Bussin' With The Boys - Spring Tour: QB Casey Thompson (Nebraska)

Episode Date: March 14, 2022

Recorded March 11, 2022: For the first stop on our spring tour the boys went to Lincoln, Nebraska to spend some time with Will's alma mater. In this interview we hear from transfer QB Casey Thompson. Start pod (0:00) Journey from Texas to Nebraska (1:45 - 32:00) NIL deals at Nebraska (34:41 - 42:50) Balancing NIL and playing ball (43:05 - 48:00) ----- SHOP: https://store.barstoolsports.com/collections/bussin-with-the-boys FOLLOW THE BOYS Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bussinwtb Twitter: https://twitter.com/BussinWTB Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BussinWTB Website: https://www.bussinwtb.com ----- SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: Chevy: Chevy Silverado - The Strongest, Most Advanced Silverado Ever. Duke Cannon Supply Co.For more, visit barstool.link/bussinwtbSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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we have no idea what we're doing. This is our second time ever doing this. Do you know what this is? To my right? Will. What's his last name? Compton. Do you know what like the history behind Will Compton?

What he's done for this university? No, I don't. Oh my God. Okay. Hey, listen. We'll have to cut that out because we don't want the people to be upset. So William Earl Compton. He's from Missouri. St. Louis.

Yeah. Well. Our South, but we'll claim, St. Louis. Bontair, Montere, Missouri, like a drive past town, not in a disrespectful way. Your boy was in that, too. Yeah. This man was all-state wide receiver, believe it or not. You know what I'm saying? I know you're looking at how pale he is.

You're like, there's no way he could be that, but he actually was all-state. You could throw me to rock. You'd count on me. And, yeah, you could count on him, no question. This man gets a call from so many universities, four-star athlete, right? And he chose to go to the one than only Nebraska Cornhuskers. Black shirt guy. How many letters?

Four. What do you mean? What are you talking about letters? How many times? Oh, four, yeah. Yeah, four time. Yeah. I'm sure he was all day ten, honorable mention.

Undrafted, Grindr, just finished year nine in the league. Can we get it for Wilcompton, please? We just give it up for Lecompton. I hate you. I hate you guys. What do you mean? How about the guests we have one?

Yeah. Well, hey, Listen, you've had a, so you were at Texas before this. It's been a bit of not probably what you weren't expecting going to high school. Right. Like you were probably expecting to go Texas. Let's start four years. First round pick, boom, boom.

Right. Move it. What was your process like being in Texas and then making the decision to come here? We're going to circle this, obviously, a whole bunch. So just talk to me about, like, you are transferring it first. And we'll get in your time of Texas. I mean, there's a whole, there's a big backstory because, I grew up like 15 minutes north of Norman.

So honestly, my whole life I thought was going to be playing football at OU. And it's kind of funny now I'm here. Your dad went there, right? Yeah, so my dad went there. Charles Thompson, he played 1987, 88, played against Nebraska, game in the century. Game in the century.

Yeah, that was his first start, and he ended up in Lincoln, being Nebraska, went on to the Orange Bowl National Championship against Miami. And then... He looked you in the eyes when he said that. Yeah.

And then... And I'm older brother. So my brother is Kendall Thompson, and we're both from, obviously, from Oklahoma. And he said that he was with you, Will, and Washington. Oh, yeah, you said Kendall Thompson, yes. Yeah, so he played quarterback at OU and Utah, and then towards ACL and switched to receiver and went undrafted, made the team, Sean McVeigh, whenever he was in Washington, signed him as a free agent for two years. And then he was with you.

And then when Sean went to. LA to the Rams. My brother went to the Rams as well for a couple of years. And so he said to tell you what's up. It's a small world, man. It's small world. So, but that was kind of like my, that was like, you know, my story growing up. And then, uh, growing up, I really liked Clemson, because of Deshawn Watson and, you know, they're really good. And they've been like studs for a while. Right. And then, um, when I was in like middle school, I really liked Marcus Marriota and Oregon's offense and Chip Kelly, Scott Frost. And so, I don't know, I kind of just been watching nice offenses. And so I always saw I was going to

Oregon or Clemson or OU the whole time. And then when Lincoln Riley came to OU, whenever he went to OU, you know, I think it was like 2015 or whatever. And, you know, you had Baker and all those guys. And I was real close with them and I'd actually go workout with them. With Baker? Yeah, and the indoor. Like, I'd go throw to the receivers and Sterling Shepard and Kenny Stills

and throw up Baker and all these guys. And they got to the point when it was time for me to get recruited, I kind of did, like you did. I just kind of like filled everything out and just visit around the country and just was trying to take my time and figure out, okay, what teams actually want me, you know, who would be the best fit, you know. I'm just trying to feel a slot. Yeah, not just trying to like, oh, hey, you know, these guys are going to come here because he's from here. Right.

So I kind of, I had like 2930 offers in high school as well. Damn, weird flex, all right? And so I end up, I end up visiting. 30 offers? Yeah. Sorry, I'm hung up. I'm hung up. And then I end up visiting a lot of schools.

and I don't know, I kind of, I liked, I had never been to Texas, but so my brother and my dad, they're actually the ones that were like, you should go visit and see if you like it. I had never been to Austin before. Which is crazy because Oklahoma. Right, and nobody knows that. So people always like, how did you grow up in Oklahoma? You end up at Texas? Well, honestly, it was kind of the advice from, you know, my brother and my dad, like.

So your brother and your dad secretly hate Oklahoma? No, they don't, but, I mean, they just, they just are like, you know, if the team is offering you, and they're talking about, you know, you can come in and play. At the time, they kind of were going back and forth between quarterbacks that had Sam Ellinger and Shane Bouchel, so they thought maybe I could come in and, you know, compete. But obviously, like you said, things didn't go like I thought when I got there, waited my turn, sat as a backup for three years, started this past season, and then decided to leave, you know, after going through three different coaching staffs

and changes and stuff like that. So that's kind of the back story. But then coming here was a whole story because, when I was in the portal, I finally got in the portal like two weeks after the end of the season. So it was like December 16th. I went into the portal.

And then the first thing I did was I called Adrian just to see like, you know, how was it like in Nebraska? Yeah. Want to know like the real and not like, you know, coach talk. Right, yeah, yeah. He said,

he'll flop it. Right. And he said that he enjoyed it. You know, obviously he was here the last few years and we came out in the same class. And he said he just needed a fresh start. And I was like, well, I kind of feel the same way. And so,

honestly I was like we're just going to switch so he ended up leaving and I kind of told him like you know Nebraska's going to be high on my list but it'll probably come down between Nebraska Auburn, OU just different schools and so I took two to three weeks honestly in like December and I kind of just watched film and research and said these are the teams that are going to need quarterbacks or you know have different you know openings or opportunities and here's kind of what I'm looking for so I kind of just like made it like a legit like a white board like a wish list and I just kept like going down the list and crossing teams off and then yeah I ended up in Nebraska so you end up at those three teams what about Nebraska was it that was

like okay this is the offense that I want to play like what was the drawing factor for you to go to lincoln um I had never even been to Lincoln my first time actually like being here was legit when I drove down and moved in oh really yeah I drove like we started school and like January 19th or something and I came down on the 18th to like 10 p.m. at night. No way. That was my first time. Yeah, I didn't even visit. Like I didn't need to really. Um, like you, the opportunity to come play here and just like in front of this university and, you know, for this team, um, obviously everyone said it was a big deal. I mean, I'll get to experience that in the fall. But that was probably the main factor. And then just knowing Frost and knowing that he's a good dude. And then,

uh, my dad and actually his friend with, uh, with Mickey Joseph. And they actually kind of grew up. up together a little bit. I mean, in high school, they both visited OU back in the 80s, and they were both going to decide between OU and Nebraska. So they had a relationship way back then. And so if you fast forward it to now, Mickey Joseph was like, you got to get Casey here, you got to get Casey here. So finally, I was like, okay, like I'll see what it's about. And I was talking to Frost, and then when Mark Whipple decided to come here, it was like a no-brainer. I was like, dude, he came from the NFL. He likes to throw a ball a lot. Right. You know. You just don't let him throw that rock.

Yeah, and then I reached out to Kenny Pickett. And I was actually doing Zoom meetings with teams every week. Oh, really? Yeah, over the break. Like, teach me the offense. Let me watch some film with you guys. No way. Yeah, I'm calling different quarterbacks that played for, like, I was doing a lot of research.

And so I felt comfortable with it. And I called Kenny. He was like, you're going to love the offense. And he kind of sent me some installs and we watched film. And honestly, like, I didn't tell my family or the coaching staff when I was planning on committing. I just woke up one day and did it. Oh, damn. Oh, no way.

I want to go back to when you said you were on the phone with Adrian. Because number one, I think it speaks to, like, his type of character because he's an awesome dude. Somebody who was able to talk to you on the phone and say, he just needed a fresh start and had a lot of good things. But I did read the article. You talked about the ups and downs. What were downs that he talked about?

Was it playing in front of and playing at a place like Nebraska? No. Like, what were some waves in those conversations that you guys were having? Just like your typical, like, just like your typical, like football. football fan. I mean, you know. Oh, yeah. You've been playing football for a long time.

Yeah. When it's good. Yeah. When it's good, everyone loves you, when it's bad. You know, people point the finger at you. They criticize you. All this stuff. You know, I've gotten hate messages and crazy DMs and stuff like that on social media. When I was at Texas this past season, if we lost a game or if I played bad, like, it was in the world.

But then when you play good, it's like your phone can't stop dingin. And so that's just kind of how he said it was. And honestly, I'm used to that. So I was like, okay, well, and then I asked some of the players, I was like, what's the worst thing that goes on or that you don't like about it there? Because, like, everyone wants to talk about what's good about a school. I was like, what do you not like? And all they said was, like, the weather.

And then they were like, sometimes frost makes us do, like, practices out in the cold or sometimes, you know, we ask it for stuff. We don't get it. And I'm like, that's the worst that you have to say about, like, I'm good with that thing. Like, I'm committing. Weather can be tough here at times. Wind blows hard. Yeah, we're dealing with it today. Yeah, we're a little flatter out here.

But it's seasonal. You can see for miles. If you stay in a quarter, you can see the whole state. Oh, yeah. But it's seasonal. It's like whenever you're ever going to play a game where it's a blizzard up, like. Oh, right, right, right. Yeah, for sure.

I'm just talking about. I'm just speaking to the whole winter thing. You walk around that side of the stadium when you're going to study hall and that wind smacks you in the face. It's a different beast out there. But it's like Oklahoma, though. It's like, Oklahoma is super windy. It's literally snowing in Oklahoma City and tomorrow. Yeah, and they got like massive tornadoes.

You got tornadoes. You know, there's not tornadoes here. Yeah. Oklahoma's like rebuilding every year. The whole tornado, I got to go do it again. And then next year, like, I mean, next week it'll be 70 degrees here. It'll be seven degrees in Oklahoma. It's literally almost like the same weather.

Oh, so you're not affected by this. I grew up kind of like it. It's like the Great Plains. Like I grew up like in it. Yeah. Can you talk about entering in the portal? Yeah, that's new for us. Yeah, super new for us, right?

And honestly, and you know it, it gets a bad rap at times because a lot of kids enter it. And then before you answer that, what was the stat you said? Like, so many guys enter the portal expecting to be picked up by these big power five schools. Right, expecting for like a situation to happen and the majority, it doesn't work out the way they think it does. Obviously for you, it's a little different, but can you speak on the turmoil you were going through with Texas? Because when Taylor and I were looking... Don't be afraid to bash him. Don't be... When Taylor and I were like doing our research on you, you obviously had a promising start at the

Alamo Bowl a couple years ago, right? Then you go throughout this next year. It doesn't necessarily work out the way you wanted to. You got a new coach and coach Sark. He comes in. You don't have the starting job opening the season. Yeah, you end up taking over, but you're coming off the bench. And obviously, the whole year doesn't unfold the way you want. I saw you, you had a, you had injuries you were dealing with, and it just didn't, for whatever reason, the stars weren't aligning for you. And then you decide to go into the portal, which can look like, you know, does he just not want to compete or play? And I'll let you say all this stuff. But from the outside looking in, they signed two huge star, five-star recruits. The writing's on the wall, and kind of

necessarily, like, if I'm reading the stuff, it's like, well, maybe Sark doesn't necessarily they mess with him because he hasn't been getting certain opportunities this, that's that and the other. You know your story. I don't. But can you speak on being somebody who's transferred from a Texas to a Nebraska? Obviously, it's working out for you now, but speak on that. Right. I mean, honestly, it was the first two or three years didn't go the way I wanted to because I had to sit behind Sam Ellinger.

And then, I mean, you can hear guys talk about, you know, my leadership or my work ethic or how I perform at practice or the stuff that I do in the offseason, you know, 7. But, I mean, until you're doing it in the game, it doesn't really matter. And so in 2020, at the end of the year, coming off to Alamo Bowl, Sam kind of got banged up in the first half, and he hurt his shoulder. And it was his last game in his career, which at the time, nobody knew that, but me and him pretty much in his family. But we were on the bench, and he was like, you got it, you know. You lit it up. Yeah, he was like, this is your chance.

Yeah, they destroyed. And I went in and then tied the Alamo Bowl record and had four touchdowns in the third, like the third quarter. and I was like, okay, this is pretty cool. Like, what a happy ending to, you know, to the end of this season? You're excited going into the off season. So going into the off season, like, I think. You go to the office season feeling like the man. Yeah.

You're like, oh, I'm about to run this shit. Yeah, oh, Colmoy, watch out now. Yeah, fuck, Uncle. McCoy, he out, dude. Right. And so, I don't know, like, I, me personally, like, me, my family, all the players, like, we kind of thought, like, Casey's going to be the guy. And then, like, you said, the new staff came in.

And when you get a new staff, they're, like, everyone's, clean slate and you got to compete and like everyone had to compete and so it's like okay not scared of competition like you know I've done this before I had to go through a QB battle in high school my freshman year to start varsity and so I was like okay cool like it's only going to make me a better person a better player and then throughout the offseason like honestly I feel like that I was like winning the job and then like when August came around like I was going first like we would rotate between ones and twos but I would almost always go first every time every week And then when August hit, like I started to go with the twos a little more,

and I'm like, okay, nine days out from the first game, like, something, you know, something has to be going on. So then, like, a week before the game, I just kept trying to go meet with the coach, like, you know, basically like when you're going to name a starter, we play next, we play a week from today. Right, you're just trying to get some communication. Yeah, I'm just like, you know, I've been working all offseason with the receivers. And so it was me trying to go communicate, trying to go meet. And then a few days later, like after classes started.

they called us back in and told us we're going to start with Hudson Car but you guys are basically going to compete and rotate the first two or three games because it's non-conference so we're kind of treat it like an NFL preseason that's the most college thing I've ever heard yeah but the crazy so the crazy part

like that didn't happen so like he would he played like the first three quarters of the first game against Louisiana and then the next week we went to play at Arkansas and like it was super they were pretty good it was super loud and I'm

I'm thinking, like, both games, I'm thinking I'm going in the first quarter, second quarter, third quarter, and I finally going in the third or four quarter. Obviously, I'm frustrated, but I'm like, okay, I got this whole year to compete, and I got this whole year to battle back. And honestly, like, my performance in the third and four quarter of both of those games, like, it won me the starting job. And so we woke up the next day, and everybody was, like, rioting and protesting. And, like, you need to start Casey, you need to start Casey, and Vince Young and Earl Campbell, like, all these people, you know, these Texas legends are like, yeah. Dan, they were saying that? Yeah, it was a whole thing, like, on Twitter and all this stuff. And I came in for meetings and practice on Monday, and they're like, you're starting.

You know, I kind of find out from Twitter. And then, like, I think it was one of the ball boys. Which is super interesting anyway. Yeah, but I think Texas is, like, that kind of university would be a good education. Honestly, like, I found out on Twitter. Because I came in for practice, like, on Monday. And coach is like, hey, I want to talk to you at some point today. In my head, I'm thinking he's probably.

going to tell me what I think he's going to tell me. And then after practice, stuff always leagues are on there, which is crazy, but in sports in general. But after practice, I was throwing routes to the receivers on Monday. And then we usually have media and press conferences, like right after Monday's walk-through practice. And I was throwing routes with the receivers. And then I got off the practice field and the manager who does the footballs, he was like,

congrats. And I was like, what are you talking about? He's like, you're starting this week. I was like, dude, you're joking. Like, no way. He's like, yeah, you didn't see on Twitter. already leaked. And like I went back in the locker room and my phone was blowing up and then I went to do media. And then I came back a few hours later and finally met with the coach and he was like,

obviously you probably know by now, but we're going to go with you for this week and we'll see how it goes. In like the next four or five or six games, like I was like leading the Big 12 and passing passing efficiency and QBR and touchdowns, all this stuff. And then we get to week six, Oklahoma. And I had five touchdowns and no interceptions and we were about like 21 points. I'm like, okay this couldn't go any better and then they end up coming back and Oh yeah I remember Caleb Williams went in That was tough man

And then we went into I mean we basically all the way down Spencer Rattler was that the kids playing quarterback? They benched him they brought in the other cat He was like trash and he was a Heisman Yeah, like a Heisman fur runner going into the season And we were about 21 and then they came back and beat us And honestly that was like that whole game was crazy

Like something I'll never forget But in that game I was throwing a screen route to Bejohn On a third down and my hand kind of got caught in a defensive lineman's helmet and just like twisted all way back. And like I just played the rest of the season on a partially torn and dislocated thumb. It was like severely sprained and nobody knew about it. And so I still started 10 games in a row. But like you said, it didn't go the way I wanted to because I wasn't able to be my best.

Some games like one game I would go out there in the first quarter and like could barely complete, you know, an out route or somebody would hit my thumb again. And, you know, either coach would pull me or I would tell coach like, you know, obviously I hit my thumb again. And then maybe like the next week I'll go out there and throw seven touchdowns. And it just was up and down. Just real up and down. And so obviously that's not the way I wanted to go. Me being like looking out for my career, I'm like, you know, maybe I should shut it down. Or maybe I should like go public and say I hurt my thumb.

But then honestly like the competitive nature in me, I was like, no, I'm going to play, you know, I'm going to play for my team and, you know, try to do the best I can. because I'm also not only helping my team, but I'm helping myself, you know, if I decide to, you know, leave after the season. So it's kind of what my mindset was. And then I got an MRI like October. And then again, at the end of season, like right around Thanksgiving, like week 12, and the injury basically didn't heal at all.

If anything, it might have got worse. And so right after the season, like I shut it down, I didn't throw for like eight weeks, like two months. And that was the longest I haven't thrown since I was like four or five years old. And then that's when I was like, I'm going in the portal. It's kind of what it was. Like it wasn't anything that like it was too much back and forth with the competition.

It wasn't that because I started 10 weeks in a row. Even with my thumb injury, like they still started me 10 games. And so I kind of was like when obviously they believe in me. But I just felt like it was time to move on. That's kind of what it was. So you went in the transfer portal because you hurt your thumbing, spent two months off of it. And you're like, I shouldn't be at Texas anymore? No, no.

I went to transfer portal because we had basically three different offenses. In the three years I was there. Got you. It was just too much. Like, I just feel like there's a lot of, like, quick turnover at that place. Like, there's a lot of, like, obviously there's a lot of pressure on the coaching staffs.

Yeah. And the head coach at Texas, I mean, if you look at it, yeah, I was going to say they've had how many different head coaches and offensive coordinators.

I mean, when we were in high school, yeah. Texas was like the place to go. Right. At Cole, McCoy. That's what it was.

It wasn't anything, like, anything bad happened or, you know, something behind, closed doors. It was more so like I was there for three and a half years. I sat away to my turn. Season kind of didn't pan out the way I thought I was going to go, the way we thought it was going to go. Had like two or three different coaching staffs and so it was kind of like, you know, maybe it's

time for me to move on. And so like I told you guys before we started this, like my parents and my family didn't even really want me to leave at first or like just come back and, you know, and then so honestly, yeah, right when the season ended, I kind of waited like a week. speaker two and then I put my name in the portal like the day of sign day or like right around so it was before like they were even going to go get quinn ewers but I had already known they communicate like we're going to go take one or two quarterbacks right because it was basically just me and hudson card we were the only it was me hudson card and a guy named charles right we only had three scholarship quarterbacks and so they're like you guys we got to go get two more quarterbacks basically we're going

bringing in a high school guy in one transfer. I didn't know who it was going to be yet. And I end up find out on social media as well from Twitter after the fact. Yeah. Were you nervous going into the portal? Like knowing what a perception could be? I would be. I mean, honestly, like, nobody knows this, but, like, I went into the portal at the end of my freshman year, like December 20th, like 2018.

At the end of my freshman year, I was going to leave. Because, like you said, I came into high school thinking, and all the recruits think, I'm going to come in as a freshman I'm going to play. Oh, yeah. It's a very big misconception. And then I was behind Sam Ellinger, and I'm like, there's, like, he was leading the team, but he was like a coach basically on the field. Like, there's no way he's not going to start the rest the next three years.

Right, right, right, right. And I told my parents and my dad was like, no, you need to stay, you need to stick it out. I was like, Dad, I'm just telling you they're not going to sit this guy. I'm not even going to get to compete with him. And I end up being right, but I'm glad that I stayed and kind of pushed through it because it helped me just like, you know, learn about myself and kind of grow as a player on and off the field. But Sam and I are real cool to this day, and I'm cool with all the quarterbacks and stuff.

So I went in the portal December 2018 and I was going to leave. And I was in the portal the whole winter break my freshman year. And then I came back and I stayed. And then I went another three years. Were you in the portal and nothing was happening in the portal? No, no. I mean, there were a lot of teams that were offering, but it just like wasn't the teams that I wanted. When you were in the portal, is it public news right away?

or is it kind of like quiet until it's like it's like if you it's like if you put your name in and saying you're going to resign or something or you're going to quit as soon as you as soon as you basically go to the compliance office so this is how it works you either email compliance or go into the office and you just notify them and like sign this paper

saying that you're going to like notify the team that you're going to you have intent to transfer or explore your options is what it's called and then within 48 hours they have they have 48 hours to kind of put your name in a database and every team in the country gets notified like that you're basically like a free agent it's like free agency no legit that's how we talk about it now and uh and so when i put my name in like botan like when i put my name in honestly like i had law schools reaching out within the first couple of days like the first time my freshman year

like UCLA reached out like chip kelly um Oregon Utah reached out Oregon that's a team you kind of wanted you know know but they're they weren't the guys that I went to play for right there. It wasn't the same deal. No, I get that. And I had small talk from OU back then and Lincoln Riley and kind of their coaching staff there. And then

Houston and West Virginia and like just different teams around the country reached out. That was my freshman year. And then I don't know. I just didn't like my options. And so I was like I'd rather stay at Texas. Like you said, and play big time college football. And just knowing

that I would have a chance to play against OU in the Red River rivalry. Week 6 is like one of the biggest rivalries in college football. I was like, I'm staying. Yeah. So that's why I stayed. Yeah. And then this past time, I put my name in the portal.

I was like out to eat or something with my family like a Friday morning, Friday afternoon. And then I went to go get treatment and workout at this gym in Oklahoma City. And then like all my way to the gym and like during my workout and right after like I had my on the ox and you know these teams are like emailing me because you can put your email your phone number down right i told compliance i was like just put both and i wish i would just put my email down basically because you're being blown up yeah because like west virginia like just coaches with text and literally text and call you like hey this is coach such and such on the offensive coordinator at whatever school gave me a call and like it's just like every hour every day and it was like that probably for

a first few weeks and then finally i just told all the schools like hey this is kind of like i kind of know like where I'm looking at and so here's my here's my list and right out of respect like I'm not going to waste your time right but I just started doing Zoom interviews and stuff like that and I kind of had a list of schools that I was talking to every day and then I just told them like hey I'm going to make a decision after new years because I wanted to watch I wanted to watch all the teams playing the bowl games and see what quarterbacks would say or leave and see if there would be more coaching changes so that's how I went about it when you put yourself in the transfer portal after your freshman year

as somebody coming in like we were joking about earlier every freshman who comes in thinks you're gonna like be the man and it doesn't work out for him you're somebody who put yourself in the portal then and putting yourself in the portal now going through all the adversity and the shit that you've went through to now get to this point you are now at a fresh start at Nebraska how do you feel like you've developed mentally

from doing things like that right like to me in my head like you putting yourself in the portal as a freshman and not kind of like being exactly how you might want it to you're like, okay, I'm going to stay here, and you're kind of playing the hole. You know, I want, you want your time. You've done your time by being a backup, doing all this stuff. This last year happens and unfolds with Texas. You've now made your decision and you're in your last year.

How do you feel like you've kind of grown mentally? I mean, I think it definitely helped me just, like, be more organized and, like, thorough and, like, well, kind of just, like, well thought out and know exactly, like, what I'm looking for and how to approach situations. I would say that's definitely what it helped me. I would just say going through a lot of different adversity, like you talked about, different personalities, working with different coaching staffs.

And every year it's a new team. You know, you've got new guys in the locker room. So I think it just helped me as a player, honestly, as a quarterback. And, you know, now I kind of know, like, okay, here's what works, you know, on the field. And here's what, on and off the field. Like, here's what works in the organization.

Here's what didn't work. And every year I'm like, okay, did I get better as a quarterback? And I'm like, yes. Did I grow as a person? And the answer always was yes, every year, so I didn't regret kind of just sitting and waiting my turn. But I don't know, like you talked about, I heard you talk about with Garrett. You know, a lot of teams in college football, it's a big melting part of different nationalities

and ethnicities and just different, you know, type of players and personalities. And honestly, that's kind of what it helped me just figure out, you know, who I am as a person and how I can lead and kind of build with other players and other coaches and how I connect with them. So I would say it helped me do that. And then it kind of just helped me grow with my maturity of what I'm looking for and kind of how to be professional. So that's really what it helped me do.

And then coming here, like, I mean, I love the team here. And I love Coach Frost and everyone in the organization is real cool. And, you know, so I really enjoy it. When you first got here, you see you love the team now. Like, what was that process like? Like, when you, like, first day of school, right? Yeah, yeah. Kind of hang out.

You're hoping, hey, who are cool kids? Make a new friends, man. Yeah, it felt weird at first. Like, I was walking around. It's got to feel weird, dude. Walking to locker, everyone already knows each other. Hey, hey. And that's the new guy right there.

Right. Right. And you're coming in because Adrian leaves. And Adrian's like, I think he's at the top of all purpose. Where did he go? Yards. Kansas State. Kansas State.

And he's somebody who's been in multi-year captain. He's somebody who's been very ingrained in this culture, in this team. He leaves you come in. It does, like what he's saying. It's got to feel, were you nervous? I wasn't nervous, but the first few days, like you talked. about it was like I haven't had that feeling since like he like when I started high school I think as a freshman maybe like walking in the halls yeah and it's just like kind of like when you

walk in a high school and you're like okay I don't know what to expect and and then you're like going to college as a freshman you're like I don't know what to expect so coming into here like I walked in like not even not even three or four weeks prior I was literally in the Texas facility in Austin in my apartment going there every day going to the stadium working out in the weight room and then three weeks later like I'm walking in Nebraska's football. Just pulling into a place you've never seen before. Yeah.

I guess I'll just go here. Yeah. And then history. Like it's just weird. Like everything for the first like couple weeks, it was like I got to pull up. I live five minutes down the street in an apartment but like I had to map how to get here every day and then like walking around in the facility like I'm lost for like the first week.

Yeah. And then the guys like I remember the guys would because I was a I wasn't clear. at first when I first got here. So you got to, like, do your testing and, you know, do all these, like, different tests and stuff before you can get cleared. And these meetings, and I just been walking around, and people were introduced me to the players like during their workouts and lifts. And they'd all be talking and dapping each other up.

And then they'd see me and they'd be like, oh, what's up? Like, you know, just kind of quiet. Like, they don't know. Right, right. Right. Right. Let's try to figure each other out. Yeah.

Yeah. But also at the same time, like, when you're a quarterback, like, you know the receivers are kissing ass right away. Yeah. Because they want to get that ball. All the skill guys are going to kind of come talk to you. Yeah, yeah. Like, if you were just like an offensive line, people would be like block nerd,

kind of like do your thing and you kind of find your friends on your own. Right. You had a little upper hand. So the old linemen, the receivers, they came up to me right away because they won't. But the rest of the guys like the defense. And my locker is actually like right by like Quentin Newsom and like Miles Farmer and Travisville Collect. And like these are guys who are players and their starters. And just being around those guys and hearing them talk and kind of like joke.

I'm just like going to the corner and putting my stuff on for the first few days. And then once I started to get to know the guys and kind of like hang around and then it got a lot better. Obviously, you know, very fast. But the first few days for sure, I was like, dude, I'm just going to be kind of over here in the corner. Observe. Observe. Yeah, fly on the wall type of deal. That's tough, dude.

That first 48 hours is kind of, yeah. It was like the first few days. And then I would say the second week, like whenever I got cleared, like I think everyone was kind of like, okay, boom, we know who he is now. He knows us. He knows our names. Let's get it going. Like, the workout started, and I started to hold my own meetings and, you know, filled sessions with the guys.

I took the old lion out to eat at Rodizios, and then I took him to round one bowling. Okay. What's Rodriguez is that, like, a Nebraska only place? It's like a hot spot. Brazilian grill. It's a nice little deal. So, like, when I did that, like, that was kind of like, and I had the idea. I was like, because I would do it at Texas.

I would take my starting old linemen out to eat, like after a week. win and then I would like get uh because I'm I'm with a partner with Tiff streets it's a cookie company oh we're we're familiar with Tiff Street and so after after a win put the jackets over the top like so after a win it's winter time we've had some Tiff Streets a little layer after a win I would get Tiff Streets delivered to the facility for the whole like all the coaches and players and the coaches too yeah you know exactly what you're doing oh yeah he's playing that game and then I would take the Olin out to eat don't give A to J now and so and so when I got here I was like I'm going to take the Olinman out to

and then trying to take them bowling. Like, that was really fun. That helped me, like, get to know them for sure. And then after that, like, after that day, like, kind of the next week, like, they're, like, you know, cases are a boy type of deal. Like, I knew them well. I knew the receivers. And then it was, like, it took me, like, a couple weeks or a month to get to know the defense.

Yeah. So it's been fun. But now that practices started, like, I love talking trust. Yeah. Speak to that stomach. The heart of follow. Oh, no question, dude. No question.

Is it time? I think it's time. Is it time for Duky? I think it's time. I think I got the best question. Actually, I don't know if I do. We could do the same thing. It's not like it matters.

The fun thing is we can do whatever the fuck we want. Right, right, right, right. I'm just excited to talk about Dukes. Yeah, Duke's seems pretty outstanding, dude. Over there in the corner, so Dukes is like this little, is this company that does like men's body wash, but it's like instead of all that bullshit

that like the other companies put in, I'm not going to say brand names, but you know what I'm talking about, arrives with Old Schmeiss. They put the stuff up there and it's kind of, like, it feels good, and it smells nice. But then 50 years down the road, they take an extra one.

They're like, hey, by the way, C-word, and you're like in kind of a bit of a predicament. Dukes doesn't have none of that stuff in there. That's a fresh, fresh 2000. You want to see it? Yeah. You got that little, grab that jar that just says thick on it, dude. You see that?

Yeah, we got the thick, high viscosity, body wash. If you walk past a girl in a bar with this on right here, game set match. Games over. Citrus, musk, cedarwood. Cedarwood, dude. You know what that is? That just says rich to me.

In the ingredients are premium. they're not, again, like, we're not going to mention the brands, but the ingredients are clean. They're all about being masculine, dude. They're about athletes, military tradesmen, guys like ourselves. Yeah. Pass me that one of the, yeah, the big-ass brick of soap. So do you all wear this?

Do we wear this? Do I live in this? Yes. When I don't know, I take all my clothes on if I just put this stuff on my body. How come I don't smell this citrus on you when I walked in? What's that? I don't smell the stitches on. Because you ain't hold this tight enough.

Yeah. You came in, you dab me up slow and probably exhaled. Like if you inhaled, you would just notice everything. Hey, tell them about the, tell them about your feet. Oh, dude. So listen, and I take this stuff right here. This is like kind of like an idea category, so maybe you can tell me if really like it or not. But like there's not a lot of features, especially in this area, that's like really you can call home about. But these bad boys right here, these ones, I'm thinking about starting only fans, like a feet thing. Oh my goodness. You know what I'm saying? Put some flowers around it, dress it up real nice and then put the Duke's baked bottles soaked there and then rub it between the feet and then have Will smell them. I think that'll sell. You think it will? Dude. What do I got to smell them? Every time you got to say I got to smell it. People are going to love. People are going to like that.

I got some funny stories when we start talking about NIO. Oh, I'm down to hear that for sure. That can be our Duke. So this final question, Duke Cannon, or maybe final two questions, presented by Duke Cannon. The Duke's. Let's get into the NIL talk. Like, give us a couple of NIL stories because, number one, all of this stuff, all the stuff that we're showing you, it's going in this awesome military gray-looking box, and it's yours.

So this is our NIL deal to you. It's free product for the boy. Oh, for real? But I would love to see because I, did see you talking about the opportunities at Nebraska for NIL are a lot better than Texas. Please elaborate and dive into that. Yeah, so I would just say that the, when I say opportunities, I mean like how often and how much that these plays like these companies are willing to.

What are we talking? It's talking cash money, son. What are we talking? What are we talking about phone numbers? You give us something. Like you can come here. You can come to Nebraska. I mean, first off, when I first got to here, they told me when I found out that like,

17 or 18 different football players had vehicles. I was like that's unheard of it. That's how we do it here, man. Yeah, with like a free place to stay and like at Texas it was me, Bejohn Robinson and one defensive starter like three guys. Because they keep it closer with the vest. All the all the rich guys

that are texting. But not even just Nebraska athletic, there's like 70 or 80 different people across all sports to have like either a apartment or a car or they're getting NIO deals like women's basketball. You see a women's golf team? They're pretty outstanding. They did a great job over you. So that's what I mean

when I say that, like, more athletes across all the sports are getting blessed with opportunities and just like the numbers and the, how often you're able to get these deals is like way more than I've ever seen. You see how, when you say numbers,

you're going to make six figures as, as Oh my God. Fuck. As a player. As a player here. If you're a starter here on the football team, you can make over six figures. If I made six figures, I did $850 scholarship check, and I thought I was living because rent was like $350, $3.75.

And after utilities, $4.50, that's $400 left over to spend. At the rental. Hey, Nebraska legit needs to be in the playoffs every single year. You're going to make six figures. The boys are figuring out. It's a slow burn. It's a slow climb, but we figure out, we know where we have to win.

I'm more of a typhoon type of guy. If you want to make six figures right at a high school, so you're automatically doing better than all of your friends. Your friends are up to their neck in student loans. and they're dying. And you just say, oh, that's weird. I make six figures now

and I drive whatever the fuck I want. Come to Nebraska. All right. You got history. You got dope uniforms. By the way, the equipment boys in the back. I don't know if you guys saw it.

But they gave us our very own jerseys. Wills is cool, but Will's already been here. I got my very own jersey. I didn't even play here. All right? I'm going to need six figures for that too. That is, you know what I'm not going to speak to how Nebraska takes care of the boys.

They take care of us. They made you in Jersey. Hopefully Michigan's watching this and I get a little something next week. Oh, that'd be nice one. The thing is, I think much more prestigious colors. I think now any, any athlete, any student athlete, you should be able to make six figures if they really, like, are working on their brand.

Like, you guys saw about, you got Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, like. Right. There's so many different ways for you to monetize now off of your name. I got Snapchat. I'm married. I feel like Snapchat's a way to, you know what I'm saying? I don't really. I feel like Snapchat's that, let me get a loose app, you know what I'm saying?

You get a little dirty in there? I don't do the Snapchat. It makes me nervous. But it's funny because, like, I don't really, I don't really go out of my way to, like, try to do all this stuff, it just comes to me. And like here in Nebraska, I would say that's what the opportunities are just, it's crazy. But this past year when NIL started, like, I think at Texas, like, I think after the Alabama Bowl performance in 2020, like, I just think all the people around the United States

and, like, the Texas fans, like, in Texas, like, they were off from the NIO deals in, like, July, August before I was even named the starter. And, you know, last year, before I even got to Nebraska, I worked with, like, C4, Energy you drink. Delicious. Partnered with Kendra Scott, Tiff treats, the cookie company.

No free shoutouts. Yeah, no free shoutouts. Yeah, no free shoutouts. It's like a, it's like a... Oh, you know about Roman. Yeah, absolutely. Jack knows about Roman. They want to me to do their...

They want to me to do their all-hair team. So I did Roman. I'm sure you were like, hey, let's keep it to just the hair stuff. Let's not go down below the belt. Yeah, well, actually, there's rules in NIL. You can't do certain stuff. It can't be anything including like vice, sex, uh, alcohol.

What's vice? Like you? Like cigarettes? Like Miami Vice. Like going to Miami. Cocaine? No, just like, yeah, like clubs and bars.

Do what? Oh, so like the NFL actually just changed that stuff too. So like in IOS. Just recently started allowing like alcohol and stuff. No, so you can't do that. Like that's those are rules, they have rules where you can't work with like any alcohol or any substance, anything at all.

You can't promote like clubs and bars. And so they have different rules. But, yeah, I would say Kendra Scott, C4, TIFT trees, and, like, all the trading card companies last year, it was, like, tops. Panini. Yeah. Right. Wild card, onyx, all these different trading card companies. You got to sit there and sign for hours, huh?

Yeah. Bro, when I was, like, getting rid of the draft, and I think said, I'm leaving 12K,000 of these little stickers. You're like, okay, yeah, I bet. Oh, I was like, I'm going to murder this. My wrist hurt so damn bad. No, you're not. But I was like, I've never seen 12K before. This is fire.

I would try to force my soap. Six figures in college, bro. I would try to force myself to do like at least 200 autographs a day. Yeah. Because I was like, when I get home from practice or before I go to bed, I'm going to do 100, 200 a day. I probably took almost half the season just signing the autographs. By the end of the season, like I sent them all back. But like you talked about it was like 2,000 signatures, 4,000 signatures, 10,000 signatures.

And you're like, dang, I didn't realize like how much that is. You know, and so that was crazy. And so I had to do those. I was supposed to be doing them and getting them back because they give you like 30 days returning them. Yeah. Did you change your signature during it? Yeah, I shortened it. Same. I did the same thing. I did the same thing.

I used to write out my whole name, Taylor LeWan. I shortened it. And I'll do this T, C, see you later. And then we're on to the next. Did you tell you do it curse of? Right. I shortened it. Hey, listen, I might not be able to read, but I could spell a little bit. So I had to shorten it. And then since I've been here in Nebraska,

Soldier Sports, they're at Omaha. Oh, yeah. Phenomenal gear. They send me a hoodie. It's incredible. It was amazing. Yes, bro. So I did a photo shoot.

With the little bear? Yeah. Yeah, man, which is like an NFT. Yeah, so I'm doing with Soldier Sports. Yeah, no free shout out to Soldier Sports. Yeah, shout out to Soldier Sports. Not from us, not from us. Not from the bus with the boys, guys.

Yeah, for me, for sure. But no free shoutouts. From me for sure. And then, no, but I laugh about the Onlyfans because I got an email like last week after workouts. I came up looked at my phone. It was like, Casey Thompson, would you be interested in joining Onlyfans and monetizing off of your,

your name and set in your prices and they're like you could do workout instructional videos quarterback training all online feed stuff yeah and I was like I showed everybody in the locker room and like for like a few days all the players are like you're gonna do it you're gonna do it bro you're doing it no why not dude because I see that's the one are you allowed to do it would you be allowed but yeah because you only fans like a craigslist there's like dirty stuff on there no but it's supposed to be like exclusive content all access like behind the scenes but my whole deal You got to be the first Q who does an OnlyFans account. That'd be fired.

No, but then I found out, I found out from other people on the country. Like, they were obviously emailing other people. That's all right. I don't think anybody's going to do it. Well, one, I think it's a compliance rule. Somebody's going to do it. Okay. And then, too.

If you're allowed to. Well, my whole thing is like, anytime I see or hear about OnlyFans, I'm like, it's what we all think. Yeah, it's like, okay, I'm not doing that. Right. It's like he's talking about it. That's how the marketing. That's how the promotional stuff works, man.

Right. Yeah, but then, like, I thought maybe that they wanted to, like, offer me a contract, like, with the company. Because, like, you can create your own website, whatever, your own prices, but then, like, you can actually get paid by these companies. And so I was like, I just saw them, like, basically, what would you be offering me? Like, what's the contract? Obviously, I wasn't going to do it. But they were like, oh, no, we just wanted you to create your own account. Like, that's not even, like, I work with real companies, like, you know, Ford, the car dealership and, you know.

Oh, yeah, yeah, we'll cut that for sure, dude. We don't drive the airports around here. Oh, and then Kendra Scott and all these different companies. Yeah, I love that. I love that. I'm like, I'm not doing that. But, yeah, the only fans, they wanted me to do an NIO deal and some other different companies that. Honestly, like, I probably could make double just by signing with all these different people.

But I want to be sworn about, you know, who I'm working with and stuff like that. How do you balance? You talked about the way athletes can build their brands now through all these social platforms. Duke's second question. Duke's second question, for sure. brought to you by Duke, Duke's canon. Duke's canon. The best, Duke. How do you balance that, right? Because you'll be going into the season. And obviously, as a young kid, as a young athlete, you're infatuated by signing autographs and making money

when you want to keep the main thing, the main thing. How do you balance building your brand and also being a football player, especially as a student athlete? I mean, you just have to prioritize your life and your routine. And I think, like for me, I use the weekends and the off days, like, Sundays or Mondays to really, like, get on the phone with companies or email, or, you know, if I have to go do, like, a guest appearance or a photo shoot, like, I'll do it on a weekend where there's, like, a day of no football. Like, you know, there's nothing on the schedule, you know, stuff like that. Or even, like, if I need to leave. So what I do now, like, my routine now here at Nebraska, like, I've kind of figured out how to do that because last year everyone was new to it. obviously just kind of navigating, like, how much to do.

You're kind of ready to whore yourself out for all of it. Like, let's make this money. Like, companies would ask me, like, what's your price? Or, like, you know, what would you be willing to come do for a photo shoot? Like, I didn't know anything. And after you'd down the phone with, like, NFL players, and I signed with Azte's first, their agency. And they got, like, Justin Fields and Jalen Ramsey, Deshawn Watson, and kind of hanging around those guys when they would come to Austin.

And we would just hang out and talk. And I would do, you know, photo shoots. and I watched him, I went to, like, Jordan Love and, what's the receiver name? I went to Jordan Love and Justin Fields, like, they're C4, and they're Madden shoots and kind of just talking and hanging out with those guys and seeing, like, what they charge and stuff. And, like, I was like, okay, well, talking to my agent and stuff, I'm like, well, here's what I charge, and here's, like, how many companies I work with. So kind of, like, signing with them held me out a lot, and then kind of knowing what to do.

And so now here in Nebraska, like, I'll know. like how much or what's too much or what's too little. Like I'm not going to go do something unless it's for a good cause. Like I'll always go talk to kids or go to a high school or, you know, go surprise somebody at a daycare. Like I'll do that for free. But when it comes to like business, like you're talking about me driving and going out of my way or like breaking my football routine and my daily regimen to go do something

for NIL, to me it's not worth it unless it's, you know, for the right reason or the right cost. and so, I mean, I get up at like 5 a.m. and I go to bed and finish my day. Like, I study film all the way to like 10 p.m. at night. And I have stuff that I do in between then. Like, everything's written down. And so I dedicate basically like business, NIO deals or like Zoom calls. I do that between one and five usually.

But I really don't like to, honestly. Like when they told me that you guys are coming, I thought you were supposed to come tomorrow on March 11th. We're here both days. Yeah. We'll be a practicable, but we fly out tomorrow. Oh, okay. And then they told me that you guys are going to be here. And then they were like, would you want to do that yes or no?

And, like, honestly, like, I didn't even realize that you already here until I saw all this setup. Like, I was getting to go back and finish my routine for the day. Like, and so, but it's good to take a break too because it helps me out mentally kind of just like take a break and not legit be either studying, getting treatment or watching film all day. Like, I'll take a break between like two and five. Gotcha. And do NIL stuff or like weekends or off days. We appreciate you coming on, dude. We appreciate you noticing that we were set up and being like, all right, today's the day.

Yeah, I appreciate you giving us the time. Yeah, that's pretty epic. And the NAL stuff, dude, that's cool as shit. I wish we had that when we were playing for sure. Yeah. But take advantage of that, dude. It's fun. Take it as an advantage to learn, like, the business part.

And, like, how you can now set up businesses when you're in the NFL. Right. You know, what are you going to do with that money to make sure that money makes you money? Yeah. Like, I'm not looking at it as more like, how can I get rich quick? I'm looking at it more of, like, you said, how can I become a businessman? man, how can I build my brand? How can I be around other millionaires and billionaires and, like, see what makes them successful?

And how can I become a professional in this space of, like, working with companies and brands? And, like, it just makes you definitely grow up and become, you know, mature really fast. And then I signed with Morgan Stanley, wealth management. And, like, they, they've definitely taught me a lot about, like, taxes and finances and finances and accounting. And, like, now I know, like, kind of the ends and outs. And I also learned from my brother who played in NFL for, three or four years, like, and you know about all the taxes and the fees and everything costs money. Like, oh, yeah.

Everything. Traveling, even if somebody gives you a free car, this is what I learned through NIO. If I hand you a free car as a dealership, like, I still got to fill out and turn that into the government. So you're going to get taxed on that. Right. It's not free. Right. Like, that blew my mind because I'm like, I thought everything was free.

Yeah. If something was free, I thought it was free, but they're like, no, you're going to file taxes. Yeah. And that's a lot of learning. But good luck to you, bro. I know you're going into your last year and everything. And obviously we're stoked that you at Nebraska, but good luck to you.

And I appreciate you again. We appreciate you for taking the time. No problem. And then I actually have an extra year since like the COVID thing if I want to come back. Oh, for real? For the next year. Yeah, but we ball and go to the NFL.

So don't worry about that. Yeah, thanks. Get a Bayton championship runner up to Michigan and then go to the NFL. What are we talking to staying? First round picky. Yeah. Hey guys, it's us.

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