The Josh Innes Show - Coogs In the Title Game

Episode Date: April 7, 2025

I'm really happy for Kelvin Sampson and the UH Cougars. It's funny, I care more about Houston doing well in sports more than I did when I lived there. I guess I'm broken in that way. Kelvin Sampson's story is great. In the current world of NIL, it's absurd to think of what he got fired for at Indiana. Is it possible to feel a connection to college players in the NIL world? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Spring is here, and you can now get almost anything you need delivered with Uber Eats. What do we mean by almost? You can't get a well-groomed lawn delivered, but you can get chicken parmesan delivered. Sunshine? No. Some wine? Yes. Get almost, almost anything delivered with Uber Eats. Order now. Alcohol and select markets. See app for details.

Whether you own a bustling hair salon or a hot new bakery, you need business insurance that can keep up with your evolving needs. With flexible coverage options from TD Insurance, you only pay for what you need. TD, ready for you. So tonight, if you're listening to this on Monday at any point, tonight is the National Championship game, and the only reason I have any interest is because the University of Houston is playing. I'd still tune in a little bit if not for them being in it, but now I'm

engaged and invested in it after their epic comeback win over Duke on Saturday. Here we are, Cougs representing the city of Houston very well. There are many stories or elements to this story that are interesting. The Kelvin Sampson angle is interesting, but you know, when I think about Houston, like when I got to Houston in 2009, like nobody gave a shit about Houston basketball at all. I mean, they were in that stretch where they were just down and they had been down

for two decades and no one gave a shit about them. I think Tom Penders was the coach when I got there. And I want to say one of the seasons they made it to the tournament as like a 13 seed or something i think they had some guy and i forgot the dude's name but their best player was a dude that had like this giant weird like scar on his neck and i don't remember the guy's name and i think they lost in the first round one year and didn't go to the tournament any other years that I was there the first time. And no one gave a shit.

And people were more invested. It's interesting. I feel like more people were invested in U of H football then than they are now, despite the fact that U of H football is now in the Big 12 and they've got a brand new stadium, a relatively brand new stadium at relatively brand new stadium. And they're seemingly a bigger football program than they were. More people gave a shit

about U of H back then than they seem to now. And that's mostly because of Case Keenum and that, and like, let's go here. We'll start here. So anytime I post something positive about Houston, most of the shit I get in return is positive stuff from people, right? Most of the responses are positive responses. People will like it. They'll say, we miss you here in Houston, loved your show, whatever. And then I'll get a smattering of people that will just kind of dump on the you know what i am basically right they'll just kind of dump on the fact that i was in houston i used to be critical of the teams in houston which by the way i still am but you just don't hear it every day on the radio but people don't forget that shit most notably it is u of h people and Rockets people, right? And I did not like either one of those programs

or fan bases when I was there. U of H was for a different reason, mostly because U of H was really big picture irrelevant, but people liked Case Keenum, and I think they opened up the season like they beat Mississippi State, and then they would have a chance to run through Conference USA

and make a case for themselves to be this great team, and then they'd lose the conference championship game, whatever. And I would dump on U of H fans during that stretch. Basketball was useless. Football was fine for what it was with Case Keenum, and that was that. And U of H was just kind of out of sight, out of mind, right? We didn't talk about it on the radio, and if we did, it was mostly just just kind of out of sight, out of mind, right? Like we didn't talk about it on the radio. And if we did, it was mostly just to kind of bag on it. And U of H people would call

and get super pissed and fight with me about it. So U of H people did not like me, but that wasn't a huge fan base that was really going to make or break you. The Rockets had a bigger fan base and their people very much hated me from the people in the organization to the fans, right? Let me play a couple commercials and I will continue. All right, if you're ready to win some real cash during the basketball playoffs, you got to check out Pick 6 from DraftKings. When it comes to basketball payouts, DraftKings Pick 6 posterizes the competition, including prize picks. It's a very simple concept. Hit all your picks and score higher minimum payouts on Pick 6, plus even more cash if you outscore the competition. Pick 6 is available in most states, including Missouri,

California, Texas, Georgia, and more, and I absolutely love it. Look, every night we're going to be having playoff basketball. Every night. So when you're sitting around, and you might not have interest in a particular game, let's say you're a fan of a particular team, they're not playing that night, here's how you make it a little bit more fun for the other games.

Build a little lineup there with pick six. It's really great. Me and my wife do it all the time, so make sure you do it. And new players get 50 in Pick 6 credits instantly on just a $5 entry. Download the DraftKings Pick 6 app now and use code INNES, that's my name, I-N-N-E-S, for new customers to play. $5, get 50 in Pick 6 credits, better payouts, bigger wins. Only with Pick 6 from DraftKings. The crown is yours.

Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER. Help is available for problem gambling. Call 888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org in Connecticut. Must be 18 plus. Age and eligibility restrictions vary by jurisdiction. Pick 6 not available everywhere including new york and ontario void where prohibited one per new customer bonus awarded

is non-withdrawable pick six credits that expire in 14 days limited time offer see terms at pick six dot draft kings dot com slash promos so my everybody knows about my issues with the rockets right and i genuinely hated them like i i made every excuse to not give them credit i rooted against them actively every game like i wanted them to lose and suck and be terrible because i hated the organization i hated how petty they were i hated their fucking fans because their fans were the most vocal people on social media and they'd go to their message boards and talk shit about me I wanted the Rockets to just perish I fucking hated the Rockets so a lot of what people know of me from my time on the radio in Houston is that I just fucking hated the Rockets and Rockets people will dislike me but then what's interesting is now that I'm not there and I haven't lived there in four years and now that Tillman's the owner and now that

they've got a different coach, different front office, different general manager, I actually don't hate them. Now, maybe if I lived there, I would hate them. Like that's possible because that's just how fucked up I am, right? I love the St. Louis Cardinals, right? Until I moved here and started talking about them on the radio, then I fucking hated them. It's a weird disease that I have. I can't figure it out. I don't know why this is the way it is. It might just be because when you're on the radio and you say anything negative, you're going to get a thousand people coming back at you and telling you that you're terrible and bad at your job because they're homers and they have no real concept of any sort of critical thinking. So anything you say that's negative, that doesn't fall in line with their viewpoint. They just think

you're terrible at your job and they talk shit to you. And then you mute them on social media and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Right. That's how it goes. So I think that's what happened to me here. I moved here. I started seeing how lousy the team was in person. And then I would talk about them and I'd get this blowback from the dingus fans here right that I know you fucking suck and you don't get it and then I just wanted the Cardinals to lose the second I move from here I'll probably love them again even though they suck I'll love them again it's just something about that I didn't really fall in love with LSU until I didn't live in Baton Rouge anymore and I haven't lived in Baton Rouge in 16 years so because of the fact I don't live in Baton Rouge I think that is why I love L Rouge, I think that is why I

love LSU so much. And that is why I love the saints so much. Like Jilly would, I really got back into the saints again when they kind of had their, their pop again in like 2017, they had a three-year stretch where they weren't any good. And then, you know, they were seven and nine, three years in a row. And then they got good again. And I was back into it. And Jilly's like, I never remember you really being into this shit. And I like I I loved it but I didn't really talk about it or think about it much because I was still kind of close to Baton Rouge and I you know we were in Houston whatever once I moved I started to feel a connection back to Louisiana because I'm not there every day it is very easy to love shit when you don't have to deal with it on a day-to-day

basis, right? It goes for a lot of things. A lot of people are shitting on Cardinals fans because they're seeing these big shots of these empty stadiums because no one's going to the games because the Cardinals suck. And people are like, oh, best fans in baseball, huh? Blah, blah, blah. Well, it's easy from afar because you're not inside every day. You don't know that this team has been eroding really for the last decade. You get caught up in the fact that the Cardinals from 2000 to 2014 ish were fantastic well since about 2016 the Cardinals have made the playoffs a handful of times one of those was during the Rona they haven't won a playoff series since 2019 that's six years now they've had one of their worst seasons in history two years ago it's like

the worst season they've had since i've been alive and people don't like the ownership and people are just bored with it like it's part of it but from afar you'd be like how could you be because you'll just go look at the standings and go well they really haven't been terrible at all but you're not in it it's the same way philadelphia people from, you'd look at Andy Reid and go, why did they fucking hate this guy? But if you lived it, you knew different than the people from the outside did. Outsiders don't have that same perspective, right? And that's kind of what my life is like. When I'm inside something, I just, for whatever reason, I dislike it more, maybe because I'm subjected to it more than I would be if I were somewhere else. Again, that's why I love LSU.

If I move back to Baton Rouge, if I had to go on the radio every day and talk about LSU, and you have to deal with the knuckle-dragging fans because those are the most vocal, I'm shocked that my buddy Matt, who's done radio there now for like 15 years, I am surprised that he can still be a fan of them when having to deal with dipshits every day. That's not to say that every LSU fan is a dipshit or every Cardinals fan is a dipshit, but the most vocal ones are. And that's what like turns you off. And like, you want those people to be miserable.

That's me at least. Maybe I'm just fucked up, but I want those people to be miserable. Even if it means that I will also be miserable because my team sucks. It's a weird phenomenon. I'm fucked in the head. I'm phenomenon. I'm fucked in the head. I'm aware that I'm fucked in the head. But somebody the other night, I had said something positive about the Rockets

because they're a good team to watch. They're a good basketball team. They're a fun team to watch. They got likable dudes on the team. I have nothing against the coach, despite the fact that he fucked around on Nia Long, who is a doll. And the owner doesn't bother me.

Tillman doesn't bother me. I enjoy the Rockets. It's not like I watch them every day, but I don't hate them like I did. I truly fucking hated them. I didn't hate the Philadelphia Phillies or the Eagles or the Flyers or anywhere else I worked. I didn't hate the Tennessee Titans. I fucking hated the Rockets because the Rockets made my life difficult.

And that's where it started. And all of my difficulties in Houston really all centered around the fucking Rockets and I hated them. No, I don't hate them so much. And I tweeted that and someone goes, well, actually someone said, man, if this dude starts saying positive shit

about the Rockets, then we'll really know that he loves Houston. I said, I have nothing negative to say about the Rockets. But if you guys knew the kind of fucking petty penises they were when I lived there and was on the radio, maybe you have with teams will determine how you view them. Like to me, you'd, you'd be a cuck. If a team wanted you fired and called your boss all the time to bitch about you, bowing down and kissing their ass would make you a fuck boy. And I'm not a fuck boy in that regard. Now I got myself in trouble a lot for that, but like if the St. Louis Cardinals or whatever team you root for, let's say you root for the Eagles.

Right. And like the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles told you that you were a shithead and wanted you to get fired from your job, I would like to believe that you really wouldn't love the Philadelphia Eagles as much anymore because of that. That's how I was. If the Rockets wouldn't have been puds to me when I was just giving them honest critiques and weren't just rabbit ears fucks, fucks, whatever that means rabbit ears, fucks, uh, fucks, whatever that means. Rabbit ears, fucks. If they weren't like that, then I wouldn't have had a problem with them as much. I never had a beef with the Houston, Texas, uh, Texans. Why? Because they didn't whine about the

shit I did on the radio. My only beef really started when they moved all of their programming in house. So like I wasn't able to interview the coach anymore or whatever, which I thought I was pretty good at. But whatever. I didn't hate them on a level like I hated the Rockets, and I didn't hate the Astros on that level. What does this have to do with anything? Well, tonight you've got the national championship game, and I am always in support of anything positive that involves teams from Houston because I love Houston. Now, am I ever going to move back to Houston? Probably not. And if it is, it's not going to be for a radio job because a job that's been open for four fucking months hasn't even fucking called me back. So not even a call,

not even respond to an email. Even the shithead in Chicago who basically scoffed at me and said, we're good. We don't't need you he at least fucking responded houston guy doesn't even respond i've emailed him twice i look like a lunatic i apply for the job like if you don't want someone to reply to your shit or to send you an email bud then here's an idea don't even post the fucking job especially when it's someone who's super qualified for your job you're a fucking classic rock radio station. You're not fucking NPR. I can go in there and do great things. You can at least email me back.

But he doesn't, so whatever. But anyway, good for Houston. Good for Kelvin Sampson, too. Because, like, you want to talk about how screwed up the world is. This dude's reputation was ruined because he was making some impermissible phone calls back in the day. Now you look at what college sports are and it's agents and NIL deals. And this guy's going to leave this school for a million dollar NIL deal. And you were worried about Kelvin Freak and Samson.

Kelvin Samson making impermissible phone calls when he was at Indiana. Like those kind of guys should have like their whole reputations restored and the tarnish taken off of them. In the same way that Reggie Bush or the Fab Five or any of these guys that were involved in these controversial things, now with this era of sports, college athletics, what we're dealing with, with million-dollar deals for athletes and shit, it's minor league sports at this point. It's professional sports.

Then we should have guys like kelvin samson like your name is stricken like it's stricken from the record at this point like the the shit that was happening to kelvin samson at indiana and the shit that he got popped for and the reason he was out of college coaching and back in the the in the pro game for five years or however long it was preposterous when you look at the kind of dealings you're seeing now in college athletics, when you're seeing people like Livvy Dunn, who aren't even particularly good at anything, yet Livvy Dunn is super famous making billions of dollars on the internet, right?

You see stories every day about 1,500 dudes or whatever it is in the transfer portal for basketball, whatever. All of this stuff, and they're all going, they're all working deals. Like the idea that they're not working deals and that the schools are not using NIL deals to lure dudes in and that they're not talking to them during the season is all bullshit because they clearly are. Yet Kelvin Sampson's reputation was destroyed because he was making impermissible phone calls. When you think about the absurdity of it, when you think about the absurdity of it, when you think about what these coaches used to have to deal with, it is absurd. Look at Dale

Brown, one of my heroes. I love daddy Dale Brown. Dale Brown was always fighting for the opportunity to get dudes paid and get the money. Like he, one of the players had to like, like he couldn't pay to have players go to their teammates funeral, like all of this shit. And like now, like if you're Dale Brown, if you're a guy, Jerry Tarkanian, if you are Kelvin Sampson, guys who are kind of associated in the past with, um, you know, the, the seedy side of college athletics and paying the players or the fab five, right? Fisher, like those guys like that are kind of associated with the seedy underbelly of college athletics and paying the players or the fab five, right? Uh, Fisher, like those guys, like that are kind of associated with the seedy underbelly of college athletics.

You should be giving double fucking birds to them right now, because I would argue that it's even seedier now than it was then because it's totally legal and they're doing shit behind closed doors and breaking all these rules that are still supposed to be in place yet. They're still breaking them yet. We fawn over it now, but 15 15 years ago if you tried to give a guy 20 you're a piece of shit coach that's breaking the rules it's all bullshit so good for kelvin samson because guy is i guess he's never been to a national championship game has he i don't think oklahoma ever went to the national championship game when he was there went to the final four uh but not a national title so he's got a chance to win one he's an old school type of guy i like like that's the kind of guy that i have

super respect for like that's the kind of guy i'd like to play for because you can tell that the dudes who play for him are going to have the utmost respect for him for the rest of their lives like he feels like a guy that taught people about life right Like some guys just look like that or sound like that. Like, I don't know if John Calipari has taught anybody any life lessons when he was getting these five star dudes to Kentucky for a year. Like, I don't know if any of them are like going to go back to John Calipari after playing for one year at Kentucky because they were forced to. Like, I don't know if Boogie Cousins looks at John Calipari as some sort of mentor, right? But these dudes at Houston

who have stayed there for two, three, four years, you build a bond with a coach that way and you have a love for the coach in that way and that sticks with you forever. Like, that's the kind of guy I admire. A guy that seems like he's tough on dudes. A guy that plays a style of basketball that is not aesthetically pleasing.

A style of basketball that truly isn't like what you're accustomed to seeing. You don't see that very often anymore, you know, with the kind of the way the game is played. Yet he's winning old school style with an old school vibe. And he's getting to say fuck you to the world after they kind of left him for dead after the Indiana situation. Good for him, man. You the Indiana situation good for him man you know and good for the U of H people you know like it there's no reason why U of H shouldn't be what they are right now there was no reason and again I'm sure there are reasons but for like the big picture when you had a big city the way they've been in this whole time and you got players that

come out of that city and out of the state U of H shouldn't have been down the way they were down with the long losing stretches and the shitty coaches. And the other thing that kind of makes it cool is because U of H was down for so long. You had Tom Penders, and I forgot who came after Tom Penders, but you had these teams, and Clyde was the coach and was a disaster at one point. And you had these guys that had just sucked for years and years,

yet you take this kind of reclamation project, and I think that was one of the things I read from Kelvin Sampson, is he wanted something he could fix. And that's what he got in Houston, and now he's taking them to another Final Four, and now a national championship game, and could end up winning the national championship, and that's really fucking cool.

That's really cool. It's a wonderful story. He's a guy that's impossible to dislike. The team is impossible to dislike because they're just kind of a, they're just a different breed. They're just a different class of dudes that it's not like, like if you're a fan of whatever school that brings in, you know, three dudes out of the portal, if you go to the final four, you're not going to feel bad about it, right? You don't feel bad about it, but you feel better doing it how Kelvin's done it.

You feel better about watching these dudes who have stayed around and are now getting rewarded for it. That's not going to happen very often. More likely than not, most of the time when these teams are going to go on big runs, it's going to be because they went to the portal and found three studs that they paid six figures to. And that's the other thing is like, if they lose tonight, you feel like that pain's going to be legit, right? Like you feel like that would be legit pain because this is kind of the culmination slash coronation. Right. Whereas if you look at teams like Florida or Auburn, right, you look at those guys and you're like, how many of these dudes like Jahani Brome, right? That dude, like their big dude transfer portal dude. Like, so it's not like that dude was there grinding it out for four years and now he's in this moment like they're hired guns and you can almost see

that emotion on the face of the hired guns versus the dudes that are at places for an extended period of time it is impossible for you to be that committed to a university when you've been on campus for five months of your life and that's it imagine spending five years on a campus or three years on a campus with the same coach with your same brothers that you've lost final fours with it's one thing if you were some dude well i was at two lane last year but now i'm at auburn and we made a run like there's like and that's kind of one of the things i keep talking about when i talk about the unintended consequences of nil right and i'm not against dudes getting paid and nothing the genie's

out of the bottle you're not going to put the genie back in the bottle but part like i have a connection with my high school basketball coach his son was one of my best friends in school we still talk he i my coach called me the other day and he was only my coach for a year and then he became the principal but i had a really great relationship with him and still do that's a connection like being a hired gun and maybe this is my fault too this is one of my downfalls I get too connected to people that are in authority positions whatever daddy issues I don't know whatever you want to call it but I just become connected with people and that's why like when a boss gets fired at a job I feel I don't like that job anymore because I like the boss. And maybe this is something I need to learn to remedy. But like, I feel a connection to people that I played four years of basketball with or a coach that I spent that time with, right? We,

we went into the quote unquote wars together, whatever. I think U of H has that advantage over a lot of these places. Now, maybe starting next year. Maybe they'll have a bunch of transfer portal guys. I don't know. And again you're not going to feel bad. If you're a team that's in the final four. That's got four dudes that are all transfer portal guys. But even as a fan. You don't feel the connection to those dudes.

They're just there because it was the best situation. Monetarily for them. And you at least want the idea. You want to feel like. They're there because they want to be there. and not because that's where the money was. And I know that that's a naive way to look at things and it's not realistic, but you want to believe that. And that's part of the appeal of this Houston team is that it feels like those are dudes

who came there and stayed there, wanted to be there. It's a great fucking story. And Kelvin's a great story. And I hope to hell they win tonight. So more to come.