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00:00 Okay, first up, Beanie Fisher.
00:03 Questions for Beanie?
00:04 So, Beanie, your reaction,
00:06 you start seeing the All-American honors
00:08 pop up for you, all the others.
00:11 What's your reaction?
00:12 What's your emotion?
00:15 I mean, it's a big accomplishment, you know?
00:19 It's 130-something teams.
00:23 Each team has, like, 100 players,
00:25 and, you know, I don't know how big the All-American rosters
00:29 are, but just to be on those teams, you know,
00:33 it's just like the elite of the elite guys.
00:36 And I think it, you know, it's a big accomplishment,
00:40 not only for me, but, you know, the school, you know,
00:45 just other guys, you know, being able to see that you can do it.
00:50 And, you know, you don't have to do it by being on social media
00:54 and, you know, doing all of those things.
00:56 You don't have to be a social media guy.
00:58 You can, you know, just put your head down and work.
01:02 And, you know, everybody's path is different.
01:05 You know, six-year --
01:08 and there was a lot of six-year guys on there and whatnot,
01:10 but started at a small school, you know, under-recruited,
01:15 small kid, you know, a lot of coaches
01:18 didn't really believe in me coming out of high school,
01:21 you know, and I just played with a chip on my shoulder.
01:26 And, you know, I've just been blessed by God,
01:30 you know, and just keeping my head down and working.
01:33 So, when you decided to transfer last year,
01:36 what were your individual goals?
01:37 Was something like this even on the radar at that point?
01:42 You know, I kind of kept the things to myself,
01:45 like the individual accomplishment,
01:46 you know, I want to win first.
01:49 Now, winning, you know, when you win,
01:52 all the other accolades and things like that will come in.
01:56 But I wanted to be in a, you know, in a Jim Thorpe category,
02:01 wanted to be one of those finalists.
02:05 You know, things didn't work out that way
02:07 because I left a lot of plays out there.
02:09 You know, I think, you know,
02:11 I catch at least half of the ones that I drop.
02:14 It wouldn't even be --
02:15 I'd probably be sitting here with y'all with the trophy,
02:17 you know, so, you know, just things like that.
02:22 There's only 13 consensus All-Americans
02:25 in the history of this school, 130 years,
02:28 however many thousands of players
02:29 that have been through here.
02:31 You would be the first one that come through
02:32 the transfer portal to do that.
02:34 And you didn't have years of momentum to promote you.
02:37 You basically did it in one year.
02:38 What's that say for what you've done this year?
02:41 You know, it just speaks volumes.
02:44 Everyone here believed in me, you know,
02:46 unless I wouldn't be here, you know.
02:51 Coach Adon, you know, he coached me real hard,
02:55 you know, didn't let me get complacent, you know,
02:59 even when, you know, I got the Big 12
03:02 co-newcomer of the week
03:03 and defense player of the week and those things.
03:05 And it was always like fourth and one, you know,
03:09 don't let up because I'm nowhere near where I want to be at.
03:14 You know, obviously, I have dreams and aspirations
03:17 of playing in the NFL, so this is only some of it.
03:23 You know, it's just --
03:24 I'm just going to keep getting better from here
03:25 and keep my head down and working.
03:28 What does it mean to you to accept the invite
03:33 to the Shrine Bowl, an annual pretty major event?
03:36 And generally, when you go to one of those,
03:39 that or the Senior Bowl,
03:40 you're getting legitimate books with the NFL, obviously.
03:43 I think it's a big deal.
03:45 You know, we had a few guys from here go last year.
03:48 And, you know, Dante, you know, he's doing a --
03:53 Dante Darius, whichever one it is.
03:55 Dante, you know, he's successful in the NFL.
04:01 You know, he's doing a good job and things like that.
04:03 So, you know, and it's a lot of guys
04:07 that doesn't get the opportunity.
04:08 And, you know, just to be able to be one of those guys
04:11 that has the opportunity to, you know,
04:13 talk to scouts and get looked at,
04:15 it only increases my chances to get drafted.
04:20 Steve, what was it like having the player
04:24 that came out this year inside you all that time
04:27 and not really being able to tap into it yet?
04:30 Can you repeat the question? Yeah, sure.
04:32 What was it like having the player
04:34 that you became this year inside you for,
04:36 you know, for five years and not having it all come out,
04:39 be able to come out?
04:40 Was it frustrating or was it --
04:44 You know, it's just one of those things that I look at as,
04:48 you know, everybody's path is different.
04:50 You know, I have a few friends that's in the NFL.
04:53 You know, some guys winning three years,
04:55 some guys winning four.
04:56 You know, mine is just taking me a little longer.
05:00 You know, I don't really try to compare myself
05:01 to other guys and things like that.
05:04 So just being able to be myself and, you know,
05:08 let my game speak, it shows volumes, you know,
05:12 that this is just what I could have been doing.
05:17 But granted, I just didn't have the opportunity.
05:21 It's amazing how much a difference a year can make.
05:25 This time last year, you're at your point where you're thinking,
05:28 "Well, what am I going to do? Am I going to stay at Minnesota?
05:30 Am I going to move on?" Whatever.
05:32 Ultimately, you made the decision,
05:34 whatever it was, in the springtime or whatnot.
05:37 And then this time right now, you're a consensus All-American.
05:41 Your prospects are completely different
05:44 than they were this time last year.
05:46 Yeah, for sure. You know?
05:48 And that just goes to show you, like, I wasn't really --
05:52 you know, I wasn't -- well, I came on a mission, you know?
05:55 I told guys, you know, some guys leave schools to get money,
06:01 to do all of those different things,
06:03 and I just set a goal that I want to go to the NFL,
06:06 you know?
06:07 I want to go somewhere where I'll have the opportunity
06:09 to play and, you know, make plays.
06:11 And this was the best spot for me, you know?
06:13 And I'm glad that I chose West Virginia.
06:17 The fans, the coaches, and things like that,
06:20 it just -- you know, it helped me a lot.
06:22 Is it hard not to sit with any regret,
06:26 wishing maybe you didn't transfer here
06:28 instead of Minnesota a year and play two years here?
06:30 Yeah, a little bit, you know?
06:31 Do you have any memories they were even looking to you
06:33 with at that point? Yeah.
06:35 You know, and I kind of give Coach and I
06:37 hell about it a little bit.
06:39 From the first time I was in the portal, you know,
06:42 I talked to him a lot about it.
06:44 Like, man, what if, you know -- what if, you know,
06:47 but can't really dwell on the past too much.
06:50 But that would have been special.
06:53 Tough of an assignment, this coming game, the bowl game,
06:57 how tough is this going to be?
06:58 Obviously, the quarterback's out.
07:00 One of the receivers is out.
07:01 So what do you know of North Carolina's offense?
07:04 How difficult is this going to be?
07:07 They have a freshman starting at quarterback,
07:10 pretty good quarterback.
07:11 You know, we watched him a little bit.
07:13 He didn't really have too many plays this year.
07:16 So we kind of had to watch a little bit
07:18 of his high school highlights.
07:20 Guy can run, you know, so they might change
07:22 the game plan up a little bit, you know,
07:24 to try to get him in rhythm,
07:27 let him use his legs a little bit and things like that.
07:30 You know, they have talented guys at receiver,
07:34 pretty productive room, tight ends as well.
07:38 So, you know, they have guys on scholarship, too, you know.
07:42 And been having, like, top recruiting classes
07:46 over the past few years.
07:47 So it's going to be a -- you know what I'm saying?
07:51 It's going to be a good game.
07:53 I assume you've been to bowl games
07:55 before in all these years.
07:56 So what's a bowl game like,
07:57 especially when you're talking to the younger guys
07:59 and saying, "How's this different
08:01 than a regular season game?
08:02 You know, how enjoyable is this for players?"
08:05 You know, you want to have fun,
08:06 but the ultimate goal is to win the game.
08:09 You know, coach says the NCAA
08:14 gives you the opportunity to win your last game.
08:17 You know, you don't have to go out with a loss.
08:19 So tell those guys, you know, have fun
08:22 when it's time to have fun.
08:23 But at the end of the day, it's really a business trip
08:26 because you want to bring a trophy back,
08:28 and we kind of want to see Coach Brown get Dyson and Van A.
08:31 [Laughter]
08:34 And just, I guess, to clarify, just to get this out of the way,
08:36 you're definitely looking to play in the bowl game?
08:39 Yeah, for sure. I mean, you know,
08:40 that's one of the things everybody's asking me that.
08:44 You know, I'm not one of those guys that's,
08:47 "Oh, what if this happens?"
08:49 You know, we play football, so any given time,
08:51 you know, you can get hurt or whatever that is,
08:54 or the case may be.
08:55 But, you know, I'm a competitor,
08:58 and, you know, I want to be able to come back
09:00 and look at the Dukes-Mayonnais bowl trophy,
09:04 you know, whenever I come back,
09:05 you know, whether that's in a couple months
09:07 or a couple years or whatever that is.
09:10 And, you know, I want to help us win the game.
09:14 Gaini, all the stats this year for you,
09:17 I think you played, like, 95% of the snaps.
09:20 That's a crazy number.
09:22 Do you ever foresee something like that,
09:24 never mind pass breakups, interceptions,
09:25 but just never coming off the field?
09:28 No, but it was something that, you know,
09:30 to get to the next level, I have to,
09:32 you know, be on the field and be available.
09:37 And, you know, you can't make plays
09:39 if you're on the sideline, you know?
09:40 So I didn't really mind.
09:43 As long as I'm healthy, I want to play football, you know?
09:46 So I wasn't really -- I wasn't really --
09:50 I wasn't mad, you know, I was happy to be out there.
09:54 95% of the snaps is crazy, but, you know,
09:58 that's what I came here for, the opportunity to play,
10:00 you know, because last year I wasn't --
10:03 I don't know how many percent of the snaps that I played.
10:05 So, you know, I was grateful.
10:08 And then I think, like, two guys got targeted
10:10 more than you, a cornerback, this year.
10:12 How does that happen? Like, you were pretty good at this,
10:14 and guys kept taking their chances on you
10:15 still for some reason.
10:17 You know, and I was just talking to one of the guys,
10:20 too, about this.
10:21 Planning the boundaries, shorter throws,
10:24 and also, offensive coordinators,
10:26 they like -- we like our guy over that guy.
10:30 So that's where I feel like a lot of --
10:33 that's where a lot of those targets come from.
10:36 Majority of the receivers are bigger guys than I am,
10:38 but, you know, it doesn't really matter.
10:42 And just the coaches just believe in their guy, right?
10:46 You know, I go out there and show them
10:48 that that's not a good decision.
10:51 Beanie, what are you most proud of about this year?
10:55 I'm just proud of the team.
10:56 You know, coming in preseason, oh, 14, you know, 14,
11:02 oh, we don't think they're going to win
11:03 more than two or three games.
11:04 And, you know, we easily could have been a 10-win team.
11:08 You know, we dropped the Houston game,
11:11 had mistakes in Oklahoma State.
11:13 You know, that's the difference from,
11:15 you know, eight and 10 wins.
11:16 So just seeing the guys, how we played together
11:20 and complimented each other,
11:21 especially towards the end of the season,
11:23 where, you know, defense and offense and special teams,
11:26 you know, is all playing, like, as a cohesive unit.
11:30 What was the reaction at home, family-wise,
11:33 when they heard that you were making
11:35 All-American teams and stuff like that?
11:38 I don't know if they understand,
11:40 like, the difference between the things.
11:42 You know, obviously, they're proud of me
11:45 with all the accolades and things that I get.
11:49 You know, and they're more excited
11:50 because they feel that, you know,
11:52 I don't really get recognized as I should.
11:55 But, you know, I don't really --
11:58 you know, I don't really care about that.
11:59 I'm more focused on winning football games.
12:02 People around town here reacting differently to you?
12:04 Oh, yeah.
12:05 You know, I'm kind of getting a little more noticed
12:08 in stores and things like that.
12:10 I had a kid come up and tell me I was his favorite player
12:12 while I was shopping at Target.
12:13 So, you know, that was kind of new to me.
12:18 Yeah, I kind of like getting white T-shirts
12:21 and black T-shirts and things like that
12:22 and do a little grocery shopping.
12:24 Okay, anything else?
12:30 All right. Thank you very much.