 01:11:21.129
Craig Moropoulos: you know, some ice cube. And and Dr. I love, hey, I loved
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Hong Lieu: the super Bowl halftime last year, and that's a nice thing about when when drain, and then we're coming up. They will record clean versions of all their tracks so you could have both. They have the it's not all chopped up when I came. I love that. I I watch it on Youtube.
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Craig Moropoulos: I watch that that that half time, you know of that and 30 cent. And oh, my gosh! It's pretty cool, but that's that just keeps me in, you know. By the way, if you spoke about football on paft or in in practice, we got a a nice beat, you know. Nice, huge. I bought it for the program last year.
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Craig Moropoulos: It's about a 3 foot 4 foot tall speaker that
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Craig Moropoulos: that we have it blowing during practice. You know it's it's it's going, and it's not always. I tell my my assistant coach, I said everyone. So you got this country on there, you know, but it's all kinds of music because guys get pumped.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and that's most of the time. It's music that they would like. But you throw on some snoop dog, and I guarantee you some guys are be going. Yeah, Who gets control of that speakers? They that's like a reward is that we I just good to practice. You get to put the next couple of
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Craig Moropoulos: I've got an assistant that's required to get it out there, but if I hear something that I don't like, I just. I just give him that. I'm looking like Jackson.
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Craig Moropoulos: and he he knows to advance that song. But I music's huge, and it's a it. That's why I listen to it every day like a keel mentioned.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know, and and it helps me block out a lot of things, you know. Stuff going on in the office. It helps me block it out and get focused, because when i'm watching film, i'm listening to music.
492
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Craig Moropoulos: But it's a pretty wide range of of taste.
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Craig Moropoulos: hey? Great! I don't know If you've ever heard of the the group Electronic.
494
01:13:01.890 --> 01:13:03.230
Hong Lieu: Oh, no.
495
01:13:03.790 --> 01:13:05.440
Craig Moropoulos: Okay. Look it up.
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01:13:05.510 --> 01:13:06.870
Craig Moropoulos: Electronic
497
01:13:06.930 --> 01:13:08.780
Craig Moropoulos: is 3 members.
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Craig Moropoulos: Okay, Johnny Mar.
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01:13:11.290 --> 01:13:24.320
Craig Moropoulos: That's right. So Johnny Mars from the Smiths best best guitar player and writer. That's right. It is Bernard Summer, from new order of new order, and then.
500
01:13:24.600 --> 01:13:31.429
Craig Moropoulos: and then. Oh, my gosh, yeah, you know tennis from the PET shop boys.
501
01:13:31.500 --> 01:13:38.769
Craig Moropoulos: and so check out some of those. So it's pretty good. They didn't real 10. It only did 2 songs, but it's good. It's good stuff.
502
01:13:39.000 --> 01:13:50.190
Hong Lieu: yeah, like like I've I've said in previous episodes my sister's raised me on on the new wave. So like a razor. Petch up, boys, all that stuff, I mean the smith, the the All man.
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Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, they got. They got the diversity in sound. The B 50. Is they really good rock lobsters and all that? Yeah, yeah, Exactly 2 years ago I went and saw it at the Bowl tech county bowl. I saw a culture club
504
01:14:03.730 --> 01:14:06.760
Craig Moropoulos: B 52, and the the
505
01:14:07.380 --> 01:14:17.379
Craig Moropoulos: Thompson twins, and the year before that I saw tears for fear. So yeah, I I can. Now, before we move on, I, you said, I want to hear what it kills. Got
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01:14:17.440 --> 01:14:21.090
Hong Lieu: That's what I want to hear. Okay, so
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Akil Hill: since we
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Akil Hill: I I was gonna say so. I was gonna I had a choice. But since we're divulging things that we listen to, that, people may not normally
509
01:14:29.860 --> 01:14:31.530
Akil Hill: think that we listen to.
510
01:14:31.620 --> 01:14:33.419
Akil Hill: I'm about to be a 100
511
01:14:33.440 --> 01:14:48.330
Akil Hill: and 10% transparency to the listeners, and the mountains will be moved, and the draws will drop. One of my favorite songs that I I just cannot. I listen to it all the time
512
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Akil Hill: is guilty by Barbara Strison, and very good. Nice. That is one of my favorite long time. It's a great song. Good! I listen. I i'm a fan of yacht rock. I'm a huge fan of yacht rock. But that sound guilty?
513
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Akil Hill: That's my joint. That's what I listen to. That's my jam. So that's my choice. That's my pick for the week. If you have not heard this song. I don't know what you've been doing with your life, but checking about guilty between very Barbara strikes and and very good.
514
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Craig Moropoulos: It's a all time, Classy and I'm throwing all this in the show. No, you will just have a good old time going to the show notes for sure. Absolutely. The Gibbs man the bee gee's! Oh, my gosh! There's some there's some legendary music going on there, but that's cool. That farmer Stricen was special.
515
01:15:34.990 --> 01:15:38.059
Craig Moropoulos: or her voice is just
516
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Craig Moropoulos: a special. It's a special tone to it, and there's a few of them. But you know I I
517
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Craig Moropoulos: I appreciate that. You know what I appreciate that, because nobody would have said that if you said, I guess what a keel loves. Guess what song he loves.
518
01:15:51.790 --> 01:16:09.960
Craig Moropoulos: Nobody would say that nobody's say Rob's listening to eighty's alternative, or you know the the new way sound, you know. But little do they know. Little do they know, and that's the beauty of it, and that that that's the thing is like the the measure of a person like what makes the whole person.
519
01:16:09.970 --> 01:16:21.310
Hong Lieu: It it's not just the things that you think that you would expect. It's all the little touches that those other things add that make. I mean, you talk about being about the culture. You cannot be only about a certain part of the culture. You gotta
520
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Hong Lieu: be able to take it all in and accept it, or accept it, or choose to to leave that out of your life, or whatever. But you have to at least be exposed to it, and understand that experience, and and you know, going back to your your John wouldn't pick no Kareem Kareem was the first basketball player I ever love. I truly love like I shoot a hooks out because the creep and Kareem also brought me to John Wooden, so
521
01:16:41.070 --> 01:16:52.830
Hong Lieu: that book would in on leadership with the you know, success, period and stuff. I mean, it's just tenets that are really I mean, we talk about not not knowing your history and losing track of things John wouldn't preach, you know a most. You like
522
01:16:52.840 --> 01:17:02.770
Hong Lieu: keeping your emotions in check, not not to say you don't be emotional, but to keep things in check. You. You know he and he he's always trying to to stay level, headed under pressure under, you know, and and he just
523
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Hong Lieu: he has, you know, success period, like the lessons in those books like reading John Wood Leadership books, anything he ever wrote, and in anyone that ever has anything to say about him, I mean, you will go a long way in terms of being a better, not just a better sportsman, sports person, but just a better human being in terms of learning about. You know the the depth and breath of human existence. There's a lot from John Wooden and all the creams writings, you know, like cream over the years. Has it has been a prolific author and has been had a ton of life experiences once again. You might not expect Korean to, you know.
524
01:17:32.780 --> 01:17:41.070
Hong Lieu: really be in the jazz, really be, you know, trained with Bruce Lee and all this stuff. But once, you know, and get all of that death, and that it makes so much more sense.
525
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Hong Lieu: You know you telling me about Patch. I voice now it makes a lot more sense about how open, how you'll be open to some things, and a lot of things. Because yeah, absolutely. Well, I tell you that that you mentioned that. And there's a chapter in the book called Emotion is your enemy.
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Craig Moropoulos: And if you just said, hey, you know, if you tell one of our new guys coming in, hey? Do you have to have a motion to be good in football, they would probably think, oh, yeah, kind of be intense, you know. You gotta be this. You gotta be that
527
01:18:07.970 --> 01:18:12.620
Craig Moropoulos: motion and emotion is your enemy. I mean you can't. You cannot let it overtake you.
528
01:18:12.700 --> 01:18:16.960
Craig Moropoulos: You know you cannot get so caught up in a call by the rest.
529
01:18:17.070 --> 01:18:36.489
Craig Moropoulos: you know, and that's what he said, You know with with him, you know he he had to. He had to kind of model that that restraint, so to speak. But you know intensity was not one of you got to be intense, but he use terms like more like focus, you know, and things like that to where you know, because emotion
530
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Craig Moropoulos: you get too crazy and you to up type. You're gonna forget about a little thing, and then you're gonna get beat. And so that was that was really, you know, that was really typical. But when you talk about, you know, just
531
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Craig Moropoulos: break in either. Yeah, not necessarily a stereotype, but it kind of is
532
01:18:51.840 --> 01:18:53.550
Craig Moropoulos: a keel Hill
533
01:18:54.030 --> 01:19:11.830
Craig Moropoulos: likes Barry give, and Barbara's that's a new thing for me. I will not feel that there's one thing i'm taking from this podcast. It's that dude right there. I love it, and I love it that is, that's cool. I really like that.
534
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Akil Hill: I appreciate.
535
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Hong Lieu: Bring it in full circle. What else that John Win preach being a lifelong learner. So coach is still learning today about a keel. And yeah, I I was gonna pick something, and and I I guess I still could. But I I wanna I want to ask you all question, because, you know, this is a kind of a sports related episode. And the thing about sports that I think about all the time
536
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Hong Lieu: is that sports is, you know we talk about. We're just playing a game. But the reason sports is so important to people is because you is a true test. Like you have a competition, and all things being being equal, the better team will win because you have rules in place.
537
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Hong Lieu: and you follow those rules, and the you know the reps can screw you. That's the variable that we don't want to talk about. You're there, but you you have rules in place, and if you follow those rules and play to the best of your ability, and you're better than the other team. You will win.
538
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Hong Lieu: So how do you prepare folks in for a world that doesn't function like that you know you. You have. You know people can come up their whole lives playing sports, and they get a job at one. You know their first company outside of the sports would like it's totally the opposite. Everyone's screwed each other over back, but you know, behind them I can't deal with this.
539
01:20:17.200 --> 01:20:36.410
Hong Lieu: I mean I, and it's one of the things where we talk about meritocracy. And you know we know. Now, meritocracy is a myth in most areas sports is not one of those areas, and that's the thing that's so beautiful about sports, and why you root so hard. Because you really do believe, and and usually you know it. It's a raft or something else that that that throws a range into things, or just a you know, weather this and that whatever. But
540
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Hong Lieu: in terms of you, you especially coach, because you you know you You got players coming in and out, and and i'm sure they're coming back to you after another experience.
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Hong Lieu: How do you? I mean, what is your advice? How do you? I mean it? It's something I think, about all the time. How do you advise people who are brought their whole lives thinking of the world as a certain way, and if it if you, if you play the right way, quote unquote.
542
01:20:56.250 --> 01:21:08.159
Hong Lieu: Then then you will win, and then it doesn't work like that, and it breaks people, you know, like it. It's it's painful, and it's been painful for me to reflect on that over the years, and I just wanted to kind of pick your brain on that, as you know.
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Craig Moropoulos: Well, first of all that's a that's a real challenge, because, you know, there's the the adage that you know. Everybody gets trophy right. You grow up where everybody gets a trophy.
544
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Craig Moropoulos: and they don't learn it, You know, when you get to the higher levels.
545
01:21:21.890 --> 01:21:29.869
Craig Moropoulos: you you know there's gonna be a loser, you know, and and you have to learn how to handle that. Now you don't throw your helmet down.
546
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Craig Moropoulos: you know you don't. You don't kick somebody. You don't punch, you know, and you just gotta try to teach them the difference. But I i'll tell you right now while you're while we're talking, and how you've got a computer there. Pull up the the pyramid of Success
547
01:21:43.130 --> 01:21:46.989
Craig Moropoulos: Wooden's Pyramid of success because my point is going to be
548
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Craig Moropoulos: at the top of the pyramid.
549
01:21:48.990 --> 01:21:51.500
Craig Moropoulos: Okay, if you look at what
550
01:21:51.590 --> 01:21:52.380
Craig Moropoulos: that
551
01:21:52.860 --> 01:22:07.910
Craig Moropoulos: top block is because the the bottom block to me is is where you start, and loyalty is the center of the foundation. But at the top. It's called competitive greatness. Now, if you just ask somebody, you know that didn't know anything about how you build that
552
01:22:08.070 --> 01:22:12.079
Craig Moropoulos: you'd say, what is great, what is great, all winning, winning all your games?
553
01:22:12.520 --> 01:22:18.260
Craig Moropoulos: No, no! What's what it is is trying to get each and every person
554
01:22:18.820 --> 01:22:21.059
Craig Moropoulos: to give a 100%
555
01:22:21.440 --> 01:22:27.789
Craig Moropoulos: of what they have not. I can't give the same appeal has, because i'm not a keel. I can just give
556
01:22:27.830 --> 01:22:33.119
Craig Moropoulos: 100%, and if I do, and then the guy next to me does, and a kill gives a 100%
557
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Craig Moropoulos: every moment. And you're going to be You're You're going to be as good as you can be. That may not translate to wins all the time.
558
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Craig Moropoulos: but if you gave it everything you got.
559
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Craig Moropoulos: and it didn't work out to be a way you can be proud of yourself. You don't have to be happy. Nobody's happy when you lose a game or lose a a a contest. But the fact of the matter is, you did the best you could.
560
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Craig Moropoulos: that's all you can do.
561
01:22:56.180 --> 01:22:59.280
Craig Moropoulos: and you've got to teach them that that's what you're trying to get
562
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Craig Moropoulos: and and praise them when they do that.
563
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Craig Moropoulos: And you know it's it's it's hard these days, because kids get so much pressure from their parents to win when, when, when, when you know, hey, we but if they equate winning, you know a success. Excuse me. They equate success with winning.
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Craig Moropoulos: That's where you kind of blur the line. And so one of the things i'm most proud of is some things some guys, some other coaches that I I talk with across the the State. You know that when they played us we won the right way.
565
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Craig Moropoulos: You know we we did it the right way. You know. We played for 4 quarters.
566
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Craig Moropoulos: We, you know it's not that we never had a penalty. It's not that we never had a somebody do something that wasn't, you know, ideal in in our.
567
01:23:43.140 --> 01:23:48.229
Craig Moropoulos: you know, in our program. But the fact of matter is, if you see somebody doing something like
568
01:23:48.340 --> 01:24:00.279
Craig Moropoulos: you know, celebrating or or to me a running back scores of touchdown he we try to teach him. Hey, turn around and find the first fat guy running at you from your school and go give him a hug
569
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Craig Moropoulos: because those guys are the ones that got you to the end zone.
570
01:24:03.510 --> 01:24:14.680
Craig Moropoulos: Don't, sit there and pound your chest and draw attention to yourself because it's not like that, you know. You just got to worry, hey? And you gotta say, hey, Hong! If you do 100 your best, and it killed this one.
571
01:24:14.820 --> 01:24:16.770
Craig Moropoulos: Craig. You do 100% of your best.
572
01:24:16.850 --> 01:24:18.110
Craig Moropoulos: More than likely
573
01:24:18.130 --> 01:24:20.220
Craig Moropoulos: we're going to be successful at the end of the day.
574
01:24:20.580 --> 01:24:23.660
Craig Moropoulos: But now the big question is, are you giving a 100?
575
01:24:23.820 --> 01:24:26.390
Craig Moropoulos: Oh, this guy's loaf, and he's given 80.
576
01:24:26.410 --> 01:24:40.379
Craig Moropoulos: Well, if you did that, you just wasted that rep, and I wouldn't was like that. You can't give 90. They his big thing is there's no such thing as 1 10. There's no such thing. It's too easy, as it's too easy a cliche to say I'll give 110%.
577
01:24:40.540 --> 01:24:55.999
Craig Moropoulos: No, you can't. You can't give 91 time, and 110 to make up for it, because you already wasted that that day you gave 90. So just getting your guys all try to point in the right direction and give the best you know. The most they can give. Can't ask for much more than that.
578
01:24:56.940 --> 01:24:58.160
Akil Hill: Yeah, it.
579
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Hong Lieu: And there's a lot to be said for finding that piece from within like a lot of times folks look to the outside. Oh, if I win this championship, if I win this game. If I do this, if I do that, that's where the happy, not not to say happiness, is not the goal. That's where that satisfaction will come.
580
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Hong Lieu: But really that size fashion comes from you within, knowing you truly did give it your all. Because, yeah, 100 is, is is a term, but it's like. Did you really put it all out there, or are you really trying your best? And and even in the situations where the world is unfair, like, you know, in another job that I was talking about if you did your best.
581
01:25:28.960 --> 01:25:31.789
Hong Lieu: and if if there's a way to kind of filter out all the
582
01:25:31.920 --> 01:25:44.389
Hong Lieu: bull malarkey that is all around you. Then there's still a a measure satisfaction to drop from that. But the I guess another, a a second like a piggyback question. That is the one thing I don't see on John wouldn't spear Miss Essence that is some that the that's the humility
583
01:25:44.630 --> 01:25:54.229
Hong Lieu: humbling, and in in a sports environment or on the streets. You either humble yourself or you are humbled by others. But we are. We are increasingly entering the world
584
01:25:54.240 --> 01:26:05.950
Hong Lieu: where that that is losing. It's it's it's a fact where where the goal is not to be humbled at all, the goal is to be the biggest, most boisterous, you know, like. So so I mean
585
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Hong Lieu: in a I feel like on a team environment, the sports, you know
586
01:26:09.010 --> 01:26:25.239
Hong Lieu: It's more environment. It's easy to find that you only the humble yourself in terms of how you perform, or or your team a home with you by hey? You ain't as good as you think you are, etc., etc. But in that, and for folks that don't play sports or folks that never have that come up, and they're just, you know, Internet stars from the from the time they're 12 going forward. I mean.
587
01:26:25.770 --> 01:26:33.539
Hong Lieu: can that come from anywhere else? Or is there a is there a way to to impart that to people that need it, you know. Like it it those for yeah, it's.
588
01:26:34.020 --> 01:26:40.310
Craig Moropoulos: But it it might not be the word there on the pyramid, but he talks about it all the time. Oh, yeah, absolutely.
589
01:26:40.430 --> 01:26:45.039
Craig Moropoulos: One of his, one of his tenants is tenants is never be satisfied
590
01:26:45.100 --> 01:26:49.749
Craig Moropoulos: as a coach as a player. Never be satisfied if you think you're the best.
591
01:26:49.860 --> 01:26:52.150
Craig Moropoulos: you know. If you think you're the greatest.
592
01:26:52.200 --> 01:26:53.610
Craig Moropoulos: and you're not going to be
593
01:26:54.000 --> 01:27:12.359
Craig Moropoulos: trying to get better, you know, if everybody thinks well, because we went 10 and one we're the best things in sliced bread. That's when you're going to get knocked off. You never set, for you always try to get better. I don't care if you're new in the business or at the end of your career. If you have that attitude like, hey? I always got to get better.
594
01:27:12.370 --> 01:27:14.839
Craig Moropoulos: You know I was the the
595
01:27:15.250 --> 01:27:23.050
Craig Moropoulos: this southern half of the Southern state coach of the year. If I said if I said to myself, oh, that's it. I'm done. I don't need to get any better.
596
01:27:23.070 --> 01:27:24.490
Craig Moropoulos: I'm gonna get whipped.
597
01:27:24.620 --> 01:27:31.480
Craig Moropoulos: you know. So what i'm doing, and it goes in recruiting. It goes in my philosophy. It goes with my staff, which
598
01:27:31.490 --> 01:27:50.890
Craig Moropoulos: you know my that coaches coach of the year award. That's a staff award, by the way, that and I've said that to them. I say that to everybody to ask me about that's a staff award, because in football you got about 7, 8, 9, you know, like we have 10 coaches, and now it's my job in part, my philosophy, and then it's their job to go coach it up.
599
01:27:50.900 --> 01:27:57.550
Craig Moropoulos: and and but it's that's a big part of being successful in anything. Always try to improve.
600
01:27:57.680 --> 01:28:01.730
Craig Moropoulos: you know, Always try to get better. Never be satisfied.
601
01:28:02.330 --> 01:28:03.210
Akil Hill: Yeah.
602
01:28:03.460 --> 01:28:07.290
Akil Hill: that's a good point, you know. I I I You know, I think that
603
01:28:09.090 --> 01:28:15.730
Akil Hill: that can be understated, because you know, I think, that you know we talk about like each person's, or
604
01:28:16.270 --> 01:28:18.749
Akil Hill: that that they cast
605
01:28:18.920 --> 01:28:28.180
Akil Hill: You're you're only going to catch a certain type of fish depending on how big your net is. So the truth of it is really trying to and be intentional about growing your net. So you can.
606
01:28:28.400 --> 01:28:40.209
Akil Hill: You know you can cast your bigger net so you can figure out the more that the more that you know, or the more that you learn, the the more that you realize you don't know you. You know what I mean. So you just keep kind of growing. That
607
01:28:40.230 --> 01:28:47.529
Akil Hill: one thing I was thinking about, too, also is the dynamic, the winning and losing. And how we do we try to
608
01:28:48.690 --> 01:29:00.880
Akil Hill: make it either one or the other? You're either you win or you other lose. But we know that both of those things Co. Exist at the same time together. How many matches, or how many games you've coached, that you lost, but you actually want.
609
01:29:00.930 --> 01:29:20.189
Akil Hill: and how many games that you have coached, you know, and one but actually lost right? So, not seeing the W. Or the L. As the benchmark. Really understanding the piece of look. These 2 things Co. Exist together in the same space, right?
610
01:29:20.200 --> 01:29:23.300
Akil Hill: And you can have the result
611
01:29:24.920 --> 01:29:32.669
Akil Hill: of losing. But you've actually won because you everyone competed in. Everyone gave a a 100% right?
612
01:29:32.760 --> 01:29:45.759
Akil Hill: And and you and you actually have lost that game. So understanding to me it's always like, Why are we like acting like winning and losing, or like on the opposite ends? They're actually both coexist. So you can win
613
01:29:45.850 --> 01:29:54.010
Akil Hill: at some times in the actually lose, and then you can lose that sometimes and actually win it's just one of those things that I I I think about, you know.
614
01:29:54.430 --> 01:30:02.350
Craig Moropoulos: Yeah, I I think you're You're right on. I I think you know one of my best coaching jobs ever was. 11 years ago we went to oh, and 10
615
01:30:02.710 --> 01:30:04.179
Craig Moropoulos: we lost 10 straight.
616
01:30:04.370 --> 01:30:08.320
Craig Moropoulos: But the job I did, trying to get those guys to not give up.
617
01:30:08.430 --> 01:30:14.039
Craig Moropoulos: Don't quit. Let's keep going and get them to go through the whole week of practice, and all the banging and
618
01:30:14.160 --> 01:30:19.010
Craig Moropoulos: bleeding and sweating, and then getting to the game and going down there, and just you know we just weren't Very good.
619
01:30:19.030 --> 01:30:24.240
Craig Moropoulos: But the fact of matter is, and I told him at the end of the season. I'm super proud of you guys, because you never gave up.
620
01:30:24.290 --> 01:30:28.939
Craig Moropoulos: you know. Did everybody not, I mean, did everybody give a 100%? Probably not.
621
01:30:29.090 --> 01:30:45.880
Craig Moropoulos: But I mean. It was a challenge every day, and so I look back at that as one of my more successful seasons. Everybody think. Oh, well, what about your 10 and one. What about your 7 and 3 and 7, 4 whatever? No, that's the easy one, you know, was 84 to nothing against La southwest this year.
622
01:30:46.220 --> 01:30:48.169
Craig Moropoulos: I was proud of my
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Craig Moropoulos: what the job I did, because my big thing to them was they were going to play 4 quarters.
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Craig Moropoulos: you know. I don't care how up we are, how down we we're gonna play for quarters hard. And we did. Our guys were playing as hard at the end of the game
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Craig Moropoulos: as they were in the start of the game.
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Craig Moropoulos: and I told him that if I didn't focus on the score, I just told him. I'm glad, you guys, I'm very proud of you what you did, because that's one thing I told him for the game gonna play hard.
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Craig Moropoulos: and that's one thing we did all season long, and you know we were. We were fortunate we lost that first game, and wasn't the end of the you know, end of the season. I told them it would just didn't, you know we just didn't take care of the ball, and in order to beat good teams and
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Craig Moropoulos: and so. But you're right. You're right. It's not always a win. That means you're you know, a good coach.
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Craig Moropoulos: It's a lot deeper than that. A lot Deeper. Yeah.
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Hong Lieu: And it goes back to that self-reflection. If you take the time to do what you experience in your life, what you're going through, whatever you're doing, and just reflect within and find that piece. Find find whatever you can pull whatever lesson you can pull from any experience in your life. I mean you. It's a win, no matter what, because that's how we grow as individuals like like John. One day, lifelong learners.
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Hong Lieu: lifelong learners keep your emotions. Keep your emotions in check, not inhibit your emotions, but but just keep them in check, and just understand what they're doing for you. They are your natural response to what you are going through, and they're not. They shouldn't They're not. They're meant to help you dictate your life and not control you. So yeah, so Yes, great picks. Great episode.
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Hong Lieu: Coach. Thank you so much for taking the time of day. I know we're all we're ran over a little bit, but it was, I mean true, true knowledge, like, I said. I hope we put this up, and some recruits call and be like man. I want to run through a brick wall for coaching. I I I didn't know what I wanted, but now I want Svcc. Football on there, so you can
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Akil Hill: go ahead. Now. Actually, after this episode. Coach, you're going to have how i'm Fixing his feet. Man, he said, yeah, he's he's he's he's he's he's he's he's about to be his feet fixed after this episode that that right there, and Barbara strikes and very good.
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Craig Moropoulos: We've done some things. We've achieved things. I've enjoyed this, and I've really enjoyed it. I want to thank you guys, for for having me on. And and you know, hopefully we can keep this going. But
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Craig Moropoulos: you know this is a special place, this whole campus special place, and I love it here. And and you guys are good people. I enjoy talking with you.
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Hong Lieu: Yeah, yeah, like. Thanks so much, and thank you all for joining us day until next time. This is viceto voices. Take care y'all
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Craig Moropoulos: Thanks, guys