Club Shay Shay - REWIND: Devin Hester on being the greatest kickoff returner of all-time

Episode Date: March 27, 2023

In this special rewind episode of Club Shay Shay, revisit some of Shannon's favorite segments from the show so far. Today, listen to Shannon talk with kick return legend Devin Hester about kickoffs vs punt returns and just how fast he actually was. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Make sure to listen to the Good Morning Football podcast Monday through Friday on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, Club Che Che listeners. We'll be back soon with weekly episodes featuring brand new interviews with exciting roster of guests. Until then, enjoy this special rewind episode with one of my favorite moments from Club Che Che so far. All my life, been grinding all my life. Sacrifice, hustle, pay the price. Want a slice, got to roll the dice, that's why. So, if I said you could only choose one, kickoff or punt returns, which one would you choose?

I like punt returns. Why do you like them? Because I can be myself. I can be myself, right? Right. So kickoff return, we all know sideline right, sideline left for middle return. Right. Shoot, punt return, I can put a little cranberry juice and a little crystal hot sauce on that.

You know what I mean? And do what I do. Right. And then go back to the return. Right. Let's just say for the sake of argument, Devin, we call a right return. And a lot of times, I don't know how you guys did it,

but we would set up the return towards our sideline. Because if you set it up to their sideline, they're going to be calling it out. So we normally set the return up to our sideline so it was going to be quiet. But the returner, we never had a returner like you. Did you automatically like, okay, we got a right return.

I got to make sure I get to the right. Or you say, you know what? I'm going to trick them. I'm going to do a little dancing over here. Pretend like I'm going to go left. I'm going to start left a little ways, knowing that you're going to get back to the right. Oh, yeah. See, when me and Coach, they built a relationship where he really had confidence in me and was able for me to voice my opinion, I say, listen, whenever you want a touchdown, just double

the gunners. I don't give a damn about them fat boys up front. Right. Double the gunners and let me get started. I'm going to do what I do. Let all the returns go to the field. You let all the returns go to the field, I'm going to find me a hole. Right. Because I'm going to do what I do. Let all the returns go to the field. You let all the returns go to the field, I'm going to find me a hole. Right.

Because I'm going to create one. Right. Double the gunners. I don't care about no fat boy. Leave the punter and the long snapper. Do not block them two. That's a waste of time. Do not block the long snapper or the punter.

Now we got to ask the guy to block him. So now that you mentioned that, which is worse? Getting tackled by the long snapper or the punter or getting halted? Which one is worse? Yes. Getting halted. Man, come on, man. Listen, if you

get halted, you know, man, listen. That's thick. That's thick for a person like a fat person. You can't get hot. I don't care who it is. So you say the punter had the angle on me. He pushed me out of bounds.

He really didn't make the tackle. But what about the long snapper? Long snapper, tackle you. Same thing. He snap? What about the long snapper tackle you? Same thing. He just going to try to wall you and push you out of the angle by tackling you. You know what I mean? They just going to play the angle.

You know what I mean? And hope somebody hurry up and come before I run past him. So what was your thought? You get a kicker. Let's just say you're five yards away from the kicker. What's going through your mind? Are you like, okay, I'm going to stutter him. I'm going to play it to the field and come back to the sideline.

What's your thought process? How are you setting him up? I'm going to eat this ground up. I'm going to eat this cushion up. Because when I get up on him so fast, he's just going to sit right there. Right. He's going to sit. Like a lot of speed guys, they try to take an angle too early.

No, I'm eating up his cushion. Right. I'm trying to get – So, in other words, you're keeping that straight stem. You're keeping it right at him. I'm going to go right at him, straight at him. So, I get about two, three yards from him, then I'm going to stick one way and I'm out of there because he's going to sit.

He might sit down. I don't have a couple of points. I get up on him, they sit right down on his butt. Can't go nowhere. I mean, if you think about it, teams not kicking, you mentioned teams that wouldn't kick you to football. We had the Jordan rules. They had the book came out. They would walk

Barry Bonds. Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, we gotta keep those guys on the sideline and make sure they don't have the ball. Think about it. Teams said, we are not kicking the ball to Devin Hester. We either kick it out of bounds or he's not touching the ball. So we take the penalty as opposed to kicking it to Devin Hester on the kickoff or we just going to put it out of bounds.

Forget that hanging it up there for four or five seconds. No. Put it out of bounds. Kick it out of bounds. Most definitely, man. You know, we even made commercials in Chicago that I'm kicking the ball in the lake. Michigan Lake, you got boats out there waiting

on the ball to come. Like, we knew what team was getting, man. Like, I even had punters come up to me before the game doing pregame warm-up like, man, you finna mess my stats up today. I was averaging 48 yards a punt. Now I'm finna drop to 32 because I got to keep the ball out of bounds 20 yards.

Right. So, returner, you could play DV in college, you play a little wide receiver, and then you kind of transition and says, I want more. Yeah, I love returning punts and kicks,

but I believe I can do a little bit more on offense. What made you come to that decision that says, I want more. Yeah, I love returning punts and kick, but I believe I can do a little bit more on offense. What made you come to that decision that says, I want to do more? It was because I wanted to be honest. Coach Lovett brought that to my attention the minute they started kicking away from me. And

he was like, Devin, to be honest with you, man, you're probably, and it's got to be in the top two, top three, most dynamic player with the ball in your hand in the National Football League. Right. Now teams are kicking it out of bounds. I got to find a way to get the ball in your hands. So the only way I can do that is to move you over to offense.

Right. And that's why I got to move over to offense because the punters and the teams started kicking the ball to me. If they would have kept kicking to me, I would probably stay that corner and been playing straight punt turn, kickoff turn. Right. But it also helped the contract because you said, look, I'm not just a returner. I'm on the offense too. And I say, hey, y'all need to factor that into that contract also.

That's when I got that contract, when they moved me over to offense. Let's go back to your younger years. You grew up in Florida. You lost go back to you. Let's go back to your younger years. You grew up in Florida. You lost your father to cancer. Your mom was seriously injured in an automobile accident. So was football, was sports an outlet for you to deal with the pain and the trauma that you were going through as a young man? I would say so, man.

Like, to be honest, I got attached to a guy by the name of Mr. Thompson at first, which was he worked at a boys' girl club. Okay. The boys' girl club was right across the street from me. Okay. They knew my situation, right? So they knew my situation with my mom. They knew my father passed when I was young.

So we didn't have to pay to go. So, right, we just jumped the gate, and we just blend in with the rest of the kids. And so we played football and all that from the moment we got out of school to the time to go to sleep, you know. So the passion of football, man, in the neighborhood I grew up in, that's all we did. Right.

That's also, that's all I knew was football. Football and all we did. Football, played football, and went outside and flipped. Back flips and all that type of stuff. Right. So, obviously, you're a great high school player. You get an opportunity to go to the U. I'm sure you had other opportunities.

What made you decide to go to the University of Miami? Man, a lot of people that was in my situation where your mama made you go. My mama made me go to Miami. You know what I mean? It was a couple of schools I wanted to go to, but my mama was like, listen here, we ain't got no money for no flights. We ain't got no money for no traveling. And then plus my brother played at FIU.

So FIU is like a 10 minute drive from our campus. So we was able to be close to each other. Me and my brother was able to be close to each other. Me and my brother was able to be close to each other. And then, you know, at the same time, there was a winning program. And like I said, it was ranked in the top three, top four in the nation. So at the end of the day, man, it was a great decision. And I feel that, you know, me being close to home and being close to everybody. So that was the reason why I went to the U.

You said there were other schools that you wanted to go to. What were some of the schools that Devin Hester wanted to go to, wanted to attend? I wanted to go to either NC State at the time. They had Phillip Rivers. Right. And at the time, they was ranked, like, in the top 14, 15 in the nation. And I knew I was going to come in right there and play right away.

Right. I knew that. You know what I mean? That was – it wasn't a thought about it. You know, going to, like right there and play right away. Right. I knew that. You know what I mean? That was – it wasn't a thought about it. You know, going to like Miami and stuff like that, you know, with those type of guys, you're going to have to sit out of your – It ain't number five star players in that locker room. You know what I mean?

Right. So, to go to a top 15 ranked team, they just lost the position that you coming in to fill in and be that main guy. And they already told me, listen, you can't hear your brother coming y'all good so i wanted to go to i wanted to go to nc state that was my number one school but at the end miami miami offered me like when i was a freshman in high school man so i felt like i had to kind of be Lord to those guys. And I had a cousin that played for him too. So it was in my blood to go that up. There's a story, and you can expand on this, that you had to sit out your first year at the University of Miami

because they believe you didn't take the SAT. Tell the story. So that story went down like, you know, like when you start getting notarized, right? You, okay, you let that athlete that say, oh, wow, this kid here got potential. Right. They start making SAT early. You don't wait till your senior year, right? So I started doing the prep in my sophomore year, took the test in my junior year. Right.

Got a score, qualified, GPA, everything qualified. So my whole senior year, now all I had to do was work on my GPA all my test scores and everything was done I didn't worry about taking I didn't take no SAT or nothing my whole senior got my test scores back and everything so if your SAT get questioned I don't know if y'all know this but if your SAT score get questioned

you do not get it back they send you a letter in the mail saying we found some unspecific things going on we want you to retake it I got my SAT scores back. My whole senior year, I was qualified. GPA was like a 3.1, 3.1, 3.2, so I was good.

No worry about no school or nothing. On my college visit, I don't know if you know that story, but the only school that had an alphabet scholarship was SC. That's the only school I never got a four-round. everybody else I could have went to right um so I went on a college visit and um one of the coaches wanted me real bad so I promised him I would take a a visit you know you get five visits so I promised I would take a visit there

you know visit him and really give him a shot because he really was trying hard to get me and then um when that time got close to uh announced where i was going i said coach you know i say out of all recruiters you know i mean you was the one that was really really working hard to get me i appreciate your situation and what you were trying to do but i'm gonna go ahead and sign with universal mind so he got upset he started calling my phone every every two hours going off so i said you know what this getting out of hand i'm gonna let you deal with my parents because at first i was dealing with i ain't tell my mama about i was dealing with him and so i said you know what i'm gonna go ahead and let my mama deal with this so my mama got the phone she went off on him and he called one more time i answered phone he said you know what if you don't come here

i promise you you will never sit downer football in your life. So that's when I said, man, you threatening me. So I hung up on him. We blocked the phone and all that. I get to the University of Miami. I have to sign him with him. I check in the dorm room. Everything, I'm good, everything.

The next day before practice, my counselor come to me. He said, Devin, we got a problem. I said, what's going on? He said, some stuff going on with NCAA about you. There's nothing you should have to worry about. No, you good. And so they, when I got down there, we got on the phone with NCAA. They said, it's been some phone calls about questioning your SAT scores.

And I said, okay, well, what's the problem? They said, well, your answers meant somebody that's sitting beside you answers. And I said, well, what did they get? And they had like a – I think they scored like an 880. I said, well, what did I get? I think I scored like a 970. So I said, well, who was cheating on who's paper then? If he scored an 880 and I scored a 9-7 my score is higher

than here who who y'all think cheating they said they feel like you were cheating so it was up to universal miami to say you know what we're gonna disregard that and because it was up to universal mind and say we're gonna set these scores whether or not or not because right now y'all don't have no proven fact so miami was at a point where when they went to the National Championship in Ohio State, and they lost in Ohio State, so if I would have played that year and they would have kept investigating, if they would have found

something that was out of the ordinary, Miami would have been suspended. So Miami said, you know what, we can take a risk and just let you play, and then week six or seven, they come back and say it's not right. Or we can sit you out and then you just come back the next year and play. And so when that happened, I had a bunch of teams like, listen,

we are really dug into that situation. We're ready to take it. There's nothing they can do about that situation. You got your scores. You score higher than that person. There's nothing they can do about it. But Miami said, no, we're not going to do it. And then they was like, and I told them about the situation.

And they were like, listen, Dad, we just got too much to lose. I will promise you this. If you just have faith in us next year and you come in, we will not give your jersey away. So they sent my jersey number four up because everybody was trying to get it. They said, no, we're not going to hand out a jersey. We're going to show him that we're Lord and we'll bring him in next year. And that's what happened.

So that was – you believe that that coach at the – or the recruit at the University – at USC, you believe he had something to do with this? No, no, not USC because USC didn't recruit me. Okay. USC never – they – USC was the only school that didn't offer me a scholarship. Okay. Out of all the colleges. It was the only school.

But it was a college that I was, you know, getting recruited by. Right. You don't want to reveal that college? You've been sitting on that. I'm good, man. Yeah, I'm good. I'm just going to let that go.

I did, my first time touching the ball in the Orange Bowl, I took it 92 yards back for a touchdown, right? I took my helmet off, stared in the camera, right? I just wanted him to look me in my face. That's all. That's why I did that. If you go back, my first time touching the ball

in the Orange Bowl, I took a 92 yard kickoff back. Opened the kickoff for the game. Yep. I took my helmet off, going in the end zone, looking in the camera, stared at him, just so he could see my face. That's how I got him back, though. So, we good now. You didn't play your entire you didn't so you

weren't allowed to practice were you allowed to meet were you allowed to go in the cafeteria with the play how did you stay in shape so basically you were like a just a regular college student I didn't even go to school I didn't go to school man I went home wow I went home i went home man listen that that dry home man felt like i was getting sentenced to 15 to 20 years in prison right like i it was like my whole life was just gone and it was like it ain't nothing i can do about it man when i pulled up to my driveway man and looked at the front door and just thought about like man everybody that come from this era if you don't go to college man you know what's gonna happen to you you finna get caught up right you finna get caught up man and just looking at that door i said boy it's over for me

so i literally like i literally like when i got in that when i once i walked through that door man i went to my room, closed the door. I don't think I ate or slept for two or three weeks straight. I did not come out the room for a whole month. My mama made me feel like, you got to get up, man. You got to get up, baby. You can't do this. You cannot do this.

You got to fight, man. I stayed in the room for two or three weeks straight without eating. And then come out the room for a whole month. I was sick, man. Like, everything I worked for got taken away just like that, that easy. Right. I was hurting, man. So your mom said, Deb, you can't just give up. You gotta

fight. So when she tells you that, now what's going, what's your thought process? I gotta train. I gotta make sure that when I go back, I'm in shape.'m ready to go to say let them know that i haven't been just sitting around right so what happened was my mom called the high my high school coach and was like man y'all gotta find something for them to do till the time for them go back so my coach man he was like hey man listen we need to work you say brain so cocky I've read that brain shoulder fattening them and come practice with

you give us work and why you give another work you gonna get to keep yourself in shape so I started one better my high school and being on the scout team to make those guys better man and not only did I make them better I was able to stay in shape right and that's I really stayed in shape man I went back to high school man I. I have to graduate and went back practicing with them. Been on the scout team there. So what's the best feeling? Park return touchdown kick return touchdown interception.

Rushing touchdown receiving touchdown. But I said, Devin helps you. This is what you this is this is one. You will have one helps you this this is what you this is this one. You have one of these today which one you want. One turn. I'm trying to touch that. That's your that that's your that's your bag.

The point return TD. Yeah. Well, I'm returning to that man because you know, and it said you can't pick pick it in round 12 13 yards and hands on the turn man. You at the middle of nowhere by yourself.

And when that ball get in your hand, there's a thousand people around you. And when you come up out that hole and you hit that sideline, and then you show them folks how really fast you will, and you open up while somebody's sitting up in the hot stand, and they see how fast you really running, oh, yeah. That's what I like to show. You told the story earlier about how you didn't get an opportunity to play much your junior year on the

defensive side of football you were mainly a returner because the coach didn't like some of the things that transpired your sophomore year with the accolades that you had started to receive so you make the decision that you're going to come out you go to the combine you run 4-4 and some Nike Air Max and you pull

a hamstring you're're like, damn. Of all the things that could have happened. I didn't really play at all on the defensive side of football and now here I am at the combine and I pull up. No, no. I pulled up. I had a poor hamstring going

into the combine. That's why I wasn't supposed to run. That's why I didn't supposed to run. That's why I didn't bring no cleats. Because I told him that, you know, listen, my pro day is in two weeks. My pro day is in two weeks, man. I just tweaked my hammock, man.

I'm not ready to run. And when I got aboard the press conference, and you know, I had my interview with all the teams. And the biggest thing with me, well, what is he going to run in the 40? That was my biggest, that was what everybody wanted to really see me going into the draft. Right. Was how fast this kid really is.

And so when I told them I wasn't running at the combine, boy, it got so quiet in there. They're like, but this is not good news. So after leaving the press conference, my agent blowing me up, he said, listen, man, I don't know what you're going to do, but listen, these folks want to see you run, man. I don't know how bad it is, but listen, just do it. So I said, you know what? All right, I'm going to have to just come out slow and just roll into it.

Right. And that's what I did. I came out slow and rolled into it and just tried to kick it at the end. And I ended up running like 4-4 flat. And then two weeks later, I ended up running a 4-2 at the pro day. So I was able to make it up. So if you had run at the combine and Devin Hester is fully healthy, how fast do you believe you would have ran that 40 that day?

Oh, any bit of 4-2. Any bit of 4-2. So if I take Devin Hester at his prime, and I take Tyreek at his prime, who win in the 40? Man, Tyreek ran what, 4-3 side? See, Tyreek is a track guy. Yeah. He a track guy, right?

I got football speed. I ain't no track guy, but 40-yard dad? Yeah. Man, listen, man, I ran the fastest 10-yard split in Miami history. I ran a 1-3-4 in a 10-yard. My freshman year, bro, they would not tell me my time in the 40

because they said I was too young. I used DJ William, if you know DJ William. We was getting clocked around the 40. You know what to do. Hit the subscribe button to become an official member of Club Shea Shea, where we always do something for two something. your coffee. The show hits every single game every single week, but I can't do it alone. So I'm bringing in all the big guns from NFL media like Colleen Wolf. Subscribe today and you'll immediately be smarter and funnier than your friends.

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