Kenny Mayne Interview

Full disclosure...I'm a huge Kenny Mayne fan and have been since the mid 90's. But, I'm not the only one, you can count Jerry Seinfeld and Justin Timberlake plus many others (Mrs. Pickle) as Kenny Mayne fans. From the dry and witty humor first displayed on SportsCenter...to the make believe stories that appear on the Mayne Event and Mayne Street, Kenny never fails to entertain and generate a few laughs. You can see new episodes of Mayne Street right HERE every Tuesday and catch up on previous Mayne Events right HERE. Kenny also wrote a book, it didn't do well enough for him to retire...but it's a must read for any sports fan with a heart. You can follow Kenny on Twitter, see him this weekend on ABC/ESPN coverage of The Breeders Cup and see him on next weeks edition of Dancing With the Stars. And if that's not enough Kenny Mayne for you...part two of the interview will be posted over at The Cooley Zone very soon.


FP: Best thing to come out of Seattle…Pearl Jam or Starbucks?

KM: Not a fair fight. Pearl Jam. Love the new album. Saw PJ in Los Angeles a few weeks ago. I do love Starbucks coffee but hate the fact employees are trained to charge the highest price possible. I want three shots in my Americano. I want those three shots in a tall cup. I want to know why I am charged more for that..having saved Starbucks paper and water...than had I just taken the three shots in the Grande cup, in which three Americano shots come. Yes, it is a small rip-off in terms of money stolen, but I like the world to be right. Second, the guy who runs Starbucks sold my Sonics to people from Oklahoma who then moved the team. So, yeah, my answer is Pearl Jam. Three shots of Pearl Jam are cuts 5,6,7 on the new album. But I like it all.

FP: What was your favorite SportsCenter catchphrase?

KM: I like it when Stuart Scott says "You gotta Rise UP-ah." I like it when Neil Everett says "Right Now" at the end of the tease. I like it when Scott VanPelt gets silly. I didn't like it when he said "its business time" because I was going to use that but he said it first. I think it's OK to use another's line if you then quickly attribute. It's business time. Scott VanPelt said that. So did those guys on HBO. As for mine, if it's just one, I'll go with "He's going to get his name in the paper."

FP: Nicknames you’re known by?

KM: My friend Mark still calls me Spoon, after an ex-Sonic. Wheelo is another one. That's a play on my odd middle name, Wheelock, a family name.

FP: Would you ever do a radio show?

KM: I would have a radio show if I were paid to do one and it didn't last a long time and it didn't come on the air that often. I'm not lazy, but I like not having to perform each day. In one way or another, I work seven days a week during football season but I also can create plenty of family time. As long as I get my story done no one cares what the actual hours were. So, I wouldn't right now want to trade what I do to be married to a radio schedule.

FP: Best meal you can cook?

KM: I blend ice with orange juice well. It's an art. But then you have to clean the blender.
I am pretty solid with steak and baked potatoes. My scrambled eggs are restaurant quality.

FP: Favorite TV show and movie?

KM: Ever? Probably Johnny Carson. I love CBS Sunday Morning. The pace of it is nice. It's educational, thoughtful. I'm not naming a PBS show just to name a PBS show but I also love Frontline. Can't go wrong with HBO. Whatever HBO's next thing is, that's usually good. I miss Tim Russert. I like Hardball with Chris Matthews. I want the news shows, even the ones where there's lot of opinion to be handled by someone doing it fairly. I also watch International History Channel. While I was in bed after surgery in June I watched a doc on Pencils. Really.

FP: You could throw a football 70+ yards in college, what’s the over/under on your longest throw at 50?

KM: I just won that bet the other day. It was on TV. I got 50 with one step and a bad ankle. I'm setting the new line at 60 once I can get some run-up.

FP: Largest amount you’ve won on a single bet in horse racing?

KM: I think I brought in something like 5k on one single bet. I've never won a Pick-Six. I like Pick-Fours. I like the Breeders' Cup. It is my favorite event of the year by far. Leaving for that soon.

FP: When winning a bet do you prefer “winner, winner, chicken dinner,” or “straight cash homey?”

KM: I'd quote Randy Moss.

FP: In your book you said you were going to break out the electric tackle football game again…have you done so?

KM: Yes. We played it at work recently. I brought it in as a prop. It's still under my desk. Stuart Scott and I used to play fairly often. Need to get that going again. We keep stats.


A plastic ball, plastic bat...hours of entertainment and a lifetime of memories!

FP: Mark Sansaver hit 843 wiffle ball home runs, how many did you hit?

KM: I lost track of my total. It was nowhere near Mark's number. I still possess an unhittable spit ball when on the hill.

Cheers and Hail

Look, It's Billy Bob Thornton...WS Edition

Chase Utley




Jesse James



A.J. Burnett (with personal catcher/pool advisor)



Dale Jr.




Joba




Turtle




Cliff Lee




Michael Phelps




Joe Girardi



Actor Tony Plana




Charlie Manuel



Bob Knight



Raul Ibanez



Lou Diamond Phillips



Mariano Rivera



ET

Cheers and Hail

Part Of The Solution

Earlier this week I started what was supposed to be a series of posts documenting the issues of the Redskins front office. I realize now that I was starting to become part of the problem, not the solution. Oh, believe me, I’ve got major issues with Dan and Vinny…and the next post I had planned was to focus on bad draft picks, free agent moves, etc. I mean I’m still pissed we are going to go into this game against KC with an offensive line that features a bunch of non-drafted guys and a guy who was out of football for three years. Everyone knew the O-line was an issue, it lacked depth and was getting old…but the front office ignored this. But, I’m not a journalist and it’s not my job to break down information that most of you Skins fans already know. What I am is a huge Redskin fan who happens to blog about them. It’s time to be a fan.

As fans, we can’t change the state of the Redskins. Wearing black to the game and not buying hotdogs is not going to change the product on the field. You paid your hard earned money for those tickets and I agree that your voice should be heard. But, when you attend a game at FedEx, you are going to that game because you want to see your team win! You want to sing “httr,” after they score. The players play hard, they may not have been put in the best position to win…but they want to win. CHEER them, don’t boo them. A win against KC followed by a win against the Eagles and the Skins are back in this thing. Is that what you want as fan? Or do you want to continue to bitch, moan and overall be miserable?

The Redskins season and the Redskins franchise are not dead…so don’t wear black to the game Sunday. I suggest something more attractive, like burgundy and gold. Treat yourself to $10 beer and cheer for the Skins. Be a part of the solution, not a part of the problem.

Cheers and Hail

Dumb And Dumber

The hiring of Jim Zorn

Dan and Vinny were like a “monkey f’ing a football” during the entire process of hiring a head coach after Gibbs left. What should have been a swift and efficient process turned into a month long soap opera that ended in a…WTF? Here’s a look back at the decisions that brought Jim Zorn to the Redskins.

Ignoring Gibbs

After Gibbs decided to retire after the season, it was said that he (as well as many players) endorsed Gregg Williams for the head coaching position in a meeting with Dan. Of course Dan let that endorsement from the most influential figure in Redskins history go in 1 ear and out the other. But why would Dan listen to the old man? Well, one good reason would be that Dan was still paying Gibbs his 6 million a year as a “consultant.” Another great reason was the fact that Gibbs just led the Skins to the playoffs 2 out of the last 3 seasons…and knew the team better than anyone. Or maybe because Gibbs won 3 Super Bowls and has forgotten more about football than Dan will ever know. Of course Dan strung Williams along for 10 days or so before not only not hiring him, but giving him his walking papers as the D coordinator as well (although Williams would have never stayed, Dan still has to maintain the power.) Dan was wrong not to hire Gregg Williams as the head coach. Not because he was the right man for the job (I’m not sure that he was and not sure he would have been successful either,) but by not listening to a great football mind like Gibbs…something Dan refuses to do. FAIL #1

Promoting Vinny

The next step to finding a head coach was to take a moment and…promote Vinny to Executive VP/Football Operations. The Redskin’s official press release announced that Vinny “will assume responsibility for all aspects of the team's football organization - including personnel, the team roster, scouting and salary cap management.” This is a great way to lure the “cream of the crop” of head coaches…let them know they’ve got to report to Vinny and defer to him on all personnel decisions. Now that’s got to sound attractive to a Cowher-type doesn’t it. FAIL#2

Meet your staff Coach

Next came the revealing of the “mystery candidate,” Jim Fassell. This would end up being the 2nd time that Dan left Fassell at the altar. Dan and Vinny strung him along while they were supposedly trying to assemble his coaching staff, which would feature Rex Ryan as D coordinator and Jim Zorn as the O coordinator. Ryan never had an interest in joining the Redskins in this capacity, but Zorn was hired as the O coordinator, based upon the fact that Dan and Vinny were “blown away” by his interview. Dan and Vinny then inked up Greg Blache as the D coordinator and now basically have an entire staff for their still unknown head coach. Just a quick recap, the incoming head coach now basically has his entire coaching staff already decided, and must defer all football decisions to Vinny. FAIL#3

Suit it up, Jim

Zorn was not a “hot commodity” for O coordinator positions around the NFL; he had never advanced past QB coach at any level in the NFL. He wasn’t the “young, sexy pick” to be a head coach in the NFL…that would have been Josh McDaniels, whom I believe the Skins never interviewed. Zorn was 54 years old and basically was only know for his “quirky” training methods. He had never called plays; he had never devised a game plan. He was never in charge of more than 3 players. But Dan and Vinny were blown away. And as the candidates began to dwindle…the job was now the equivalent of going out on a first date with a girl who’s 6 months pregnant…Dan and Vinny invited Zorn to interview for the head job. “Suit it up, Jim.” FAIL#4

The rest is now history. Zorn was named HC, OC and QB coach. Severely over his head…and he hasn’t been able to get his head back above water. I’m afraid that he’s close to no longer being able to tread water…and that’s where the Skins are at this point.

Next post will focus on personnel decisions.

Cheers and Hail

Giving The Redskins Some Tough Love

The sites been quiet the past several days, quite honestly I’ve been pretty numb about the Redskins. For the first time in forever, I don’t have a positive spin to put on the situation. I’ve been an eternal optimist in regards to the Skins, but I no longer see a light at the end of the tunnel. After some hard thinking and long analysis (otherwise known as drinking heavily) I have come to one conclusion…it’s the front office’s fault. I hate to write negatively about the Redskins, but sometimes you have to sit down and have a talk to those that you love, give them a little "tough love."

A couple weeks ago on ESPN Countdown, Tom Jackson said it best (I’m quoting from memory, may not be word for word) “Dan Snyder wants to win, he just doesn’t know how to win.” “He’s like a guy who’s got a leaky roof…but he ignores it and keeps on fixing up his basement.”

Of course everybody has an opinion on whose fault it is (i.e. Riggo YouTube,) it’s Zorn, It’s Campbell, it’s Snyder or it’s Cerrato. It’s clear to me that it’s the front office. The decisions being made out of Ashburn are clearly made by the tandem of Dan & Vinny…and quite frankly, it’s not working. These 2 peas in a pod can continue family movie night and their racquetball dates, but Vinny has to go for this organization to succeed. And when Vinny does go, Snyder must give full control to a great football mind and let them re-build this once proud franchise. A franchise that now gets booed at home at home regularly, and whose 2 wins have come against teams that lost last week by nearly 50 points.

This is the environment that Dan and Vinny have built. A team that struggles against the worst teams in the NFL, which means the Redskins, must be one of the worst teams? A team that cant’s score 20 points a game and hasn’t beaten a team by double digits since Gibbs left town nearly 2 years ago. As fans, we know the players on the field are playing hard and to the best of their abilities…unfortunately the front office is not putting those players in a position to succeed.

My next post will focus on the decisions that Dan & Vinny have made that have gotten the Redskins to where they are today.

Cheers and Hail

10/11-13 Happy Bday Nolan Reimold & Gregg Olson

Happy birthday Nolan Reimold. Nolan just finished his rookie season for the Orioles. It was an impressive campaign that saw him win AL Rookie of the Month honors in June and garner some media attention for AL ROY. Alas, his season was cut short by an achilles injury. Overall Nolan batted .279 with 15 HR’s and 45 RBI’s. He also showed some surprising speed on his way to stealing 8 out of 10 bases. Nolan also spurred Fatpickle to create these T-shirts that are soon to be classic collector’s items. I look forward to watching Nolan excel for the Orioles in the years to come. Happy 26th Mr. Reimold.



Happy birthday Gregg Olson. Gregg played 6 seasons for the Orioles from 88-93’. He won the 89’ ROY award (beating out Ken Griffey Jr.,) when he went 5-2 with a 1.69 ERA and saved 27 games for the “Why Not” Orioles. Blessed with a devastating, knee-buckling curveball, Gregg saved 160 games and had a 2.26 ERA during his Oriole tenure. His 160 saves are #1 all-time in Orioles history. Gregg was inducted into the Orioles HOF in 2008. Happy 43rd Mr. Olson.



Happy birthday Skip Hicks. Skip played 3 seasons for the Redskins from 98-00’. His best season was 98’ when he started 5 games and rushed for 433 yards and 8 TD’s. Skip was drafted in the 3rd round out of UCLA where he still holds the record for TD’s in a season (26) and a career (56.) Happy 35th Mr. Hicks.

Cheers and Hail

Fatpickled: Ten Post From Year 1

Here's the final celebration of Fatpickled turning 1 last week...a list of 10 posts I think you should read. I can't really call them a best of, or a top 10 list, because they would need to be award winning pieces or something for that. Nope, not winning any awards here at Fatpickled, just trying to entertain some of the people, some of the time. If you've been with me since the beginning, here's a chance to relieve some old memories. If your new to the site, here's a chance to catch up on some older posts. Whatever category you fit in, thanks for following Fatpickled.

Guys Night Out

This was a post about all the athletes I want to hang out with and have a beer. It was the most visited post I’ve ever done.

The Caddyshack Remake…Starring???

Over 3500 unique votes were cast to decide who should star in the Caddyshack remake.

Just Another Sunday Night

The his and hers diary of a Redskins fan coping with a loss.

Hot Chicks

Coverage of the Sweet 16 Hot Chicks tournament won by Julianne Hough.

I Don’t Like The Yankees So Much

Probably the true winner of the most visited post ever, but we’ll never know as all the Yankees fans crashed the site for 8 days.

Dallas Week

Guest bloggers and I discussed why we love the Redskins/Cowboys.

Billy Bob Thornton Game

I match up athletes with their celebrity look alikes.

Athlete Interviews

Exactly what it says, interviews I’ve done over the past year with various athletes.

Sail Away With Me

Before the blog became sports only, I sometimes wrote about family stuff. This is a long, but funny read.

The Last Word In Big D

The first post ever, without this one there would be no others.

Cheers and Hail