Right now, if you were to predict the game, would you pick Cats?

I think that I still will.

I trust K-State even in this quarterback situation more than I trust Colorado because I know that at least on the K-State side that I think that those guys are still going to be very, very bought into what Colin Klein and everybody are kind of rowing and steering everybody in the right direction.

I don't think that Colorado has a direction that they're going and they're They, last Saturday, could have broke, could break Colorado.

Like, they were up at halftime against a really good Oklahoma State team.

And you think to yourself, oh, maybe, like, this will be a close game down the stretch.

And then Oklahoma State scores 34 on answer to win, win the game pretty handily, even though they're down four at halftime.

Where are you right now from what you've seen over the last two exhibitions with this Casey Alexander team hitting the floor?

How did the venture to acting come about? How did you decide to do this?

I mean, it's not something I planned.

I've always wanted to be a WWE wrestler since I was five.

I was lucky to sign to WWE 21.

And a few years ago, my mate Dave Bautista, obviously big WWE superstar, massive Hollywood star now, invited me to be part of a movie, The Killers Game.

I had a lot of fun there.

A couple of years ago, I had a chance to meet Chad to direct John Wick movies, directing Highlander.

Will you keep the physique? Will you keep up with a workout regimen if you do more in Hollywood?

have you ever met any famous people that you've always wanted to meet?

Yeah, I don't really get that excited about that.

I'm excited to talk and learn from a lot of people.

I remember one time I got an L.A. restaurant, I turned around, got in my car, and Robert Downey Jr. was there, and I was, oh, hey, man, I'm a fan of your work.

And I started turning away, because I know what it's like when people are kind of up on your business, and I realized as I turned away, I wanted to keep talking, but I committed to turning, so I kept turning.

damn it, you want to keep talking and now I've turned and we're both awkwardly waiting for our cars.

So I kind of wish I continued that conversation because I am a fan, but I also know what it's like when people are up on you and asking too many questions.

What did you enjoy most about playing your character and working on this film?

How do you play to the back row but also do the small emotions in the camera so that the audience at home feels it? It's like the ultimate entertainment boot camp.

Yeah, you're 100% right.

It's amazing what WWE teaches you.

I mean, I've grown up in WWE since I was 21, so I've learned a lot about life, but in particular about being on the camera and you named all the nuances that exist in our world.

And the number one thing for myself, I guess, transitioning to to the other world of Hollywood TV, the real short app stuff is learning to relax.

That's the one thing that's always been a constant in my life.

I had to move from Scotland to America and boom, I was on worldwide TV when I just turned 22.

Was there any like difference that you had to get used to being in the actual vertical or did it not really make a difference? You didn't feel that when you were in production?

It's right on your face.

Even WWE is, it's still right here, and it should be here.

Vince said it for years.

Like, your money's here, and it took a long time to, you know, really realize that and, you know, start trying to make that emotional connection with the audience and making them care.

Uh, for the, the backstages, like sometimes, and a lot of the time, we do them live, so you get excited and it's not quite the same, and it's harder to relax and be, be as present and, you know, really get into those emotions.

In your action, when you're doing those backstages, and like you say, you gotta, you know, take it up a notch when you're out there.

You don't have to.

It's, uh, I feel like you think about that perhaps more than anybody else does.

What is one or... one of the biggest similarities or differences of being in a wrestling ring in front of millions of people or being on the big screen in front of millions of people?

I mean, for, uh, I can only speak for me personally.

Obviously, number one, the crowd.

The adrenaline.

Getting one take in wrestling and getting multiple takes, um, in the movie world and TV world.

Um, but for me personally, it's been f- kinda natural.

Like, the first movie I did was The Killer's Game that Dave Bautista gave me a call a few years ago, it's out now, and said, "I want you to be part of this movie.

It's a, it's just a bigger project for you to shine.

How do you play to the back row but also do the small emotions in the camera so that the audience at home feels it? It's like the ultimate entertainment boot camp.

Yeah, you're 100% right.

It's amazing what WWE teaches you.

I mean, I've grown up in WWE since I was 21, so I've learned a lot about life, but in particular about being on the camera and you named all the nuances that exist in our world.

And the number one thing for myself, I guess, transitioning to to the other world of Hollywood TV, the real short app stuff is learning to relax.

Like that's the one thing that's always been a constant in my life.

Like I had to move from Scotland to America and boom, I was on worldwide TV when I just turned 22.

Was there any, like, difference that you had to get used to being in the actual vertical, or did it not really make a difference? You didn't feel that when you were in production?

[laughs]

"We have to, we have to help out more." And eventually she broke her foot.

She ended up, um, in a wheelchair, and she still just pushed forward, no excuses, never blamed anybody, never blamed the world.

And it was awesome.

She's got to see me, you know, finally get signed, achieve what I was achieving, and then she got cancer eventually and told me about it, I think WrestleMania Atlanta 2011 she finally told me.

And it was horrible.

But she, you know, she'd got through it.

Right.

Right.

And then, I started kind of being accountable and answering to the person in the mirror.

I was, "Okay, you gotta change some things around.

Okay, you're doing good here, but where do you want to be? WWE.

Want to be back, want to finish the prophecy, gotta win the title.

What's the biggest attraction right now? Brock Lesnar.

Okay.

[laughs]

[laughs] Who else?

Where you just walk in and just be the guy instantly.

Like, my process is more, "Okay, let's, let's think about this.

How do I relate to the person? What's real to me? And for each scenario, what can I pull from my life?" That's another thing I learned from Matty, uh, Noble, who was, um, Russell's number two in the movie, helped me so much in Spain, um, was very encouraging.

He actually said, "You're giving up that wrestling.

You're taking it back to full time." [laughs] And I kinda explained to him how big wrestling was and how much I love it.

[laughs] And he was, "Okay.

When you, when you found out that you were gonna do that, what was your first reaction?

You know, is K-State's interior D line gonna be weak? Are the linebackers gonna be good? Do you think it's a X, X's and O's thing, or is it more Jimmies and Joes, as in, you know, the, maybe just the talent isn't there, maybe even more, uh, also potentially a lack of IQ in, in, uh, football IQ?

It, it feels more like a Jimmies and Joes thing, 'cause I, I mean, this is kind of football 101 of what K-State is kind of getting worked in, uh, the last two games.

It's not getting off blocks.

It's not knowing, uh, what gap to hit and hitting that gap correctly.

'Cause it is not always, you know, super sexy to talk about run fits, because you don't, if you hit, if everybody hits the right run fit, only one guy gets the real credit for that, and that's the one that makes the tackle.

But K-State's having issues where, you know, it's multiple guys not fitting their gaps correctly and allowing some leakage.

So it, it seems a little bit like it is a, a little bit of a talent issue.

Like, you know, maybe this isn't the right, you know, you know, phrase or whatever to say, but, like, do we not [laughs] kind of like have some PTSD from that?

Yeah.

That's what it came to, was that conversation in the mirror.

Even though things were going well, but I really was believing in myself during that period, even before I kinda cut out the alcohol and started getting myself in shape.

I was back to, "Hell yeah, I know I can do this.

I know this is what I know.

I know I can be the man in this," and it really was happening.

And then it was, "Okay, I know I ca-" In great shape.

Yeah, so, so to someone who's, like, who wants to be a part of, of the WWE, who, like, wants to succeed at a high level now, what do you think it requires?

I love that.

There was 1,500 people at my return.

I got fired.

I was there three weeks later giving my mission statement.

It got over really big.

Um, and I remember Mick Foley talked about it in Stone Cold's podcast.

A lot of people put it over.

Yeah.

Was this just a bad day, a really bad day for the rush defense? Or had you seen a few clues in the previous couple of games that, you know, maybe this was a possibility because K State hasn't been As maybe as good as they should be against the run, despite the numbers saying they've been all right

You could see the cracks, I think, against Tulane, uh, with how Tulane played.

And Tulane did some stuff that they still have only done in a K-State game, uh, to K-State in the run game.

But you could kind of see cracks there.

I think it's a combination of K-State isn't going to be very good stopping the run the rest of the way, along with Cincinnati being one of the best offensive lines in the Big 12.

It's kind of that perfect combination.

But that, that's where I go back to, you know, K-State scores on that opening drive and scores a touchdown and gets a touchdown later on.

So Drew, what did K-State find here in, uh, in Malachi Johnson out of St. Louis?

I just want a little bit of credit.

We can definitely do that for you.

But he's off to a really good start.

His stats still haven't been uploaded from their last game.

Not a huge surprise because high school football stats, sometimes it's like finding the nuclear codes I joke about because some schools are so protective.

And some schools upload them on Sunday, some upload them on Monday, some upload them on Tuesday.

So it is actually very annoying to find some of that out.

They absolutely love him.

How legit does K-State feel through their two wins so far?

I think that they feel pretty legit so far.

Some of it is how it has looked.

Especially compared to some other teams, not just in the Big 12, but across the country.

And then also kind of comparing to what last season was.

K-State's already gotten the backups in more through two games this year than they had all of last year.

And it's not like the schedule is significantly lighter this year.

But is there a player in your mind of the returning players that have shown the most improvement so far?

When you're looking at this game, K-State wins if?

K-State wins if Washington State can't really figure out their offense this week, make some few adjustments, particularly on our offensive line and kind of how we prepare for the game.

I think that was the difference maker in Pinnock just feeling a little bit more comfortable.

And I also think maybe there's an adjustment at our running back.

I mean, we have plenty of running backs to go through.

But this past week, we had Kirby Voorhees, who just looked a little bit more hesitant in my eyes.

But Puolasi, you know.

What are some things that if they hit on, they will be coming out victorious on Saturday?

defensive holding right

in front of the official that wasn't called, which was pretty ridiculous and still was ridiculous in a rewatch.

Avery Johnson was in total control offensively.

I was really, really impressed with Gabe Powers.

He looked like a totally different player than he did last season.

It was just Nichols, but we had a show earlier this week.

It was like the North Dakota and Army games last year where Gabe Powers really struggled.

What direction do you think this is going to go on Saturday?

Ooh

... uh, this year.

I think that BYU loses the game in, in the regular season but comes back and beats them i- in Arlington.

Uh, I know that Utah is kind of similar to K State in terms of, you know, new coach, new coordinator, same quarterback.

But there's something about, like, I, I think that Utah is probably a little bit safer because they have a little bit more experience at other positions than K State.

And, and I think that BYU, i- it's kind of their time.

I mean, they, they've been on the doorstep the last two seasons.

But I don't know if you guys have touched his record yet, but what do you have the Cats doing in the regular season?

We've talked about Kane and Zubek, but are there any other – names to know maybe not hey they're gonna pull the trigger early but hey just keep an eye on these guys maybe for folks who will be going out and experiencing friday night lights in the sunflower state this fall

Yeah, I'm going to be honest right now.

K-State's in a good spot for a lot of Kansans in the 2028 class.

Not only Zubek, but Thomas Inklar is another one from Andover Central.

He's somebody that I talked about with Mason Voth, actually, of maybe doing a double dip of like going to Cannon Zubek on the third and then going to see Inklar with Mason on the fourth.

And then Kind of pulled that back a little bit when I realized that Inklar will also be at the first K-State games.

Like, there's not a huge rush for me to go and really talk to him when I'm going to see him the next day.

So when you look at it, A, what are your final kind of words when it comes to the Avery Johnson Wars of summer 2026? And what needs to happen for this to be considered a successful season for Avery?

You go into OVW, right?

Yep.

And sure enough, I go to the school that week, and the writers are there.

And I'm like, "Oh, this is normal.

I assume this happens all the time." The writers come to check out the new talent, but I'm not gonna be looked at today, I'm the brand-new kid.

So I sit in the corner.

Finally, they just need a body to get in there to take a look at one of the heels there.

How was it for you?

I'll just wrap up the, the press conference discussion just asking you generally was there any other surprises to you, maybe names that did come up or didn't come up? I mean, to me there really weren't a, a whole lot, but were there any others to you?

Uh, I would say that what surprised me maybe the most, uh, was hearing Jay Harris and Joe Jackson have been practicing, uh, at the return spot.

Uh, it's so much about feel that I'm not like overly surprised that two guys that they're really excited about carrying the ball, like yeah, let's, let's try them out at return and see kind of what happens there.

Uh, but Jay Harris is a guy that I don't know if I would want to tackle after he gets like 15 to 20 yards of momentum going his way.

It's like I, I'm interested to see if he wins the job, like what does that really look like? Because he's 6'1", 225.

That isn't usually the type of returner that K State has back there.

It's usually more of like a twitchy, fast player like a Brandon White.

What's the game right now that could swing K State's season in one direction or the other right now?

good question.

First off, that video was like the most Bill Snyder thing of all time.

Like I got a kick out of seeing that this morning.

But I think that the first thing that I'd be looking for would be once they go to five offensive linemen, who is in that top group on the right side? Because I think that the left side is pretty solidified.

Like, I think that everybody's kind of came to a consensus that it's Jon Pastore, Tanner Morley, and then Delvin Morris at center.

But right guard is really interesting because it's probably between Dylan Villarreal and Charlie Adams, the Cal Poly transfer.

And then right tackle is also really interesting because I really believe in Gus Hawkins and what...

MVP and you know I think even though yes MVP stands for most valuable player it could be to you who's just the best overall player it could be who's the most important which I think there is a bit of a difference there you can kind of you know go whichever way you would like to go with this but let's start with offensive who do you as the offensive preseason MVP for the Cats in the 2026 season

So, Drew, how quickly did you put this on the spreadsheet when you signed up to do this show?

This was the first one that I did.

I've based my schedule around week three.

It's going to be awesome in, like, the grossest kind of way.

Just, I mean, we're talking about, like, what does it look like if Ole Miss loses? If Ole Miss wins...

It's going to be even crazier.

I think that it's going to be an electric atmosphere.

are you doing?

Who was the best interview at Big 12 Media Days? Who was entertaining?

Th- that's actually a really good question.

Uh, I think that if you're looking for kinda like the mindset of what this team is going to be and kind of...

We didn't get him for super long, but we got a lot of really good information.

It's probably Avery Johnson.

I, I think that he has an improved mindset, and his team kind of does as well, of, like, they all kind of feel like they were really disrespected this off-season and want to improve on that.

Uh, and I mean, Avery went very in-depth with us about, like, yeah, the, the last two seasons, one month has plagued us for basically the entire m- season worth, work's, worth of work kind of went away in, in one, one month, and even talked about how the game in Ireland th- this past season really shook them, and they couldn't really shake that bug until they got to that, that bye week right before the UCF game.

He just didn't stand out, right? I think he's doing a really good job in these press conferences so far.