After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 3

One of my favorite movie soundtracks of all time. I know I'm a product of my generation and that's completely fine, but I love the Top Gun soundtrack and I was so excited when that's the first music we heard in the new Top Gun Maverick, who at this point Top Gun Maverick was really just kind of an extension with it reminded me a lot of Star Wars or even Indiana Jones, even as they're they're making sequels or the next chapter. It really is such an ode to the previous flick. It's almost as though they're remaking the new one to to emulate model the original with all these Easter eggs, but also for the original diehard fan base.

Hey, let's give them more of what they want. So it captures the new generation who maybe never saw the original Top Gun. You get a lot of the same storyline and plot, but it also kind of carries over for those who remember the original and it's that way with Star Wars too. People get so upset about the fact that the new movies, the newer movies in many cases follow the same framework and pattern as the originals, but that's what made the original so popular.

So I was alright with it. Speaking of that, I was in church on Sunday morning teaching my fourth and fifth graders and there's a bunch of high schoolers that volunteer with us and there was one young woman. I was talking to three high school girls before I left after teaching and one of them was wearing a May the love be with you T shirt, but it was written in that block lettering from the beginning of the Star Wars movies. The same lettering that you might see May the fourth be with you and I said to her, are you a Star Wars fan?

Oh, and her whole face lights up. Not just that, but the two girls on either side of her. So I'm now surrounded by three high school girls who are all huge Star Wars fans. And I said to her, cause they all were looking at my ring. I said to her, it was a requirement. I warned my future fiance, Hey, if you cannot accept the Star Wars nerd in me, then we do not have a future. I warned Bob that I am an extreme Star Wars nerd.

And she got very animated and she says, Oh, that's it. There's two requirements. Must love the Lord. So go to church, have the same faith and must be a Star Wars nerd.

That's it. Just two simple things, but you can tell a lot about a person in those two things. Oh, so funny. That was cute because I believe that a lot of people would say, Oh, the Star Wars is for an older generation, but with the newer shows, I've got one fourth grader. Well, he's going into fifth grade now, one fifth grader in my class who he doesn't speak a whole lot. He's really quiet and reserved.

His name is Aaron. But when I bring up any type of Mandalorian, bad batch, Clone Wars, Star Wars, anything to do with that, his whole face lights up and he gets very excited. So here I am having engaging discussions about Star Wars, Mandalorian with a fifth grader.

Sounds amazing. That's how I connect and Bob with him because he gets so, so happy whenever I bring up Star Wars. He's not one of those kids that really enjoys playing basketball or some of the different floor hockey that the other boys will do. He's not big into sports, but he loves Star Wars and Legos. Those are his two things.

And so I try to connect with him and get him out of his shell. So I have to tell you this really funny story. You're going to laugh. Well, what?

Okay. There's good news and there's bad. Well, it's not news. Jay, there's a really funny story.

And then there's a very scary story from the weekend. Which would you like to hear first? Let's do the funny one first. Okay. The funny, the funny one is this, the reactions of people when I tell them I'm engaged for the women, it's very different often than from men, which is fine. No biggie. The women that I've encountered, whether close friends who want to call and hear all the details, family, same thing, or maybe it's more casual acquaintances or people that I work with at church, that kind of thing.

But the women obviously very congratulatory, want to see the ring right away. Want to know more about Bob. That's not his name, just so you know. I would never marry a guy named Bob.

Sorry, Bobs. Anyway, so they want to know more details. Women are very much into asking questions.

They want to know details about the proposal, all that kind of thing. Guys reactions vary. And it's not because they aren't excited, but very often men have different reactions. I don't know why, but I keep running into this. Some of them recover well and will then go with, Oh, congratulations. That's amazing. Um, but a lot of times I'll get reactions like how, who, what, wait, wait, wait a minute.

What? I mean, I got text messages and emails and even social media messages, DMS from guys who just have the oddest responses. It's not congratulations at the beginning.

That's, that's not what they start with. And so I have a bunch of neighbors that I'm friendly with right in my little, we have a pretty small block. We're kind of a half block in between two larger blocks. And these neighbors of mine that I've had now for three and a half years, say hello to them. Every time we're outside, we bond over yard work and pets and the weather and vacations, just typical neighborly stuff, right? So I have been telling my neighbors that there'll be an extra person on the block coming up next year, not just an extra person, but an extra dog. I haven't broken that news yet, but that there will be someone else living in the house with me coming up next year. And so I told my neighbor across the street, his name is Jimmy, that I'm getting married in December.

That's what I said. He said, how are you? What's going on? Oh yeah, I'm good. Guess what?

I'm getting married in December. His response. And I quote, no way.

Um, w what does that mean? No way. Um, yes.

In fact, pigs are actually flying. Thank you so much for your happiness. Thank you for sharing in my joy and excitement. His response. No way. What Jay?

Why? What does that mean? I guess he was just taken him back by the news, but no way. As in, and I even said to him, I was a little bit stunned by his response. Now he's an older gentleman. As I say, he's very kind.

He's kind of quirky. Uh, I, I said to him, Jimmy, don't say that. Yeah. Not the most endearing, I guess, uh, response.

He goes, oh, well I w I'm just really surprised. Uh huh. Thanks for that too.

How about you zip it before you say anything else? No, I didn't respond. Uh, he said, I'm just really surprised, but congratulations. Of course. Great. Well, at least we got to that point. No way. He said, you're my age. You just trying to help. In fact, my neighbor Jimmy might be the same age as Terry Francona awkward hour on the block.

It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS sports radio. Okay. So that's one story. And I did actually share that on both Twitter and Facebook. Um, I did.

And it's, it's funny because the responses I got were over the top hysterical. Uh, so I'll retweet it if you want to see it anyway, put that on Facebook as well. But Twitter, a law radio and Facebook page, Jeremy wants to know if I will continue to refer to him as Bob. Uh, yeah, actually I think I will because now it's catchy. His family likes it.

They all laugh at it. Or maybe I'll just call him the Mr. I'll call him the hubs.

I'll not call him by his name at all. There's a reason for it, Jeremy. Uh, I don't want people to be able to figure it out. I'm, I never thought that I cared much about my privacy until it came to family. And in this case, a relationship that is one of the most precious ever of my life.

And I really want to protect it. Um, you, and I'm not referring just to you, Jeremy, but you all may not know this. I've had a couple of pretty serious stalkers. And when I say serious, I mean death threats. I mean people showing up here at work. Uh, I mean having to call the cops. I mean being afraid, uh, taking, you know, any photo of my car off of the internet on social media so that if he did show up at work, um, he wouldn't be able to figure out what vehicle I drive. I mean, scary stuff, not just death threats, but obsession. And so I've had some of those moments at least two. Uh, the most recent one was, was pretty terrifying at least in terms of what he said. And so in light of that, not only do I not share personal information about my family, last names, locations, but yeah, I'm, I'm finding myself less and less inclined to share more information about what will be the most incredible relationship and precious relationship and wanting to protect that from people who get a little overzealous.

And trust me when I say people get overzealous. So yes, his, at this point, his name will remain Bob. I don't think it's important that you all know his name, first name, last name.

Although some of you have asked me whether or not I'll be changing my name, believe it or not, that's what boomer Esiason asked me. So will you be changing your name when you get married? The answer is, or should I say this for an ask Amy version?

Should we do like an entire pre wedding? Amy is engaged version of asking me anything. I feel bad cause there's probably some people out there who couldn't give a crap. And yet there are so many questions.

Yes. So many questions about whether or not I will be moving, whether or not I'll be changing my radio show. People have asked me, am I getting out of radio people? People have asked me about changing my name. People have asked me about all kinds of things. So I don't know, should we save that for, I do know there's one question in there that I'll be addressing in a blog post that I'll be writing soon. It kind of inspired me the number of questions that I'm getting about one particular topic.

So I will be writing a blog to kind of explain my perspective. But Jeremy's was easy. Are you going to continue to refer to your fiance as Bob? Well, no, pretty soon I'll refer to my husband as Bob or Mr. Lawrence. No, I'm just kidding.

I won't. David just said that he could be Mr. Lawrence. Could you imagine, Hey babe, not only am I national radio host and so you know, you have to deal with that and all that comes with it, but do you mind just taking my name and being Mr. Lawrence? Bob Lawrence.

Ew. Wasn't there a Bob Lawrence at some point? I feel like there was that worked in entertainment. Sounds like a pretty common name. Yeah, right.

That's the whole point. It's super common. But yeah, his mom writes to me, sends me texts about Bob. Seriously, his mom will write about Bob. She writes him his name as Bob.

Yeah. His family thinks it's really funny that I'm calling him Bob on the radio. It's become endearing.

You think so? Yeah, it's a term of endearment now. Marco Bellini when he works with us will say, Hi Bob. He's Bob. That's what he is. What about Bob?

And he actually thinks it's funny too. My family sometimes will refer to him in our family group chat as Bob. So just funny enough, I don't know why I haven't gotten more responses from my family. There are seven of us in our family group chat. Okay, so my immediate family without Bob is seven. Pretty soon and it's been that way for 26 years that we've had. Well, not that we've been texting the whole time, but 26 years and it's been, I guess my younger niece, 23 years that we've had seven of us as our family unit. Okay, so it's been that way for a long time. I reached out to the family via group chat on Saturday and asked, would it be okay if we start a new chat with Bob?

And there was silence, like deafening silence. I gave them the option. I said, just, you know, I need to vote. We don't have to do it right away.

Would you prefer to wait until we're married? But you know, I need a family vote. Hours, nothing. Silence is deafening. Finally, my brother writes back and says, okay, but can we also keep this one in case there are topics we want to address that maybe he doesn't want to hear about or that maybe would embarrass him? So that's the thing. Apparently my family is very slow. So my brother responded. My mom didn't, neither one responded in the affirmative, just kind of more rhetorical questions and none of the rest of the family responded. So I'm thinking that's a no.

That's a hard no, at least right now for adding Bob to the family group chat. That kind of hurt a little bit. It stung. The silence is a little loud. Oh yeah.

Deafening silence. Yeah. So when you're, so your younger sister, yes.

You call her your little sister. She has a serious boyfriend. Yes. Are they talking about making it permanent? Well, I guess permanent.

There's nothing permanent these days, but not really out loud yet, but I could tell that he's probably got some intentions like that. Yeah. Gotcha.

At what point would you think it would be okay because you do have an older sister who's married and I'm assuming he's smart part of your family group chat. He's in many groups. Of course. Right.

So, and you're, you're real close to him. How long have they been married? Just a couple of years, right?

Yeah. They'd been together for maybe six married for two, maybe two and a half. At what point did he get added to family group chat?

Like right after the wedding. Okay. So it was not until it was official. I think that he was part of the family.

Think him back. Yeah. Okay. And how would you feel if your little sister said, Hey, can we add now keep in mind, Bob and I are engaged and we have an actual date. We're getting married on December 17th, but if your sister wanted to add her boyfriend to your family group chat, I don't know if he's made the cut just yet. Not yet soon. I like him. Great guy, but little, little, little more time. He's not there yet.

Okay. What, what if we, what if you were my brother and I said, I'd like to add Bob three months before the wedding takes place. I don't, I think that's more fair because you guys are really engaged. Not to mention he's met them all.

There's no one he has. He knew my mom and her husband before he knew me. And he hung out with your brother once. And then I've, we've had dinner with my entire brother's family. So my family's all in the wedding. Of course.

I think keeping that other separate one is a fine idea, but yeah, I don't think there's anything birthday presents or holiday. Okay. But won't Bobby a little hurt if he finds out we have another clandestine family group chat going on. Well, here's the thing.

If, if you set up the new group chat and keep the old one, you're going to obviously post to the new group. You're going to have to see if your brother or if your family, they have no choice. They have no choice.

No, they don't. No, you can't do that. You can't ignore the new member of the family.

He will be family before Christmas. You cannot ignore him. That's not just saying that option. Now, where if you're going to, if you're going to keep texting this chat, we have a new one. No, the new one.

No, that's it. I'm going to forward everything that they send to the original family group chat to the new one to try to pull the, Oh, I forgot. I'm so used to the old one.

I don't know. I'm going to delete the old one. I want to get their phones, grab their phones and delete the old seriously. He'll be, we're going to do it at Christmas. I'm going to put them all on the spot while we're all together. Yep. That's what I'm going to do. That's the new plan. Okay.

Peeps, everyone take out your phones. New family group chat while they're sitting there with Bob and they can't be like, Oh, hopefully. Yes, hopefully.

All right. Well to come, we've got a second preseason week. Well, second weekend of the preseason version of QB news. We're getting a little more with our rookies also to back on the football field for the first time in a long time.

And boy does he look different. Patrick Mahomes also getting a taste of preseason because that matters. Uh, let's see whether or not his ankle is ready to go. Jordan love to as Packers QB one. My uncle actually sent me an email in response to me telling him that, that I'm engaged and I want him to come to the wedding. My uncle who lives in Wisconsin writes back and says, Hey, I'm going to the Packers third preseason game.

Can't wait to be at Lambeau and see what it's like without Aaron Rogers. It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS sports radio. You are listening to the after hours podcast back to throw.

And it is, is it boss? Oh my goodness. The Andre Hopkins. Touchdown LA back to throw. Looking firing, deeper chase in the end zone. He's going to keep it himself and run it again inside the five into the end zone. Touchdown Buffalo.

Josh Allen nine yard touchdown run. The bills respond and then some it's time for QB news on after hours. All right, let's launch in second weekend of the preseason is nearly in the books. There's a game on Monday night though. So that would be the last one producer J said to me, did the Ravens still have their unbeaten streak in the preseason?

It doesn't matter. QB news is really spotty this time of the year, whether or not they get on the field or they don't really, it's about staying healthy and just being mentally ready and focused. A lot of changes, a lot of moving parts, different coordinators, new systems, new voices, man, a lot of quarterback movement as well. And then there's two up like other quarterbacks who are coming off of injury to a suffering multiple concussions last season, really spent the off season trying to get bulked up and learning how to take hits while protecting himself. And so welcome back to a throws a pick on his very first pass of the preseason. Never get to turn the ball over.

It's never good to throw a pick. So I'm, I'm, I'm not happy about that, but like I said, I'm really happy for the guys that were in there that were able to, to go out and you know, showcase their, their skills and be able to perform at the level they did today. It was a long time for him. I remember he suffered not just the two concussions, but spent long stints on the IL last year. Now that's IL in baseball, IR and to be away and not really have a timetable for coming back.

That's the hard part, not to mention scary. When you see some of the videos of how his physical body reacted, when he got that second concussion on national TV, you get all the feelings that you normally feel of getting back out there again, butterflies, you know, anxious to get out there, all these thoughts going through your head. But I thought it felt, it felt really good being able to go out there, call plays with the guys, the camaraderie in the huddle.

I would think that the toughest challenge might be the mental part is getting through whatever fear or anxiety you have about suffering another concussion and how long it took him to get back. But that's all part of what's been an off season conditioning and a remaking of Tua Tango Maloa. Dolphins made the playoffs last year. They were above 500 despite using three different QBs. So can Tua stay healthy all the way through?

That's a major question. And how could that change the AFC East and the AFC as a whole? Speaking of the East, Josh Allen, oh man, he's watching this guy scrap and practice. There's this whole flap with Stephon Diggs. Then his team goes through an entire preseason game and doesn't put up a point. On the offense side of the ball, just lack of detail, you know, pre-snap penalties, some post-snap penalties. Those are going to happen, but you can't have the pre-snap ones.

So a lot to learn from, you know, we'll get in there and we'll figure it out. While we're talking about the AFC East, Aaron Rodgers will make his Jets debut Saturday against the Giants. So he will actually play in the preseason for the first time in a long time.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence, CBS Sports Radio. I hear people rumbling about the Steelers. Matt Canada in his second year as the offensive coordinator.

Kenny Pickett, first full season as a starter. A lot of reps last year that maybe helped he and Mike Tomlin and the coaching staff find a comfort zone. Not to mention the offensive line, all the different moving parts. So yeah, can they start out quickly in terms of the offense this year?

Can they find some rhythm? It's good to see all the hard work kind of coming into the games. Obviously it's preseason, but you know, we put a lot of time in together. So you want to come out here and put points up and that's what we're doing. So we need to continue that, continue to push for perfection, have a short week of practice, then we're back on the road. So it's going to be a quick turnaround here. We decided we needed to check in with the Steelers in training camp and preseason so we're angling that direction for a guest from Pittsburgh coming up this week.

We make no excuses, we seek no comfort. In the AFC South, CJ Stroud and Davis Mills, I guess still officially vying for the starting job in Houston. I feel like I took a step. Definitely got to clean up some things, but overall I feel like I got in a good rhythm and I started playing football like I'm used to. So it felt good. Great protection up front, ran the ball pretty decently, just off a few things here and there.

So I just got to clean those up. I would be stunned if it wasn't CJ Stroud as the starter. What would be the point of putting Davis Mills back out there? Unless you think CJ is in danger of getting hurt, the offensive line's not ready. He's not ready in terms of decision making, but a lot of what I've heard is pretty positive. It's just about getting acclimated to the speed and what is the size and the strength of the defenders. And they're savvy, right? Size, strength and savvy of defenders in the NFL.

So you have to make sure he can protect himself. But D'Amico Ryans has a decision to make. Jimmy Garoppolo pretty happy with the second preseason appearance, now wearing a Raiders uniform. I wanted to play, so glad Josh let the starters get out there and get a couple of reps in.

I thought the line played great. I thought guys were just operating at a fast pace, which is important in this offense and I thought it was overall pretty good. So Garoppolo and the Raiders hoping that this year in Josh McDaniel's second season, they can get on the right track early.

It's a tough division, obviously. It features the Super Bowl champions, Patrick Mahomes even getting a taste of preseason, giving a lot of credit to his offensive line so that he's not facing incredible pressure and can instead be creative. I wasn't gonna get hit, so I mean as long as I'm not taking any hits, I mean I can try some stuff out. You see the other quarterbacks try some stuff out too. So I thought everybody did a good job today and we had definitely a better urgency out there. He's glad he got in there and got some work done and was able to get the offense in the end zone there.

So that's a positive. I thought the offensive line did a nice job for him. The receivers, we had a lot of guys catch the ball, which is positive. I thought all the offensive lines held their own. Good to know. Patrick Mahomes, even though he can lead his offense on one and a half legs, remember the ankle injury last year.

It's not optimal. That's not best case scenario for the Super Bowl champions who now have an even larger target on their backs. It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. A little bit of QB news. We're gonna skip the Niners because we already talked about Brock Purdy on the field again and then Trey Lance too, looking a little more relaxed, a little more comfortable.

Is Jordan Love ready to go as the QB of the Packers undisputed King of Lambeau Field? At this point, I think I'm definitely ready for week one and carrying on throughout the season. I think these first two games were a lot of good work, obviously getting the practice in with Cincy and with the Patriots as well. But I think, you know, playing in that last game would just be getting more reps, just getting more comfortable, seeing new looks, going against a different team. So I don't think it would hurt.

Everything that I hear about Jordan is positive. I know the offense hasn't always been positive, right? Shoot, was it a practice last week with the Patriots where the Packers were embarrassed?

I remember reading something about that. I don't read real extensively about practice reports, but it was so bad that the Packers essentially were laughed off the field against the Patriots. But that doesn't count. This is what counts now, right? It's trying to get him as comfortable as possible, confident, but he's been waiting. This is exactly what Aaron Rodgers did before he took over for Brett Favre.

And so maybe the fact that he's older and he does have some of that experience under his belt, it's going to be an easy and smooth transition. A lot of Packers fans waiting with baited breath. I don't think so. Clearly, Aaron's not rooting.

No, he says he's on the side of Jordan love and there's nothing but love. Hey, in the wake of Tom Brady's retirement, I'm not sure it's going to be smooth sailing for the Buccaneers offense. Todd Bowles.

What is he looking for? Even as Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask are still competing. Just continuing to master the offense.

I mean, that's really all it is. Mastering the offense is new for everybody. Everybody's getting a good feel of what they can do right now. Just running the offense and driving the car. I wasn't particularly sure how long I was going to be playing.

Maybe a quarter and a half or similar to what we did last week, but they told me I was going to finish out the first half. It's great. More reps try to take advantage of them. Who's driving the car? I like that. Now, do you think Todd Bowles wants these guys to drive it like they stole it?

Because that's essentially what I do. When, when will you decide who's ready to take the wheel, coach? I'll look at the tape. You know, you got to make them like be in it.

So, you know, you've seen what you've seen, but we got one more game and we'll go from there. You got to make them be in it as in the car. Are we talking about actual driver, backseat driver? You lost me with the car driving though.

I do love my princess Leah, who is now in the free and clear all paid off. I'm just waiting for the title to show up. Yeah. That's one quarterback battle that is still taking place and it's hot and it's heavy and they're in the thick of it. Even as the regular season opener is on the horizon.

They always come back. Not so for the Carolina Panthers. Bryce Young is the starter and he's got one more chance to shake off any nerves or anxiety as they get ready for the regular season. I'm gonna trust the coaches, you know, whatever, you know, honestly, I don't really know how the whole, I don't, I don't know what the, the procedure is. And again, I know coaches are different. So, you know, I, I full, you know, wholeheartedly trust the coaches and whatever their decision is. We haven't talked about or discussed anything, but whatever, whatever coach Wright wants me to do and thinks he's going to be best for, for me and for the team.

You know, that, that's what I'm going to do. Put together a nice drive, you know, would have liked to have us finish it off. You know, obviously unhappy with the number of penalties we had.

I don't know what the total number was. Yeah, too many penalties. But I thought Bryce looked sharp. I think he wanted to throw the ball more, you know, I mean, I think, I think he wanted to throw a little bit more, but I thought he looked sharp. Bryce Young is smart.

He came out of Nick Saban's system. So he's prepared and he's poised and his personality doesn't change a whole lot. But the still, the questions were made about his size, especially at the NFL level and people who see him up close and personal, whether you see him on TV, whatever it is, he looks as though, and I'm not saying it will happen only that if you're looking at size and size isn't the only thing that matters, but if you're looking at size, it almost feels like it can get lost behind his offensive line and get swallowed up back there. But he's a quick thinker and it's not like all of a sudden he shrunk. I mean, he's been this size.

It's just when you're talking about the NFL, everybody is bigger, not just the O line that you have to see over and see around, but also the defenders who were coming at you break neck speed. So a little bit of QB news there. And while we're talking about the NFC South, if you missed it, we had a conversation with Saints insider Ross Jackson at the beginning of last hour. He was waiting for the Saints to arrive back from Los Angeles.

They did play in their preseason game a few hours ago. I think more important than that, since not a lot of the starters were on the field. Yes, their safety getting out of L. A. Even as a tropical storm hurt or tropical storm Hillary was advancing is that they they were glad to have Jimmy Graham with them. And the fact that he had been arrested and there's all kinds of reaction to it.

It's a medical issue, a medical emergency, not behavioral, not criminal. And so to hear what Dennis Allen had to say about Jimmy Graham afterwards was a relief for not just the team and the NFL community, but for fans to Jimmy's with us. You know, he's he's he's healthy. He'll have some more testing toe go on. Um, but, you know, look, he's a little shook up, but yet overall, you know, he's doing okay. That's good to hear. And if you miss the conversation with Ross, it will be part of our podcast. All of our guests are podcasted separately, and the link goes up every weekday morning on our show Twitter after hours, CBS or on our Facebook page.

All right, coming up. Messy, messy, messy, messy, messy. We definitely have to get to the craze that has taken over MLS. Now, what happens when they go back to their actual regular season schedule? But Miami has not lost since messy got on the field. So that's one that will definitely have to get to and also scary moment over the weekend.

And no, not for Nashville. Scary moment that I still I think back to it. It makes me pretty nervous.

I tell you what happened because it's becoming a theme and I'm not sure what to do about it. You are listening to the after hours podcast when the League's Cup he was actually carried off the field on the shoulders and like he was getting one of those body surfing lessons. He was body surfing. Are you kidding? The man's won a World Cup and now you're body surfing him on an MLS field.

That's crazy. Anyway, so it's a packed crowd in Nashville and you hear the call there on FS one and enter Miami wins the League's Cup. They actually had to go to penalties, which is a little bit anticlimactic or if you will, maybe it's not. Maybe it's like having a field goal to win a game or a field goal kickoff. Yeah, that's kind of anticlimactic. Anyway, 90 minutes, one goal each. So they moved to penalties and then David Beckham. He goes and he freaks out because now he can actually exult over his messy experiment, right?

It brings him on board. Miami has not lost since Messi got to enter Miami CF. This better carry over to the actual MLS games that count or there's going to be a problem.

But. Messi is running the show right now. He's the hottest ticket in MLS.

He's walking as though. He's been in MLS forever, but. Like he started the league or something, but he definitely is running the show. He actually let them.

Put him up in the air body surf. 10 goals in seven games, I think is the final tally. 10 goals in seven games, not to mention an assist to. He gets the tournament MVP trophy. And then he ends up. Kind of hoisting the League's Cup trophy as well and calls over DeAndre Yedlin, who was asked about this kind of celebration in the locker room and what it's like to win with Messi, Messi, Messi, Messi, Messi.

There's a lot of music, a lot of music, a lot of dancing. Hi, this is Shannon Storms-Badour, Real Housewife of Orange County and entrepreneur. When my company Real for Real started selling our health products online, we really struggled to find a way to ship our orders out quickly and without error until we started using ShipStation. ShipStation's simple dashboard makes it easy to automate shipping tasks and effortlessly manage your orders from every marketplace, including Amazon, Etsy, Shopify, and more. Print shipping labels, easily compare rates and delivery times, and take advantage of discounts up to 84% off USPS and UPS rates. And with enterprise solutions that make warehouse optimization easy, ShipStation scales when your business does. No wonder 98% of companies that stick with ShipStation for a year become customers for life. Spend more time growing your business and start automating shipping tasks with ShipStation. Go to ShipStation.com slash audio today and sign up for your free 60-day trial.

That's ShipStation.com slash audio. Yeah this wasn't the World Cup where it's the culmination of everything you've worked for and now it's over. It's not that. So yeah, seven wins in a row for Miami, two of them by shootout. This is their first ever trophy.

They've never won a trophy of any sort. And if you remember when Messi was introduced to a raucous crowd there in South Florida, they had the worst record and the fewest number of points in the MLS. There was certainly talk that Messi could offer a jolt, but that it might not be enough on the field.

It would be more in the in the arena of selling jerseys and tickets and putting butts in the seats. But nah, it's actually paying dividends on the field because Messi is toying with. He is toying with MLS defenders. Five weeks, seven matches, ten goals. What more do you need to know about Messi, Messi, Messi, Messi, Messi? How many goals did he have where he like literally hit the post and was just didn't matter? Go right around the defenders and get the ball anyway.

This is what I said on Friday. It's like the members of MLS, those who are not cut out to be international stars, right? They're the best of what our nation has to offer, but they're not also playing overseas and some of the Euro leagues. So you know, they're not, they're not immune to being in awe of Messi.

Okay. It's like they're standing around watching him because they're, they're just, they can't believe that's Messi and he's on the same field as them. That's the part that blows me away. That's what it was like. It's like, I almost, it's almost like I respect him so much. I don't want to defend him or like I can't defend him. And that's what it was like. I don't know if they don't think they were thinking that, but that's almost like the impression that you got like, oh, he's such a deity.

Like I can't even go near him. You know, they're apparently, and I didn't see this live, but I did see the photos. There were Messi jerseys of multiple varieties in the stands. So Argentina, Barcelona, now Miami. I love the pink ones. I think the Miami Messi jerseys in this bright pink are awesome.

And it's just been a month. Imagine what will happen if they start to surge through the standings and get to play in the MLS postseason. But yeah, he's the hottest ticket on the planet right now. I mean, I don't know this, but I got to imagine that every MLS stadium that he's lined up to go to for this season has got to be sold out when Miami is coming to town, right?

Yeah, right. And even in David Beckham's wildest dreams, it couldn't have been this quick and this good. And certainly he knew that the fury and the fervor would be there for Messi because there are some real fanatical fan bases, including his own there in South Florida.

There's soccer crazy there. I remember, what year was it? 2009, 10.

Oh, it was 10. 2010, I was on my way to Ecuador for a humanitarian trip. I was playing actually soccer with little kids and we had a long layover in Miami before we could catch our late flight to Ecuador, to Quito.

And we stopped in a cafe along South Beach. Didn't know it was a soccer bar, but we're looking for a place to watch the World Cup and Team USA was playing at that moment. The place was, it was packed. There were people streaming out onto the sidewalks and the streets just wanting to be able to hear what was happening. And I remember I was in Ecuador during the course of that World Cup and was walking through this outdoor market where all the individual vendors have stalls and they're surrounded by all their homemade wares, whether it be the, you know, the shawls that you wear, the homemade brightly colored shawls or jewelry or anything like that, sweaters.

And every single stall had either a tiny black and white TV or a radio. And it wasn't like Ecuador was participating in the World Cup, but it didn't matter. All they cared about was following the matches regardless of what nations were participating. Of course, they're cheering maybe for Central America, South American nations, but what they care most about is just that it's the grandest stage in all of sports. And now Messi has brought that to MLS and the passion is, it's palpable. It's After Hours, CBS Sports Radio.