The CheckerBoard

1. If you were a wrestler what would be your name?

2. If you could have Ryan and Wes do a jackass stunt what would it be?

3. What is your favorite meal?

4. Do you think we will get a big name recruit and if so who would it be?

5. What is your favorite UT game memory?

I want to thank you and your wife for y'alls service.

1. "Hitman" - My college roomate tagged me with it, during my days of playing free safety at MC. And after a few drinks one night, the name was inked on my left shoulder beneath a set of Aviator Wings.

2. I would have them go three days without food, then make them set a trap to catch a Racoon in Wes's backyard, then clean it, cook it, and eat it before they could eat anything else. Teamwork!

3. Definitely not racoon! Mainstay favorite is bubba burgers on a charcoal grill. My grandmother in GA makes some great vinson and gravy though.

4. I think we'll get at least one 5*, Lawson or Bell, or both. Lawson is the bigger need on the roster, IMO. Bell would be huge for keeping talent in state.

5. It's not a very flattering memory for Vol fans, but a personal favorite of mine. My dad was a KPD officer when I was young, and he'd take me into games and we'd usually stand behind the South endzone. I was 10 years old, when my mom (who is from S. Georgia) decided she wanted to go to the UGA game. So, dad got her a ticket. She was sitting amongst all TN fans in the corner of the South endzone, while dad and I were standing in our normal spot. When Herscell Walker ran completely over Bill Bates for a touchdown in that game, she stood up and started cheering while waving an orange and white shaker that someone next to her gave her. There was another policeman standing next to us that looked up at her and said, "who is that crazy butch?", and my dad said, "I don't know, but she's gotta be crazy". We never let her live that one down...

That's some good stuff right there. #2 is sick but I like it. The UT anecdote is top notch funny. +1 AWBO. You are killin' it.

Why would you over-cook a steak??

Keeps my dogs from takin' it off the plate. I guess that wouldn't matter in prison though...

Wheel of Fortune or Jeopardy?

AWBO, thanks for the service first and foremost. Onto the questions:

When was your first visit to Neyland and what did you think?

Where do you think the class will end up in the final rankings?

Where have you been stationed during your military service?

What was your favorite place and why?

Jeopardy, cause I actually learned some things. But, I've probably forgot them all by now...

As a military man, you've lived in lots of places. Which one had the best BBQ?

I was seven or eight the first time going to a game. Dad and his buddies at KPD, put a bunch of us kids in the patty-wagon at the police department and drove us inside the fences. I don't remember much of the game or who we played, but I do remember that all the other kids and I had to walk back to the police department cause the patty-wagon was full.

I think we end up somewhere between 15-20. Coach Jones has come in and put on a full court press, and I think his attitude and personality is connecting with the kids, and the rest of his staff.

Mostly in Tennessee with the Army National Guard. I started off at McGhee-Tyson as a helicopter mechanic, then went through Officer Candidate School in Smyrna, TN, helicopter flight school at Fort Rucker, AL (where I am now), several schools in Marana, AZ (outside of Tucson), schools in Fort Indiantown Gap, PA, commanded an Apache helicopter company in Jackson, TN (McKeller-Sykes airport), then spent 4 years in DC, a year in Mosul, Iraq, a year in Fort Leavenworth, KS, and a couple of short trips to Afghanistan while working here at Fort Rucker again.

Favorite was McGhee-Tyson cause it's home and I miss it. I liked the climate in Arizona and it would probably be a strong #2.

We got down to Kansas City several times when we were at Leavenworth, and I'd put that area at the top. Original, huh? It was dang good though!

A good buddy of mine has one of these smokers though, and I'd put him up against anybody.

Don't forget to pick the next victim.