10/13/22 My name is Paul. And I’m a footballholic. – Radically Rational

10/13/22 My name is Paul. And I’m a footballholic.

How addicted to NFL football am I? I’m going to watch tonight’s Commanders-Bears game. I’m going to attempt to watch all of it. I know. First, I have to acknowledge I have a problem.

The Bears are going to wear orange helmets and jerseys, in lieu of football proficiency.

BB and I were exiting a Port A restaurant Tuesday evening when Yordan did what Yordan did. We were following the game on BB’s phone. You could have heard our screams in Rockport.

One bad, undisciplined moment can have disastrous results. No one in the NFL has built and earned a better reputation than Davante Adams. Great player. Great guy. And now he’s facing charges for shoving and injuring a credentialed media member in the seconds following the Raiders’ Monday night loss to the Chiefs. There’s a life lesson there for all of us.

How grim are the challenges facing the virtually quarterbackless Miami Dolphins? The team captains have taken the ping-pong table out of the locker room. This is serious. No Tua. No Teddy. No top-spin backhands…

Best wishes to 90-year-old Georgia coaching legend Vince Dooley, who is recovering from what is described as a “mild” case of COVID.

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Paul's Bio

I clearly have the attention span of your median fruit fly.Look! Airplane!

Sorry. I’m back.

It’s both a curse and a blessing. I’ve never bought this stuff about, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” But I do think that a wide range of life experiences helps us grow as people, and helps us better relate to other people. I’ve been fortunate. And I am beyond grateful.

I show up on time. I go like hell. I’m a good listener. I hold myself accountable. I own my mistakes. And I have a natural and an insatiable curiosity. I’m never afraid to say, “I don’t know,” when I don’t. But then I try to find out.

The flip side is I’m a lousy ballroom dancer and my clothes sometimes fit me funny.

Stuff matters to me. I care. But while I take that stuff seriously, I try hard to never take myself seriously. As a result, I have sometimes been told, “Paul, it’s hard to tell when you’re serious and when you’re just having some fun. Which is it? Serious or fun?”

My answer is “yes.” But I think that is a legitimate criticism. I promise I’m going to work on that.

This has been the quickest and strangest half-century I’ve ever experienced. During that period, I’ve been afforded amazing opportunities in news and sports journalism across all platforms. I have taught wonderful students at the high school and collegiate level. Always, I learned more from them than they did from me. I’ve been a high school administrator. I spent ten seasons as a high school varsity football coach. I’ve been an advertising executive. I’ve hosted nationally syndicated television entertainment shows. In maybe the biggest honor I ever received, I was selected by NASA to be “Chet The Astronaut” for the “Land The Shuttle” simulator at Space Center Houston. (All I can say there, is “Do as I say, not as I do.” I put that thing in the Everglades more often than not.) Most recently, I just wrapped up a decade as a television news director, during which time our teams distinguished themselves in holding the powerful accountable, achieving both critical and ratings success.

What does all that mean? It means I am profoundly grateful. It also means I’m ready for “next.” So here we are. Radically Rational. It’s an idea I woke up with in 2017. I scribbled “Radically Rational” on a piece of notebook paper and used a magnet to stick it on our refrigerator. I saw it every day, and it just would not leave me alone.

I am second in charge at Radically Rational, LLC. My wife, Jo (also known as BB), is the president. Clearly, I have failed in my attempt to sleep my way to the top of this organization.

I hope you will learn that I’m loyal as a Labrador. But I will admit that this doggie can bite every now and then. My promise to you? I will show up on time. I will go like hell. I will listen to you earnestly and attentively. I will hold myself accountable. I will never be the least bit hesitant to say, “I don’t know,” when I don’t.

But then I’ll try to find out. Let’s do it.