Milwaukee Uncut

What happens the night and days after winning an NBA title? 
How do you get the Larry O’Brien trophy through TSA? 
What’s it like to party with Bill Clinton at Marc Lasry’s place in the Hamptons? 

Those are some of the topics on this episode from the vault with Milwaukee Buck Pat Connaughton and his childhood best friend/business parter at Three Leaf Partners Joe Stanton. 

For clips follow Milwaukee Uncut on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/milwaukeeuncut/

For video episode subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCv6uBhWukvWeht75ejjywQ

For the full episodes with Pat and Joe from 2022: 

Part 1: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/milwaukee-uncut/id1167642426?i=1000553667323

Part 2: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/milwaukee-uncut/id1167642426?i=1000554323172

Transcript

Richie Burke: Hey everyone. It’s your host, Richie Burke, and we’re going to do something a little different on this episode. Pat Connaughton and his childhood best friend and current business partner over at three leaf and my good friend, Joe Stanton came on the show. It was a two part episode back in 2022. They told some great stories from the 21 finals, including what happened the night and days after defeating the sons, trying to fly commercially with the Larry O’Brien trophy and getting it through security as well as partying with Bill Clinton.

At Mark Lasry’s place in the Hamptons since we’ve got a lot of new listeners over the past couple of years who have never heard These stories and because the bucks are in the playoffs right now I thought it would be timely to take those stories and piece together a little episode if you want to listen to the full episodes Those are linked in the show notes As well also shout out to joe who had a baby girl recently with his beautiful wife erin and also bought A house so he’s no longer in the apartment that he mentioned in the episode Just just a guy winning out life right now Joe stanton and good luck to pc and the rest of the guys against indiana And in the playoffs the rest of the way we’re pulling for you Also, just a reminder that milwaukee uncut is produced by story mark studios in partnership with on milwaukee and presented by nicolet law the midwest’s law firm and central Central Standard Distillery.

If you are enjoying some drinks, we recommend Central Standard Distillery. Go Bucks and let’s dive in with Pat and Joe.

All right. Let’s let’s go to the championship. What was, what was that like? That moment?

Pat Connaughton: It was incredible. I mean, I think the coolest part about the championship that you don’t see.

From the outside is the journey of the championship, right? It’s, it’s not like the super bowl. It’s it’s, it’s a seven game series. It’s there’s ups, there’s downs. Obviously we made it. very difficult on ourselves throughout the entire playoffs by going down 0 2 to Brooklyn, going down 0 1 to Atlanta, going down 0 2 to Phoenix.

So we didn’t make it easy for ourselves. But I think the cool part about it was that, was that we were able to get over the hump, was that we were able to come together through the face of adversity win it at home. And, you know, when the confetti starts falling, you know, you know you won it. But you’re so into it like that brooklyn series felt like it was a month and a half it was two weeks Each series was roughly two weeks so when you End that final game six.

You’re almost like who do we have next? Like who’s not like you’re just so ingrained in it And to finally kind of get to that mountaintop to finally like do it and again shared experiences, right? I mean almost the exact same group from the dunk contest was at the game six You know, joe was there our buddy Joe curbs were there crotty was there my parents were there like we almost had the exact same group so to have them be able to come down on the floor afterwards to have them be able to you know joe still got the confetti.

He sleeps with it every single night And under his pillow, like he’s, he’s, he’s cherishing the moments as much as I am. And that’s what’s fun about it. And my mom to see her, you know, my dad had a great line. Like you take a picture with a trophy at the end of the at the end of the game, like later on a few few minutes, hours after media, all that sort of stuff.

And so I gave my mom the trophy to hold. And she was on cloud nine and my dad’s immediate comment was like, don’t drop it too. And so like, she gets really nervous, but she’s happy at the same time. So to see those facial reactions from the people that have been there since day one and to have them be able to share in those experiences, it’s really what makes it.

I mean, obviously I want to have success. I want to continue to work hard. I have all these other things that I, you know, can get better at and want to accomplish, but to have them be a part of it along the way, I think puts it in perspective.

Joe Stanton: Really quick. I just like to interject. I want to upkeep the image a little bit.

I do not sleep with a confetti under the pillow, but I did take confetti from, I mean, you have to, I mean, where is the confetti? Yeah. Where is it? It’s, it’s in my apartment somewhere. I can’t reveal, I can’t reveal. No, not under the pillow, but I can’t reveal the location. I mean, this is going to be broadcast to the public. I don’t want anyone breaking into my apartment and stealing it.

Richie Burke: What was that first night like after winning? What was the party like? Where did

Pat Connaughton: that go on to? It was a blast. I mean, you have such memorable moments. I think the Bobby Portis and I interview was hilarious that went viral. You got dinner afterwards.

We did it at Harbor House. It was just a team. It was really fun. Families were included. I don’t even know where we went afterwards. I know we were up until like seven in the morning. I know that next day it was kind of a blur. I think Joe, myself, our buddy, Karp, and Joe’s wife, Erin went to red, white, and blue to blue Joe’s favorite spot.

Joe Stanton: No, we went to a blue bat, Taqueria, which was for

Pat Connaughton: a little late, late lunch. Honestly, it was just like, we just sat on the deck outside. We just won a championship the next day. You see the four of us just sitting on the deck. And it’s just kind of like you basking in it, right? You’re just kind of, wait, was that real?

Let’s talk about it or discussions or people walk by kind of give you a double glance. Like, wait a minute, is that? Yeah, there was a few, I was going to say there was

Joe Stanton: a few lucky people who happened to be getting lunch at 2. 45 when we were there at Blue Bat who were like, God, is that, is that Pat? They just won the championship like last night.

I got to go up, I got to get a picture. I got to tell him congrats. So we had a lot of that at lunch, which was pretty funny. But yeah, like you said, I mean, the party was, was crazy. And for me as like, you know, from a fan’s perspective, And from, you know, being his friend we obviously, like he said, had a good crew there and, you know, just the whole celebration was surreal.

I mean, we went from, you know, being there at the game, which is obviously the coolest part, but then it just kept getting, you know, better and better. I mean, they were like, Oh yeah, you guys can come down to the floor and celebrate with the team. And. So we went down and did that and the confetti is falling.

I’m scooping up confetti and fill up my pockets as we’ve already discussed. We’re going to get so many messages for confetti sales

Richie Burke: after this podcast. I know, I know.

Pat Connaughton: I’m telling you, the confetti is going to be an underrated thing. There’s only a finite amount of the pieces of, there’s only two nets.

There’s only. What else can you sell? There’s only so many sneakers that were worn in that final game. Exactly. Confetti has more supply,

Joe Stanton: but so we, so we did all that and then, you know, we were, they’re like, all right. Yeah. You know, after the celebration on the floor, Hey, we can go back to, you know, go back to the locker room.

And so, so we celebrate in the locker room and then we went down and, and got to, yeah.

Pat Connaughton: You guys were in the locker room. I didn’t even make it back to the locker room. Yeah, we actually made it. I got

Joe Stanton: pulled to media and they’re in the locker room media. We, by Pat’s locker in the locker room. He wasn’t even there.

But that’s in my honor. Yeah, no worries. And then we, we ended up going down further down the hall, took pictures with the trophy. And I mean, just like you said, went out to dinner after up until six or seven in the morning. I mean, it was. It was the night. Obviously we’ll never forget.

Pat Connaughton: It was really, really tell them about the parade though.

Like that’s where we had probably our most fun aside from winning like the parade. We just, we did our own thing.

Joe Stanton: That was probably the cherry on top. And then they, they say, yeah, you know, the, the friends and family are going to be able to to come on the float or come on the bus with the guys. And we were like, Oh my gosh, we get, we get there day of the parade.

We jump on the bus, we get a prime spot right in front, double decker bus. And we’re riding through the street. Obviously there’s hundreds of thousands of people there. And early on the parade route, like right before it started, someone tossed up a football and they’re like, we want to toss back. I’m like, no, no, keep it, keep it.

And we were like, all right, sweet. This is actually perfect. So we gave, gave the football to PC and throughout the entire parade route, we were, he was just throwing dimes to people in the crowd and they were catching them and throwing it back. And it was, it was a good back and forth with the and then what, what did it turn into?

Yeah. Then it turned into people like, Hey, well, you saw my Jersey and I’m standing like just behind Pat and I’m just calling for everything. Throw it all. Like, so people are throwing up jerseys, catching them. That’s got a Sharpie. He’s signing it quick. And then I’m balling it back up and throwing it to the person.

It was actually a lot of pressure. You got to remember who’s moving the Jersey and it’s moving, moving.

Pat Connaughton: I don’t get the shortest last name. I mean, I don’t get the longest last name on the team, which is obvious, but I don’t get the shortest one either.

Joe Stanton: Right. It’s tough and then you don’t wanna throw it to the wrong person or, you know, have a fight ensue in the cre.

So, but no, all lot to worry about. I know it’s high pressure.

Richie Burke: I think I think Noah trainer at F45, I don’t know if you know him or not, but he was one of the crazy guys who took his jersey off and threw it at you and you signed it. Was it successful?

Pat Connaughton: Yeah. A hundred percent. And then look, we had multiple things going, like Joe might’ve started it.

Our other buddy, Joe was on the other side doing the exact same thing. My dad was on the other side that got a few thrown at him. So we kind of had like a few different, what I would call storefronts going on every side of the thing.

Joe Stanton: Oh, for sure.

Richie Burke: Joe, if you wanna talk about partying with Bill Clinton or transporting the Larry O’Brien Trophy from Milwaukee to PC’s House for sure.

Yeah. On the East Coast last minute.

Joe Stanton: Yep. Oh God. Yeah. I got got a couple good stories on that. So, back to the yeah, the championship celebration. So we got invited. I say we, pat got invited and I was, was fortunate enough to be invited by him to to the Lazarus.

Pat Connaughton: That’s, that’s nice of you to say. I, I thought even on the blue bat thing, you were gonna say how people were really like.

Is that, that Joe Stanton? Can I get a picture with Joe?

Joe Stanton: My rep’s not that big in Milwaukee yet. I’m hoping maybe one day. But. You’re going to,

Richie Burke: you’re going to be the E of Milwaukee after this podcast. He was pretty prolific figure on Entourage. Yeah, true,

Joe Stanton: true. I guess I’d take that. So, confetti man. So yeah, so we, we get invited to this party at Lazarus.

So he’s got this mansion right on the water and we show up to the party and. We walk in again, keep in mind, I keep hitting on two kids from Arlington. We walk in and we see two Ferraris parked on the front lawn. So I was kind of you know, the first alarm going off in my head, like, Jesus, like, where, where are we?

This is bananas. So we walked in. And as a

Pat Connaughton: real estate guy, Joe’s very concerned, like. The lawn, like, what are we doing? Like, there’s not a cost to fix the lawn. Come on now. We got to, we create

Richie Burke: value. Maybe as much as one of the tires. Yeah,

Joe Stanton: exactly. So, so we walk in and see that it’s crazy. I mean, the house is beautiful.

We’re walking around the backyard. He’s got this whole, you know, catered thing put together and the trophies there to just sitting there, you know, on its own table with a bunch of championship hats around it. People were going up, taking pictures. It was probably, I don’t know, just like 75 people or so there, but The craziest thing as I was walking around the party, kind of exploring the the backyard and just taking it all in those with my wife was there too.

We were walking around and we were just like, I keep noticing like these security guys, like, and there were rumors,

Pat Connaughton: there were rumors. Peter had rumors, some rumors, some high profile

Joe Stanton: people. So when we walk in, Adam Silver was there. Obviously, you know, Pat’s there. Bobby Portis was there. Coach Bud was there.

So there’s, there’s definitely some high profile people there. But. The security seemed like at the time when I’m walking around, seemed like such overkill. We get guys with ear pieces everywhere, walking all over the party. They’re wearing these like

Pat Connaughton: nice suit coats. And mind you, this is a guy coming from the NBA dunk contest where he had two security guys driving around.

So I know some experience. Yeah, exactly.

Joe Stanton: So I’m just very impressed with with this whole operation. I get with his security guys coming out of the bushes. I mean, there’s guys out, you know, there’s guys, there’s multi boats off of the Off of the coast, just like sitting out there, like watching the party.

And I’m like, wow, this is like crazy. Like what? I don’t understand this, but anyway, so we, the night keeps going on. And then I’m talking at a table, eating some hors d’oeuvres with my wife. And all of a sudden she’s facing the other way and I’m looking right at her. Jaw just drops. And I’m like, what? And she was like, like, turn around and look.

And I turned around and president Bill Clinton was just showed up at the party and people like, they were pretty good about it. They didn’t swarm them. Like, but anyway, he’s long story short, he’s boys with Mark Lasry and Mark had invited him to the championship party. So naturally being, you know, the fan boy that I always am.

I’m like, all right, I’ll, I’ll try to play it cool for right now, but I do eventually want to go over and chat with Bill and get my picture. So fair enough. We had Pat had already met him before, but we went over, that’s a whole

Pat Connaughton: nother story.

Joe Stanton: Yeah. A whole other, yeah, that is actually a funny story too.

But I guess we can, we can touch on that while we’re on the subject. So Pat had met him before at a game in Brooklyn, the Barclays center,

Pat Connaughton: Mark and him are close. So like, They would go back a long time. And so Mark will bring him to the Barclays Center from time to time. And this was my first year in Milwaukee.

And so I didn’t know he was coming. I mean, I, you see him courtside, right? But I didn’t know he was coming before. And so he’s at the game or whatever. And just before I have a great relationship with Mark, it’s probably my. second month on the team. It wasn’t that far into the regular season. And so after the game, I have my routine, you know, I, I do a little workout and ab circuit get stretched, do some PT ice the knees.

And then I jump in the shower and I get ready. And I usually, I come out and say hi to people. Like I got a bunch of friends from Brooklyn Notre Notre Dame connections. I got a bunch of people that come from Boston. It’s not that far of a drive. Right. So I jumped in the shower pretty quickly and I come out of the shower and I’m standing there in a towel and Mark goes to me, Hey, you want to be president Clinton?

And I’m like, Yeah, absolutely. He goes, all right, well, he’s about to leave, so you got to do it right now. And I’m like, what do you mean? And I turned to my right and he’s standing there talking to Giannis. So Mark grabs him and pulls him over and he was like, President, he introduces me. I’m standing there in a towel.

I got nothing else on. And I’m like, Mr. President, how are you? And I’m like shaking his hand. This is obviously before I had a broken one and I’m shaking his hand and then Mark was like, let’s get a photo. Like, let’s get a picture of you guys. And I’m like, I would love it. Do you think I should put some clothes on first?

And he’s like, look, he’s got to go get a shirt. So someone threw me my shirt, which was just this white shirt. So I’m in a white towel, white shirt. And I’m standing there and there’s a picture of me shaking the president’s hand. We’re both looking at the camera and all I’m in is a towel. Now, granted, way better than not having a shirt on as well, but.

It’s a hilarious photo because when you look at it right away, you see a shirt on me. So you don’t really think a whole lot of it, but then like you look at the photo and you’re like, are you in a, are you in a towel shaking president Clinton’s hand? When he sent it to me, I had that exact right. I was like, wait a minute.

Like what, what is going on here? So, so anyway, so I’ve met him and he’s come. to Milwaukee once or twice. I think he’s been in Brooklyn almost at each game that we’re in Brooklyn. And so I’ve met him a few times. And so at the party, I’ll let Joe finish story about the party, you know, Mark’s big thing, like Bobby had talked to him both from Arkansas, right?

So they were hitting it off there. And Mark wanted me to come over and meet him because I’m sure part of his reason for going is to be able to see some of the players because he’s a basketball fan, et cetera. So I had, I didn’t see Joe and Aaron. I didn’t pass by the table that they were standing out with Aaron’s.

Jaw on the grass. But I was over there like kind of shaking hands and I see them kind of like making their way over which was perfectly played by Joe.

Joe Stanton: Yeah. So perfect timing. So we kind of walk out move. Yeah. We walk up all this first rodeo, all of us together and just got them at the perfect time and we went right up and just went right in.

And I forget it, honestly, I think I blacked out when I was meeting them, I, before leading up to it, I’m like, what the hell am I going to say to this guy? Like, obviously he’s way, way older than. You know, so much smarter than me. So what, what am I possibly going to say? So I went up, just shook his hand, said, you know, it was an honor to meet him.

And then basically I think I asked him a question about the Bucks. No, you threw

Pat Connaughton: me under the bus for some reason, right? You said, Oh, if you had made some more shots, maybe it wouldn’t have been as close.

Joe Stanton: It was something to do with the Bucks and PC. So we got to, We got him to laugh and joke, warm him up.

Richie Burke: Exactly. This guy knows what he’s doing. We got somebody

Pat Connaughton: ripping photos. Like, I don’t know who it was. I don’t. Oh, it’s who Ryan Hoover greatest guy ever ripping photos. So he sends me all the photos afterwards. And we took like a real photo of him as well, which Joe knew or whatnot. And we had who’ve do it.

But the funniest photos are the ones where Joe’s in the midst of conversation with him, because he’s like, As he’s talking and President Clinton’s like actually talking to him. And then there’s one candidate of all of us laughing and it’s just really, it’s priceless.

Joe Stanton: Yeah. So it was a, it was a wild, wild story that definitely that was probably one of the best things from the, the championship run, maybe aside from the, the trip with the Larry o

Richie Burke: Yeah.

Can, can you touch on that quick? When you needed the trophy to celebrate with your family at home? You get it for a couple days and it’s in Milwaukee and you’re not there.

Pat Connaughton: Yeah, for sure.

Richie Burke: So, I mean,

Pat Connaughton: short, it’s a short off season, right? So. It’s not like the Stanley Cup, you know, I got a good buddy who I worked out with Connor Sherry back home who won it with the Penguins, but I don’t want it twice.

Actually, everyone gets a few days with a cup or a week with a cup. That’s not really how the NBA trophy works, but you can, like, take you can ask for it. Like, it’s just kind of like an unwritten thing. Like, if you want it, if you want to take it home, whatever you can do it both in short and off season, it’s a little bit harder to coordinate.

And so, yeah. Granted, you guys just heard all of the things we’ve done, and that’s in the span of like a week after the finals, right? We also took a trip to Florida to take some time out. We did a bunch of stuff, but point being, we want, or I wanted at some point to bring the trophy home. Like, I wanted it to be the place where I learned how to play basketball at Fidelity House.

I thought it’d be really cool to bring it there. Like, all the people and places that kind of helped me get here. One of the things I always say, and I have a chain that says family over everything, but that’s not just blood relatives, right? Like, family is, for me, family. anybody who I consider to be family.

And so I know I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for those people and places that helped get me here. So to be able, again, shared experience and bring that Larry O’Brien trophy back, I know all those people will, their jaws will be on the floor with Aaron, right? So for me I want to try to coordinate it.

And so we finally got a way to coordinate it on Labor Day weekend. Problem is I’m already home. And so I was talking to the trophy coordinator with the box on like how to get it done. And the big thing is they don’t just want to ship the Larry O’Brien trophy, right? Like they don’t, they don’t necessarily want it in other people’s hands to just kind of go about in a perfect world.

They send somebody with it. In this instance, the person that they had been sending with the trophy had been doing it for like a month and a half because we had one in July, mid of July, and now it’s September. So they were going to take a few days off. Also Joe’s got to know people within the Bucks organization very well.

And so I kind of just gave them the idea, Hey, if, if need be, like Joe’s there, he’s going to be coming home anyway for the weekend. Like, I don’t know the protocol, but if you guys are comfortable with it, like, I’m sure he’d be up for it. So I called him and asked and he goes, sure. What does that even mean?

And

Joe Stanton: essentially I get the call on like a little side story on that too. I get the call. I mean, it’s, I don’t know, probably Tuesday, like the, before Labor Day weekend. Yeah. And I’m like working and I just get a random call, like middle of the afternoon. And he’s like, Hey would you be comfortable bringing the Larry O’Brien trophy home to Massachusetts?

Like you got to travel with it. But I was like, I was like, what? Like, I think you’re breaking up. I don’t know what, like, what are you, what are you saying? And so he asked me and I was like, I mean, obviously, of course I said yes. And I mean, the story from there is just, was so absurd. We basically coordinate going to pick it up.

And then I had to coordinate with the Bucks on. Purchasing an actual seat for the trophy. So under Larry O’Brien’s name. So we get we get the tickets purchased and you know, I show up to the airport super early, I get to get it privately screened like by TSA and the guys like, didn’t believe me when I first said like, I’m traveling.

It’s in this like massive, like a hundred pound like bulletproof case. Like

Pat Connaughton: Yeah. And fire resistant eight locks on it. Yeah. Padlocks on it. This is gonna sound horrible. It looks like it’s a bomb. It looks like it’s a massive bomb. Like, Joe looks like he’s wheeling around a bomb in the middle of the airport.

Like, that just is what it is. Like, we didn’t say that to anybody, obviously, especially not in the airport, but that’s kind of what it looks like. And so, handling the protocol for him was hilarious. Because of that exact thing,

Joe Stanton: yeah, the amount of dirty looks I was getting. And so anyway, we get to the airport and I’m like, yeah, I got like the NBA championship trophy in this case.

Like I’m trying to whisper it to the guy, like, Hey, we got to get this, you know, can I get this privately screened? I don’t want to whip out the Larry O’Brien and the, in the in the security line. So they’re like, yeah, for sure. So they take, you know, you know, me to some back room and. Going there with a couple of different TSA guys.

We open up the case and literally I’ll never forget this open up the case. And the guy just goes, Holy shit. Just like that. I couldn’t believe that it was actually the trophy. And so we take it out. Like they got gloves on, they’re inspecting. Why would you lie

Pat Connaughton: about that? Like what, what exactly could it have been if he wasn’t

Joe Stanton: the trophy?

They look at the whole, you know, look at the case and everything. And then they asked me like, you know, very nicely, can we take pictures with that? And I’m like, yeah, sure. So they, they grabbed a few pictures of their own holding the trophy and their TSA uniforms. But so then, yeah, we ended up getting, getting through that and jump on the plane.

And

Pat Connaughton: then I had to first, I got to interrupt for a second. The funniest part I saw about it, or I heard about it. I wasn’t on the first trip was. Once he got through security, he’s walking through the airport with this thing being wheeled behind him, right? And the guy who helped him get through security gave him his card and said, Hey, if you have any problems, let me know.

Like I handled it. He kind of headed up TSA. So Joe gets to the terminal to go on the plane. And the funniest part is like, it’s still a unique thing, right? Nobody expects that to ever come like be a thing. So when he tries to check in, the people are like, That can’t go on the plane. That’s gotta go underneath the plane.

Joe’s like, no, no, no This can’t go underneath the plane and Joe’s like I got a seat for it and they’re like what? So he has like two tickets. It’s him and the trophy It’s like if it was him and Aaron, but it’s him and the trophy. He’s got two kids. He scans both tickets and they’re still like What’s in it?

Like I don’t like that doesn’t sit right which I don’t discredit him for that like that makes sense But Joe’s over here in a position where he’s like, well I don’t want everybody to know what it is because at the end of the day once I get to Boston everyone’s gonna want to Take a photo with the whole planes gonna be crashing around the Larry O’Brien trophy.

It’s gonna be like soul plane And so I think the funniest part to me was now he has to explain the story again to the people checking him in They don’t believe him Finally, they let him in on the plane. Now the flight attendant doesn’t believe him. She doesn’t want to let him on the plane. He has to explain it to her.

They move him up to first class. Let the thing sit next to him in first class. Has to get a seatbelt extender, because you have to strap it in. It doesn’t fit in the seat, so he puts it on the ground in the seat. And now he’s sitting there next to him with this case that looks somewhat like a bomb. In the first seat of the plane, as everybody’s walking by him on the plane, like, What is going on on here?

Multiple

Joe Stanton: people stopped and they’re like, what is, what is in that case? And so said, I don’t wanna be on, on this plane anymore. . Yeah. So like he said, I didn’t want to, I, one, I don’t wanna scare anyone. And two, I didn’t wanna reveal what was actually inside. So I was making up like these rid, I was changing it up for every single person who asked what’s, what’s in that case?

I’m like, oh, it’s my trumpet. They’re like, oh, what’s in this case? Like, just making up all these things. And people were just like, oh, interesting. Just walk by. So we, we ended up successfully getting it there. But it was a, it was a hilarious story. And then I think the funniest part of all too. Was once we arrive, we get off and he was supposed to pick me up actually, but he was, I don’t know what he was doing.

I think it was golfing or something and I was running a little late. So he’s like, Oh, Hey, I’m not gonna be able to get you. So my mom had to come and pick me up and I’m like, Hey I’m at the airport and I have the Larry O’Brien trophy with me. Can you come pick me up? So she came and pick me up. We just tossed it on the back seat and then drove home and met Pat at my house, but it was pretty it was a, it was a fun trip.

Pat Connaughton: Yeah. And that’s like, look, it was the same exact thing on the flight back, Joe, Aaron, and myself, and I guess now you got to include the trophy because it’s for people traveling according to the tickets fly back. And like me and Aaron sit next to each other and Joe sits next to the trophy. We let him stay in charge of it.

Cause he’s had experience with it. He throws on his black shades during the flight, throws his hat on low. And he’s sitting there like this. He looks like a security guard with the trophy. Like he looks so serious. So we’ve got great photos of it, but like, I think some of the funniest parts are like Joe’s Godson.

His nephew like the Larry O’Brien trophy comes home. He was what three at the time.

Joe Stanton: Yeah,

Pat Connaughton: and The trophy school he can see himself in it. It’s whatever he loves the box You open up the box. It’s got a cutout of the trophy. That’s where you stick the trophy. Now I’ve just got padding all around it. You take the trophy out.

He fits in the cutout of the trophy in the box. So we take the trophy out. Everyone’s like, Ooh, at his house, like everyone’s pumped about it, et cetera. My man, Connor is laying in the box in the exact way the trophies fit in the box. Like, Oh my God, look at me. This is the best thing ever. So it’s just funny how like, Things work and how much you know, obviously people enjoyed seeing the trophy, but some people enjoyed seeing the box

Richie Burke: Thank you for tuning into this episode with pat and joe Good luck to the milwaukee bucks the rest of the way if you want to support milwaukee uncut Please subscribe and write a review and share this with friends.

That means a lot and helps grow the show Milwaukee uncut is produced in the heart of walkers point at story mark studios in partnership with on milwaukee And presented by nicolet law and central standard distillery

JMatt,  a local content creator shining a spotlight on all things Milwaukee. With over 16,000 followers on Instagram and a whopping 180,000 followers on TikTok, he’s become an unofficial icon of the city. He’s partnered with big brands including Red Bull, Culvers, and Subway, but primarily focuses his attention on the small businesses that truly put Milwaukee on the map.

We talked with JMatt, a former radio personality, to talk about his journey from being on-air to on-screen and how being laid off led him to content creation. From the first videos he posted solving puzzles, to the pirate ship video that changed everything, it’s been a continuous learning process that JMatt has fully embraced.

Fast forward to today and he’s now a self-employed creator that doubles as a social media coach for small businesses and nonprofits in Milwaukee.

With over 4 years of local lifestyle content under his belt, he has amassed a huge list of Milwaukee area bars, restaurants, and businesses he has worked with… which means he is a bottomless pit of recommendations on the best spots Milwaukee has to offer. 

We didn’t just want him to rattle off the most popular spots in Milwaukee, though. We wanted to get his insights on the best hidden gems this city has flying under its radar – mostly of the food and drink sort.

From lowkey to high end first date restaurants (Santinos), waterfront patios (Barnacle Buds), and tucked-away taprooms (Edith) to quaint brunch spots (Cafe at the Plaza) and mini donut shops (Happy Dough Lucky), we cover 13 hidden gems in Milwaukee worthy of a little extra love. 

Transcript

JMatt: I was hoping for like 10, 000 views in 24 hours. I got a million views. And then within a week I had 50, 000 followers and I had 5. 3 million views on that video.

Richie Burke: Hey everyone. Welcome back to Milwaukee Uncut produced in the heart of Walker’s Point by Storymark Studios in partnership with On Milwaukee and presented by Nicolet Law, the Midwest law firm and Central Standard Distillery.

Today, our guest is JMatt, a very recognizable Milwaukee, and you may know him from his TV show. TikToks or Instagram reels about the city, but you may not know much about his backstory. Jay Matt shares his Milwaukee content to nearly 200, 000 followers across Instagram and TikTok. He’s had brand deals with companies like Red Bull, Culver’s, and many more.

He’s also the founder of hashtag Milwaukee and a social media coach. In this episode, we’ll learn how JMatt broke through and started creating content for the city of Milwaukee and really grew his followings and J Matt will give you a lot of hidden gem spots that you should check out around the city from restaurants to drink spots, to date night spots, to other activities.

A lot of which I had never heard of. And I feel like as someone who produces a Milwaukee based podcast and has been here for over a decade, I know the city pretty well, but JMatt gives us a lot of good spots. So it’s, it’s a good one. Thanks again for tuning in. Let’s dive in with JMatt

JMatt: In my mid twenties, there was an opportunity to move to Milwaukee formally, and I got an apartment on the East side, lived there for six to seven years, and then, , eventually bought a condo in Riverwest.

So I think now it’s very easy to say through and through I’m very Milwaukee. This is my home. This is my chosen home, really, even though I grew up just outside of the city.

Richie Burke: What brought you here? So there was an opportunity to move here.

JMatt: Yeah, I lived in Madison for a bit, working in radio and there was a nonprofit looking for a social media specialist and it was right around the lines of what I was looking to do.

I wanted a role that was more centered around social media and content, as opposed to a fraction of the position. And it just made sense. I interviewed for it, got the job, came out here and, did that for a few years before I got offered a dream job with Kiss FM.

Richie Burke: Tell us about that experience.

JMatt: Yeah. So Kiss FM, I was working part time and the weekends driving from Madison to Milwaukee to be a part of the top 40 radio station, filling in overnights and early morning when Ryan Seacrest would be coming on for the 80 40 American top 40. Yeah, that’s what it is. I’d spent a while since I’ve been a part of that show, but, , it was very involved.

With going back and forth and part of it was, you know, it’d be a lot nicer if I just lived in Milwaukee and didn’t have to have the commute back and forth every weekend just to be on the air. So it allowed me to, , that non profit allowed me to be closer so that I could continue to do it as a part time job.

But I think that dedication that I showed the, , operating manager and others, , for so long opened up an opportunity down the road. They created a position for me, Digital Digital Program Manager. It’s a weird phrase because in radio, Program Manager is the thing. So they needed to have basically the same concept, but for the digital, organic content.

So they hired me for that and then I was also, full time on the air Monday through Friday after the Riggs and Allie show. So it was like the station I grew up listening to, Top 40, so that had a special, , sentiment to it and then I was going on after Allie, who doesn’t love hearing this, but I grew up listening to Allie and she was still on the station when I got on.

So it was kind of like a surreal moment of like, I grew up listening to some of these voices and now I’m part of these voices that maybe down the road kids will grow up and be like, Oh, I heard JMatt on Kiss FM back in the day.

Richie Burke: And then the pandemic hit.

JMatt: Yeah.

Richie Burke: And you got let go from KISS, I believe.

JMatt: Yeah, I was the first of about a third of the radio station.

They own, the company owned three stations. So I was let go. And then morning show producers were let go. Other people were let go. I think an afternoon guy was let go. There were people in behind the scene roles of like promotions and events, which made sense to let go. So yeah, it was a hard hit at the time.

Yeah. Not only was it like losing a job, but it was like a job that I really didn’t foresee myself ever like leaving on my own.

Richie Burke: We taught you just mentioned maybe kids saying, Oh, I listened to JMatt growing up. It seems like that was a long term plan for you. Yeah, you’ve bounced back nicely though.

Was that a kind of a blessing looking back, even though it must’ve been completely crushing in the moment.

JMatt: It’s, it is interesting because the very first, Weekend, after I got let go from Kiss FM, I remember seeing like, early voting was a big thing, I don’t even know if it was early voting necessarily, but it was just voting in general, and they had to adjust for COVID.

So people were like in their cars waiting to vote, and the line was around the block. And I remember thinking, oh, I should talk about this on the air on Monday. And then it dawned on me, I was like, I don’t have anywhere to talk about this. So, I wish I could say in that moment I knew that I should flip this opportunity into social media content.

It wasn’t super obvious to me in the moment. I think I was just kind of still in shock of everything. , I think it took a good three to four months until I got into a rhythm where. Local content was the answer in short form video content form.

Richie Burke: So this overlaps a little bit. You’re big on TikTok. How did you get into it?

I’m guessing that was during your time at KISS or maybe even before then. Can you talk about where you started there, how you ended up doing the short form Milwaukee content, and how it really took off for you?

JMatt: What a lot of people don’t know is when I started TikTok, it, , was definitely not Milwaukee content.

Because, like, people will find you and just asse you always did it. I started figuring out TikTok because, yes, I worked at the radio station, and that’s where our Gen Z target audience was. So I had to figure out what TikTok was. How do you actually use it? How do you make good content on it? And figuring all that out, like, how do I get their attention?

So I saw content that was being made by others, , who were not as confident, whereas I was on the air, on social media, my face was on social media all the time, so I was already used to it. Possible content. Was the thing because you had a lot of Gen Zers Who would probably have been in middle school at the time or high school?

And there was like, oh, here’s a a brain teaser. How do you figure it out? but all they were showing was the the person’s hand and Speaking off camera and I was like, well, what if I? was on camera. What if I spoke on camera? And at the time you could only do 15 second videos. So I was like, how do I use my face?

How do I show the puzzle and write in reverse and backwards and upside down all these sorts of things. I figured out all of it. And through puzzle content, I got 20, 000 followers. So I figured it out. I cracked the code, but for me, it got annoying because I didn’t really care about the notifications and the content.

I was mostly just trying to. figure out how the platform worked. And so I started trying to shift it as it was, , which is pretty hard to go from puzzle content to what I now do. And didn’t know it at the time, , city of Milwaukee content. It take, it took me a good year mixture of before pandemic and post pandemic, or I guess during pandemic to figure out, The niche of city of milwaukee content

Richie Burke: was your first city in milwaukee video where it struck a chord with you

JMatt: so I wish I also could say that first video was super obvious when it hit it was a very lucky situation where I was Unemployed and had supportive community around me of friends and one had a boat and we went on the milwaukee river I knew of the pirate barge Is

Richie Burke: this Ian Abston?

JMatt: It is Ian.

Richie Burke: We love giving Ian shoutouts on this show. What a great Milwaukee citizen he is.

JMatt: He is great. He, , I knew of the Pirate Barge and he introduced me as the TikToker, which was much better than the unemployed guy, , during the pandemic. So I appreciated being introduced as that. And at the time, like 20, 25, 000 followers, it was a decent deal, but it wasn’t city of Milwaukee content.

And I remember him saying, Oh, where do we want to go? I was like, well, what about the pirate barge? I knew at the time that it was up for sale. And it was going to be sold in like a week, so theoretically, last opportunity to go. Water levels were pretty high. We had to go under the bridge and somebody, I think it might’ve been Ian, might’ve been someone else on the boat said, Oh, this would make a great TikTok.

And I was like, you’re right. And I handed my phone off to somebody sitting in the back. And so we had a perfect shot of me and this other guy helping guide the boat underneath the bridge, which was alone worthy of views. And then I used, , phrasing that, , Was unusual, theoretically. I said centimeters instead of inches.

And so you had a bunch of the people like, this is America. We use inches here, not centimeters. I was like, heard trying to exaggerate the, like the minuscule amount of clearance that we had. And then of course we show the pirate barge and people are like, Oh, this is really cool. Off camera. I had, of course gone on and explored it.

So in the video, I was saying, Oh, if you blow this video up, We’ll go on the Pirate Barge and show you what it looks like. I already shot the content, who cares? So, I was hoping for like 10, 000 views. In 24 hours I got a million views. And then within a week I had 50, 000 followers. And I had 5. 3 million views on that video.

Richie Burke: What was that like? Were you just hitting refresh and it just didn’t slow down?

JMatt: I think I posted it and then like, it was so early, I hadn’t had a video You just wake up and you’re like, holy shit. Well, with the puzzle content, I was getting some videos with a million views. So I was already used to that, , but this was Truly something different that I didn’t really anticipate how it could function and get viewed So I didn’t really pay attention to it till the next day and thought I was gonna see 10, 000 views and it was a million I was like, how did this happen?

And this is where I say I wish I knew that it was cuz of milwaukee Because I was like, ah, I guess I could play on like the history of the pirate barge and then I could play on Roaring Dan and I was not the direction I needed to go But it wasn’t obvious to me, like looking back, it’s obvious.

Richie Burke: Were you just throwing out pirate videos after that?

JMatt: Dude, it was rough. I was like, I don’t know how I’m going to keep this going. And then I remembered Milwaukee is not a pirate hotbed. I know! But I didn’t think it was because of Milwaukee. I thought it was because of the uniqueness of the situation. And I was like, how do I continue this? And then I noticed some people in the comments kind of saying, I used to live in Milwaukee, I had no idea this was a thing, or I used to party on the pirate barge back in the day.

So then I could start seeing the community that was forming in the comments. And able to test, , to see if it was Milwaukee. And I, I think the first video I did was five beer gardens in the city of Milwaukee. And that blew up and I was like, all right Well, what about five free attractions in the city of milwaukee that blew up?

I was like, ah, it’s local content

Richie Burke: Got it, and that was in 2020.

JMatt: Yeah,

Richie Burke: and then You were at an agency a little bit you went off on your own. How’s how’s that going? What are you up to right now?

JMatt: , yeah, i’m formally self employed as of mid november of 2023 So it’s been nearly five six months of self employment and it’s been great I’ve got monthly retainer clients that I help with social media coaching and help like improve their presence.

And it’s great for like thought leaders or entertainers that just want to be doing better on social media. And I work with some nonprofits to help them do better on social media. My whole goal is to work with you for like six months and then give you those tools that you need so that you can continue on your own.

I don’t want to necessarily have to do this with you all the time. I want to give you the skillset that you don’t have. Cause like, where do you get the skillset kind of figured out a good skillset with social media for 15 years. So I can offload that in a way that’s easy to conse and replicate and you can continue to create your content and your presence on your own.

Richie Burke: Love it um, You’ve gotten a lot of brand deals. When did, when did those start? So bridging between, okay, do the pirate barge video. You’re doing some beer gardens, mother Milwaukee content. This is in 2020. When did you get, do you remember what your first brand deal was and what, what that was like to have a brand actually reach out to you and want to pay you to do?

JMatt: The first one was unfortunately a restaurant that is no longer in business, but it was near the airport and they just kind of reached out and said, Oh, we would love to be featured on your page. So it was the first time to explore it, but the first like, major brand, , was probably like the second or third thing after that, which was Red Bull.

They reached out to me and they’re like, we’re doing this thing called Flugtag, where we’re gonna throw these flying contraptions off of a platform that’s 30 to 40 feet up in the air into Lake Michigan. We want you to be a part of this event. And I was like, Yes, please. I am very intrigued by this. So that was still a, I think back and I’m like, wow, that really got the ball rolling on what has become, , a really fun self employment opportunity.

Richie Burke: Hey everyone. It’s your host, Richie Burke. Thank you for tuning in to Milwaukee Uncut. Please take a second to subscribe if you have not already, and maybe even write a review that helps support the show. And we’ve got a lot of great Milwaukee episodes coming up. Also, just wanted to give a thank you to our sponsors, our friends at Nicolet Law, the Midwest’s law firm, and Central Standard Distillery.

Also, if you have not checked out Central Standard’s craft house right outside the Third Ward, make sure to do so. Great food, drinks, really nice rooftop when the weather’s nice. Which I’m sure, I’m sure it’ll get nice out soon. It kind of has to. So make sure to check out the craft house. All right. Back to today’s episode with J Matt.

Let’s get into some Milwaukee related questions. You are a Milwaukee expert. A lot of listeners want to know where to go, where the cool spots are, maybe where some hidden gems are. So. We’ll, we’ll rattle off some spots or I’ll ask you some questions. These don’t necessarily have to be the, the best spots in the city, but whatever comes to mind or places that J Matt enjoys, or maybe people can find you hanging out at first one, hidden, hidden gem food spot or spots.

JMatt: So I’ve been doing spicy food lately. I did a series, I think I’m on seven, the seventh video where I go into the restaurant and I say, give me the spiciest thing on the menu. And then I get those looks of like. Are you sure white boy and I was like Yes I really would and I have to tell them literally that I want them to make me cry And that seems to be the magic phrase that they’re like, all right sold.

We’ll just we’ll make you cry. , and one of the places that It hit me hard was this place called fa 414 And the reason why I love that this is a hidden gem is the fact that it’s in Mungtown, , on the north ish, north ish, northwest ish side of town, Appleton in Hampton? Don’t quote me. But I know it’s off of Appleton.

So, that is essentially like a little food court within a grocery store or a market. And they have literally fire in the form of heat that they can give you for food. And they got mild, totally. The , guy that gave me the, the hottest option felt real bad because he could tell I was struggling. Which, , He nailed it.

He got exactly what I asked for.

Richie Burke: Got good views too, didn’t it?

JMatt: It did pretty well. , but he felt so bad. He’s like, Here’s a, here’s a nber one. I want you to take that home. And I was like, I didn’t ask for that, but I will certainly eat it. , thank you. And I could tell the difference between the one and what I got was definitely way different.

Richie Burke: So for people who don’t want to cry, You can still enjoy good spot. It’s

JMatt: still a spot to enjoy.

Richie Burke: What about cocktail spots? Where are you going?

JMatt: So another video that I made recently, , was of a hidden gem cocktail spot and it’s called Edith. And if you don’t know it exists, it’s very easy to pass right by because they’re not, they don’t have like a signage that’s very showy.

They’ve got Edith on the door and they’ve got a sandwich sign out on the sidewalk. And if you’re not walking by or not really looking for it, it’s easy to not notice. It’s, , maybe two blocks away from third street market hall. And. It is a craft cocktail bar. Typically they say their clientele, at least when I went there several months ago, was people that were coming for a show, looking for a place to drink before the show, and then they would go.

So I got there at like 10 30 and it was empty. That’s because their clientele was going. Before shows and at the time that I went they were still relatively new and people hadn’t heard of it yet I think on Friday nights, they do jazz night. So they’re certainly increasing in the popularity and that video did pretty well So I hope that they’re doing pretty well, too.

Richie Burke: Any favorite date spot?

JMatt: So if you want to be bougie and show off There’s a date spot that I discovered recently and it is like one of those like cocktails are like 25 and it’s a little expensive. So you just have to know that going in.

Richie Burke: We’ll do a bougie one and a non bougie one. Okay, cool. How does that sound?

JMatt: Solomon’s at the Trade Hotel.

Richie Burke: They have three

JMatt: bars at the Trade Hotel. That’s next to Pfizer For. Yeah, and they have Il Cervo on the roof. They’ve got , I forget the first floor bar. Is it craft or something? It’s some

Richie Burke: basic like that. , we’ll think of it right when we get off. That’s a good spot though.

JMatt: That one works too and I think that one everyone knows of because as you’re walking by you see it and then when you’re like, oh I heard they got a rooftop bar so you know that one. Solomon’s is on the second floor. It’s easy to miss and if you’re not like going to find this third bar. I literally want to find it.

I go around, , the stairs, go up and I see where it is, but like, still don’t see the bar until you come around the corner and you see Solomon’s and you’re like, well, this is really tucked away and a pretty cool spot. Especially like they have the lights dim in there when you’re going up a little bit later.

It’s a nice little spot. They got a little fireplace in there. So if you’re trying to be bougie and show off. Solomon’s at the trade. Is

Richie Burke: it just up the stairs from the first? Or? You can take the elevator. I have been up there before. Is there food there too? Or is it just drinks? Don’t remember seeing food.

Good drink spot for sure.

JMatt: But El Chevro upstairs has food and that I would debatably say is another date spot worth checking out. But one that would be not bougie necessarily would be, , Santino’s Little Italy. That’s a great spot. It’s good if you want to get pizza, that’s an easy date option. , it’s kind of like a throwback in the vibe that they have.

You can get a cute little two person table tucked away, dim lighting. You can still get that vibe. And I think they have some outdoor seating. If it’s the weather’s nice, you’ve got some options there. And then if you, , Or with somebody that doesn’t know that area very well. , after, if like the date’s going well and you need a second location, you take them to Barnacle Buds.

And I know it’s the fish stock or whatever, but like, they have good cocktails. This is the non

Richie Burke: bougie date. This is the non bougie date. That’s a cool spot.

JMatt: And it’s a cool spot, it’s got the outdoor patio You don’t really know of and you don’t find barnacle buds unless you know that it’s there. You don’t accidentally come upon it

Richie Burke: Another cool non santino’s if you want to be even more non bougie and bring your dog along enlightened brewing Next door brie and I’ll go there Sometimes when we’re with oakley and pick up a pizza and take it to the brewery and they’ve got some good beer over there That works too.

What about brunch your brunch guys? See your brunch videos any anywhere stand out or anywhere people need need to try may not be aware of

JMatt: Here’s, here’s a good one in the sense of hidden gems. It’s not that it’s truly a hidden place It’s just I think it hides in plain sight. Cafe at the Plaza.

Richie Burke: That’s a good one.

And you’re right That doesn’t really make any lists. You get there, you’re just like, what is this? a classic brunch spot. You

JMatt: can have the nice classic diner feel if you just want to go up to the counter and not wait for a table You can get a table or if it’s a nice day out you can sit in the courtyard which they have And so you can sit outside and you obviously can’t see a courtyard from the street.

It just looks like an apartment complex when you walk by it. And then you go in and you’re like, well, you just got a restaurant in here. Perfect for breakfast or brunch.

Richie Burke: You just brought up courtyard. What about patio? Any, any patios that, well,

JMatt: I’ve got to plug my friend JC over at Pufferfish. Who’s got a tiki bar and a patio on the rooftop of Hotel Metro.

So if you’re looking for a different sort of vibe, that’s not necessarily the Kempton journeyman outsider, which I know is a very popular rooftop, , more centralized in downtown Milwaukee. Pufferfish is a good one. , Bridgewater is another good one where it’s a newer restaurant. I think it’s like a year or two old.

It’s good restaurant It’s good restaurant really good drinks.

Richie Burke: That’s a good date spot too.

JMatt: Good date spot. I say I would say that’s in between bougie and Affordable.

Richie Burke: Yeah, if you want that upper mid tier. Yeah.

JMatt: Yeah nice casual. It’s nice weather out they have a very I think their claim is the longest waterfront patio in the city?

Something like that. It’s pretty long. , I would have to take a tape measure. That’s a Marcus Group

Richie Burke: restaurant.

JMatt: Yeah. So that’s a decent one to go to for sure.

Richie Burke: Gotta give a shout out to our friends at Central Standard too.

JMatt: The Aviary. Yep. The rooftop bar there as well. That’s a nice nice smer

spot.

Spot for sure.

Richie Burke: What about some maybe under the radar small businesses?

JMatt: So, I think the place is called Happy Dough Lucky in Bayview. It is a mini donuts spot.

Richie Burke: I saw your video, those look delicious.

JMatt: Yeah, somebody said, oh, I hope you didn’t eat every single one. I was like, if you see me take a bite, I’m not spitting it out.

I ate one of every single option you saw. I didn’t eat the rest of them. How many were there? At least a dozen, maybe 13, 14. I don’t know. I can’t recall. They were just bite sized. Okay.

Richie Burke: That’s not too bad. That’s not bad at

JMatt: all. But they all had like interesting garnishes. Garnish, fun word to use on a mini donut, but I don’t have a better word for it.

, there was like a mud cup or there was a gmy worm on one. There was, , I think there was a puppy chow one. Then there was like a, a blueberry one, a nerds one. They’re just, So many different versions. I even asked them, I was like, can you make a spicy mini donut? And they can, but they just didn’t have it available at that time, which I would go back for a spicy mini donut just to see what that’s like.

And they have your classic, the powdered sugar, the, , cinnamon sugar and the mix. But what’s interesting about this location beyond food is it’s also an arcade. So they have a lot of pinball machines. They have a lot of, a lot of old school, , So, while you’re waiting for your donuts to come out, you can play some video games.

It gives you, , a modified version of UpDown, because if you’ve gone in there, they’ve got the pin machines and it’s two floors of gaming. It’s Not nearly as many games, but it’s enough that you would have variety and you wouldn’t get bored in the time that it takes for you to get your

Richie Burke: kind of like a newer landmark on the lanes, arcade type.

That was a little

JMatt: smaller. Yeah. It doesn’t have like, , Dave and Buster’s style games of like the flashy and tokens, but it has, it’s right. It’s right. It’s right in

Richie Burke: Bayview.

JMatt: It’s in Bayview. Yep.

Richie Burke: Nice. What about favorite activity? Just Milwaukee activities in general. Yeah.

JMatt: RSVR if

Richie Burke: you’ve heard of that never heard of it enlighten me.

JMatt: Ooh, this place is in , it’s virtual reality, so they have, I think, four stations, maybe less, but it’s, you can rent out a station for your group, and you get it for like an hour or so, and you get a VR headset, and you play the game, and you switch off with the people on your team, or in your group. , they can do adult parties, where, you know, there’s some, , beverages that you can enjoy.

And it’s kid friendly, too. So, not having the adult beverages. But, , I think they also have a back patio area, too. They’ve expanded a bit. So that’s a fun spot. And then, another one, also in Bayview. I don’t know what’s going on in Bayview, but they got a lot of activities. , Bustin Stuff.

Richie Burke: What’s that?

JMatt: You’ve not heard of Bustin Stuff. Bustin Stuff is like I have you on the podcast, Shane. That’s alright. That’s alright. I was just like, man. Tell me and everyone else in the city what’s going on. I thought I was, I thought I was gonna give something and you’re like, oh, I know that. That’s a fun spot. As someone who

Richie Burke: hosts a Milwaukee podcast, I probably should know some of the things you’re rattling off.

Which, which I have.

JMatt: Bustin Stuff is like a Rage Room, and they take donations. So if you have computer screens and keyboards and pottery or whatever, that you don’t know where to get rid of them necessarily, you donate it to him, and then he’ll put you in a Rage Room and you can smash it with a baseball bat, or a nine iron, or whatever else you want.

, and they have a separate room, , Where and I haven’t done this experience, but I’m intrigued by it. It’s something paint oriented So like you don’t know how to describe it, but I know you leave with a product through which you’ve made art I guess but it’s very messy. They give you a suit by the way So you’ll be in a suit be safe whether you’re doing the art version or the non art version They give you protective gear, of course so that you can be as safe as possible

Richie Burke: any closing message to the city of Milwaukee

JMatt: I think Milwaukee’s one of those cities that, when you visit Milwaukee, you realize what everyone’s talking about.

You don’t really understand it until you come and visit. So, if you’ve never been to Milwaukee, definitely visit. , and it’s easy to see the community, the culture that is in the city just from a short weekend. And then shortly after, you’re kind of thinking, I kind of want to move here. Where should I move?

And then got to figure that out.

Richie Burke: Great. Loved having you on. Thanks for coming down today. Good seeing you. You too. Hey everyone. Thank you for listening to Milwaukee Uncut. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, write a review, share with your friends. That helps the show. Also, if you want to watch the video version of this interview or any of the clips from this episode. We’ve been getting a lot of traction on Instagram and YouTube recently. So make sure to go check out those platforms. They’re linked in the show notes as well. And just a reminder, Milwaukee Uncut is produced by Story Mark Studios right in the heart of Walkers Point where I’m sitting right now in partnership with On Milwaukee and presented by Nicolet Law and Central Standard Distillery.

Gearing up for the playoffs, we dive into Zach and Kevin’s first year on the Admirals (including the 19-game win streak), and in Milwaukee! 

Along with their backstories, how they got to the pros and how the team is prepping for a playoff run we cover a wide range of topics and fan submitted questions including: 

• Doorbell camera disaster
• Las Vegas shenanigans
• Biggest transition to pro hockey 
• Where the Ads go on a night out in Milwaukee
• Who would win in a fight – Zach, Kevin,……. or Richie?
• What teammates would you NOT let (and let) date your sister?
• What do they like to do in Milwaukee?
• And more Fan-submitted Q&A’s

Transcript

Zach L’Heureux: I’ve never been to Vegas before, and from my first experience it was, you know, on top of the moon. And then our captain comes flying out of nowhere and jps over all of us and grabs this guy by the head. Next thing you know, everybody’s piling in.

Richie Burke: How long would it take you to knock me out? How many beers in a night would be considered impressive for a hockey player?

Kevin Wall: I mean, you can see when you go to other places,nothing compares to our home rink. Let’s go win a cup. Yeah, let’s do

Zach L’Heureux: it. I mean, we’re on the train now, and there’s no getting off of it.

Richie Burke: Hey everyone, it’s your host Richie Burke and welcome back to Milwaukee Uncut, produced by StoryMark Studios in partnership with On Milwaukee and presented by Nicolet Law, the Midwest’s law firm and our friends at Central Standard Distillery.

We’ve got a good one today with first year Admirals players, Zach LaRue and Kevin Wall. Kevin was the leading scorer and team captain for the Penn State Nittany Lions. This is his first of a two year deal with the ads. He is from Rochester. New York as well, Bill’s mafia country. And we’ve got Zach LaRue also in his first year, he was a first round NHL draft pick by the Nashville Predators in 2021 played juniors in Canada, where he’s from, he’s a Canadian, and this is his first year playing professional hockey, as you may know, the ads are having a great season in January and February, they were on a 19 game win streak, the second longest in AHL history, and are now gearing up for a playoff run.

This is a fun one. It’s a good mix of ads, hockey, hilarious story, and some really good fan submitted questions that you’re not going to want to miss. Let’s dive into today’s episode with Zach and Kevin. All right. So you guys have had a hell of a first year so far. Set the team record 19 game win streak, which is the second longest in AHL history.

Both your first year in the city of Milwaukee. What’s it been like for you two?

Kevin Wall: Yeah, it’s been awesome.It’s been a little bit of a learning experience, different schedules than college at least.But no, it’s been awesome. I mean like you said it’s been a great year for us and It’s been awesome to be a part of it and lucky enough to be here.

Richie Burke: Were you, did you go straight from college hockey to the AHL? Yep. What’s the biggest adjustment been like?

Kevin Wall: Probably the amount of games.in college it was 34, maybe 36 if you went all the way. And, here it’s 72 regular season. So, it’s a lot more wear and tear on your body. So, just adjusting and learning from the older guys on how to keep yourself.

Just ready to go.

Richie Burke: Zach, you had a different path. What’s the, what’s the first year been like for you?

Zach L’Heureux: Yeah, it’s been great. I’ve been loving the city.it’s definitely an adjustment. Like you said,I came from junior. So I think the amount of games is,was, you know, kind of more similar, but you know, living on your own, cooking your own food, you know, laundry, all that stuff that, you know, had billets back in Halifax who helped me a lot.

And it’s,it’s been an adjustment, but,I’ve been loving it, you know, learning. What it’s like to be a pro and you know every day, you know, this is your day job kind of now So it’sit’s been fun.

Richie Burke: Yeah, welcome to being an adult. Yeah, exactly You’re only a few weeks away from from being 21. I know this episode I want to go back a little bit.

What was growing up like for for both of you? Zach let’s start with you growing up in in Canada. When did you get into hockey who pushed you into it? How old were you?

Zach L’Heureux: I was pretty much I think three or four years old. My dad, you know, played hockey is his whole life. So he kind of pushed me into it. But you know, I feel like also just being from Canada.

It’s what every every kid did every kid wanted to do. So as soon as I you know, got my first pair of skates on, I think I was, you know, flying already. And you know, that’s what I wanted to do. And when I set my eyes on so it was, it was definitely special, you know, growing up in Canada where it was, you know, so big.

Richie Burke: Any other sports you played growing up? Or was it just all hockey from home?

Zach L’Heureux: Played a lot of different sports.I think I played, you know, rugby, soccer, football, but soccer was probably my nber two sport. You know, I could play a lot,up until I think I was like 14 or 15 years old and was a goalie, surprisingly, cause I’m a forward now in hockey.

So it’s, it was, it was a bit of a switch and, my, my parents hated it cause I just sat in that and didn’t do anything, but I loved it. So yeah.

Richie Burke: When, when did you know you were different from the other kids or wanted to make the

Zach L’Heureux: I felt like, you know, maybe once you hit, you know, 14, 15 years old, I thought, you know, I was starting to separate myself maybe a little bit more and, you know, getting more opportunities and, you know, you’re getting scouts, you know, agents, you know, people are looking at you.

So I felt like then maybe I had, you know, a little something special, but at the same time, I was just a kid playing hockey like I, like I am today. It’s, you know, taking it one day at a time. I’m loving it. And yeah.

Richie Burke: Yeah, and you got drafted in 21. Yeah, so you were still were you in high school then or I was I just graduated high school that year Okay, so his senior year.

Yeah get drafted is the NHL draft in spring smer when

Zach L’Heureux: it was It was a kovat year. So it was online. It was July. So it was a little later than usual And yeah, that was definitely interesting. But at the same time, you know, I was able to be at home with all my family and friends, even though it was middle of COVID, bend some laws a little bit, back home, but ,it was still a great, great night.

Yeah. What was that moment like for you? So special and stressful. I’m kind of happy it was, it was over when it was. I remember, you know, I think the draft started at 8 30 and I didn’t get drafted until 11 30 So it was probably the longest three hours of my life just sitting there and you know The first round’s the night before so I was you know Hoping to be a first round pick and you know, I had potential but you never know how it’s gonna go.

So You know, it was a lot of nerves, but when,when the Preds called my name, it was a special feeling. You snuck in there. Snuck in there. They traded up to get me too, so who knows if I would have went, would have went in the first round if they didn’t do that. So it was,yeah, special.

Richie Burke: Yeah. And,Kevin, you were not, not quite in the first round, sixth round, 2019 Rochester, Bill’s Mafia guy, are you?

Yeah, I am. Yep. . Love to hear that. Yeah. Packer fan, but I pull for the AFC as well. Jping on picnic tables, I’d, I’d, yeah. How can you not? So you grew up in Rochester. What was that like? Did you get into hockey right away too? Did you play other sports? So,

Kevin Wall: , no one in my family ever played hockey. My dad played baseball at college.

My mom was a basketball player. So I tried those sports before getting into hockey wasn’t my thing. And then I went and I watched a high school hockey game, still remember which, which game it was. And just fell in love with it. Loved how quick it was. And. Just the constant movement and got on skates and ever since I got on skates just fell in love with the game and it’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.

Richie Burke: How did your game evolve? Is Rochester a big hockey town? So

Kevin Wall: it’s, it’s grown. Back in the day it was mainly,Brian Gionta, Nathan Page, Stephen Gionta, Ryan Callahan.a bunch of guys who had gone off and played in the NHL, won Stanley Cups.so they’ve done a really good job of growing the game within Rochester.

, but back then, I mean, we had teams in Rochester, of course, but,you know, Buffalo and Syracuse were always probably the two places where it was a little bit better.but now it’s, it’s come a long way and I think there’s going to be some really good hockey players coming out of there.

Richie Burke: Yeah.was there a moment you knew you wanted

Kevin Wall: to go pro?

I think it was always for me was that’s the end goal no matter what. But it wasn’t a. realization where I thought I was good enough or maybe bad enough. It was just I just wanted to be the best at hockey and just tried to work for that as long as I could. And wherever my skill set took me, it took me.just continue to do that.

Richie Burke: Yeah. In,This season, you guys got off to, I mean, a bit of a rough start. Then basically went undefeated in January and February. You lost one game, which was the last game of February. Kind of been 500 since. How’s the, how’s the squad feeling going into the playoffs? I

Zach L’Heureux: feel like we’ve been feeling pretty good.

I think, like you said, it’s been kind of a roller coaster, maybe a little bit of a year. But, you know, the highs were, were so good that we know how good of a team we are, how good we can play. So I feel like, You know, it hasn’t been going as well, but we have six games to really, you know, fine tune our game and make sure going into playoffs that we’re as ready as we can be.

And I think we’re doing that, you know, the best we can right now. I feel like our last three, four games, even though, you know, I think we’ve lost two of them. It, it hasn’t, you know, dictated our play, you know, I think our play has gotten a lot better over the last few weeks already. I think we’re kind of going on the maybe a little bit of a high here before playoffs and you know going in Happy and you know everybody on the same page ready to go So, you know, it was it was definitely cool to have that 19 game win streak The losses after wasn’t it wasn’t as fun, but I think we’re ready

Richie Burke: Yeah, what’s it like being on a 19 game win streak?

Kevin Wall: The best way to describe it is you go into every game and you just know you’re not gonna lose It’s how we felt and it was the confidence that we had in the roomI mean, it was, it was awesome. It was a great run and it’s a testimony to the team that we have in our leadership group.but yeah, it was an unbelievable.

Yeah. Second, it was kind of AHL history. The AHL has been

Richie Burke: around for a pretty long time. Yeah.what about when you lose four straight right after that, then what is that, are you just kind of in shock?

Zach L’Heureux: It was crazy. Cause that’s like, like you said, you know, you go 19 in a row, like, I don’t think before that, even, even if like before that, you know, we had some, a couple of good runs and I don’t think we lost more than two in a row the whole year.

So like we were on the ultimate high and then we went and lost four in a row and that was, that was pretty hard because, you know, you go from thinking you’re, you’re invincible pretty much, which I felt like we were to, you know, now struggling just to win a game and it’s like, you gotta, you know, find, find new ways, you know, adapt and I think we did that well, you know.

Yeah. The injury bug didn’t help us, you know, we had some some some definitely, you know things to work around But not to find excuses or anything, but I think you know We did do a good job as a team and you know, we’re still you know, finding that groove again.

Richie Burke: Yeah anything you two are working on Individually leading in or gearing up for the playoffs and anything specific as a team.

You guys are really focusing on I

Kevin Wall: think from a team perspective just Hammering the details, you know Coach Taylor talks about our standard as a Milwaukee admiral, and I think we know what that is and when we Play our way we could beat anyone So just yeah fine tuning stuff nothing crazy Individually, just like you said, I mean, injuries are so common now, especially at this time.

The games are tougher, more physical. It’s more demanding on your body. So just keeping your nutrition up, getting your sleep and just making sure you’re ready to go when you’re out there.

Zach L’Heureux: Yeah, I mean, to add to that, I think it’s, you know, we’re first year guys, so A lot, a lot of the season and, you know, going into playoffs, we’ve never really experienced it.

So it’s, it’s pretty, it’s pretty fun and special, I think, for us to kind of feel it all for the first time. But I think you got to give a, you know, kudos to the older guys and, you know, the way that they handle themselves and, you know, show us the way. I think it definitely goes a long way and, you know, we appreciate it a lot.

So. Have

Richie Burke: they done a good job taking you guys under their wing because you are first year players But you’re definitely expected to contribute and play at a high level.

Zach L’Heureux: Yeah. Well, you never know to like, you know, you always hear, you know The dark side, you know bad, you know bad teammates bad, you know, whatever So to go into a team a new team as you know young guys and you know Now we’re playing with you know guys with kids that are in their 30s and it’s just a whole new world So, you know, our guys have done a great job Unreal job, you know, we couldn’t have asked for, you know, better veterans to have and In our first pro season.

So it’s a, definitely a big

Richie Burke: plus. Hey everyone. It’s Richie. Thanks for listening to this episode of Milwaukee Uncut. I just wanted to give a quick shout out to our friends at Nicolet Law, the Midwest law firm. We had a great episode with the founder and the bill billboard icon, excuse me, billboard icon, Russell Nicolet a couple of weeks ago, and we had a pretty viral clip on the five weirdest laws in Wisconsin.

It’s on our Instagram page and our YouTube channel. So make sure to check. Those out also want to give a quick shout out to our friends at central standard distillery Whether you’re having some casual cocktails with friends or looking to get after it a little bit We always recommend central standard distillery.

Also. It’s almost summer. Hopefully almost summer So make sure to check out their rooftop at the craft house when it does get nice out Don’t think there is a better spot in the city to enjoy a cocktail in the summer Okay, we’ve got some great fan submitted questions coming up. Let’s dive back in with Zach and Kevin.

This one from PR Admiral. Is this, is this a guy over here? I didn’t recognize the screen, the profile pic on Instagram, but it’s a good question. What was your welcome to the party moment when you got into the league? Ooh, good question.

Zach L’Heureux: That’s a good one.

To the party or to the game like could be either it’s open for interpretation Well, we got to we got to have our rookie party in Las Vegas this year so we basically went to Henderson for two games and Got to play there and you know, we end up sweeping both games And then,you know, had a big dinner and just the whole team was out and just kind of being in Vegas.

It’s, you know, crazy. So that was definitely a special moment, I think for, for both of us.

Richie Burke: Any moments that stuck out to you from the team being out in Vegas?

Zach L’Heureux: We had a wild dinner, you know, it was in, you know, really nice spot and it was a, it was a crazy wild dinner. You know, a ton of, like, the food was unreal, and then after that, you know, there was music and dancing, you know, dancing on the tables, and it was just, I’ve never been to Vegas before, and from my first experience, it was, you know, on top of the moon, so it was,it was pretty cool.

Anything to add

Richie Burke: over there?

Kevin Wall: Yeah, I’d say,I mean, that’s a good one.

Richie Burke: Hard to top that one for this year for sure. Yeah, it is hard to top that.

Kevin Wall: And

Richie Burke: I was only at dinner.

Kevin Wall: Yeah, seriously.I’d probably say just like, you realize that this is, like Zach said earlier, it’s your day job. You know, it’s, you’re based on performance, how much money you’re going to make, stuff like that.

Like, it’s the real world and that was kind of like the, okay, this isn’t school anymore, I’m going to class after, anything like that. Like, it’s just my job and

Yeah, that’s about it. Yeah.

Richie Burke: Gab was wondering, this one’s for Zach, What do you think you could bring to the Preds the next few years?

Zach L’Heureux: Hopefully a roster spot. No,I think, you know, I can bring a lot of energy. I think, you know, I’ve shown that this year, that, you know, You know, I can bring a lot of grit, you know, kind of that hard skill soft skill that, you know, it’s hard to find But I you know, I just want to be an overall NHL player I think once you get to that that level, it’s you know, whatever it takes to stay at that level So, you know, hopefully everything I’m doing now can you know, maybe give me an opportunity and you know Once you get there if you need me to block shots my face I will if you needed me to you know Kill penalties or play on the power play or play fourth line minutes second line minutes, whatever it is, you know I just want to a spot there and do whatever it takes to you know Fulfill that role and whatever the team needs to win.

So I Think you you know, hopefully Within the next couple years. I can have that opportunity.

Richie Burke: Yeah Liv was wondering what’s you guys favorite pregame snack or meal?

Kevin Wall: Usually Well, pregame meals always consistent. It’s usually just chicken and pasta, but pregame snack is a peanut butter sandwich with banana on it and some honey.

Zach L’Heureux: I like that. You see, that’s great. Oh, cause I started doing that this year too. I think chicken and pasta is pretty standard for every guy before the game. Yeah. Like pregame meal. And then once I get to the rink, I do a, I do a peanut butter honey sandwich too. I started doing that this year and I feel great.

Richie Burke: Those are good. They don’t really weigh you down. No, I do that on the golf course sometimes.How? How many hours before the game are you eating Chicken and pasta.

Kevin Wall: Say if it’s a seven o’clock game, I’m eating. Yeah. Six, six and a half hours before. Yeah.

Zach L’Heureux: I

Richie Burke: thought you were gonna say six. I was like

Zach L’Heureux: thrown.

No, no. Definitely like Yeah, I took like six hours before. Yeah. You just take a nap, .

Richie Burke: That makes sense. Mr. Wolf was wondering, what is your favorite jersey? In the history of hockey or sports Wow history of hockey favorite jersey That’s a

Zach L’Heureux: great question.

Richie Burke: You could you could go outside

Zach L’Heureux: of

Richie Burke: hockey

Zach L’Heureux: if you want to outside of hockey, too Oh You know what i’m gonna have to say the halifax moose heads Because I one I played there so i’m extremely biased But they also have a great jersey and I think that green is just beautiful and it’s hard to beat

Richie Burke: Does it have a big moose on it?

Zach L’Heureux: Big moose on it. It’s just a, and it’s just an iconic jersey. I feel like everybody that sees a jersey just knows it. Like, McKinnon and Drew may help a lot for that, but I feel like just everybody knows that jersey. Anywaysum, He’s gonna say Penn State.

Kevin Wall: No, I’m not. I crossed my mind, so once you did Halifax I gotta, I gotta,

Richie Burke: I gotta get that jersey for one of my buddies,who threw a, who threw a party in college when his parents were out of town and he got caught cause there were footsteps in the snow and he told them it was a, It was a big fucking moose that ran through the yard.

So I got I got to get a Halifax jersey. That’s great for my buddy Ryan Boyd shout out to Boyd It is a big fucking moose There you go, it didn’t it didn’t work. It didn’t work.

Kevin Wall: anyway, uh I’d have to go with the old atlanta thrashers jerseys. Okay, really? Yeah the baby blues Yeah Just old school and just kind of when I was growing up that they had them when I was watching hockey.

So And it’s a I think it’s a sick jersey. It’s a sick jersey. So many better jerseys. They picked your junior team jersey I picked

Zach L’Heureux: my junior team jersey I did

Richie Burke: We got a question this is an interesting one from joe like a tote then they they get a little better What’s your what if you had a lightsaber?

What color would it be? Damn, it’s a great question Yeah, you don’t even

Kevin Wall: know what do you mean? I don’t know we’ve watched star wars before.i’d probably go red

Richie Burke: Blue come

Kevin Wall: on.

Richie Burke: All right. All right.this is a good one from kristen. What’s the funniest chirp you’ve ever heard on the rink? Or said

Zach L’Heureux: Yeah, oh Like sometimes it’s just like so outrageous that it makes you laugh in the moment, but you just forget about it

Kevin Wall: yeah, I heard one where You Someone told another player that,It was based on his height.

He was smaller. He’s like, I got five ya in my Effing front yard, buddy. Yeah, that was, that was out of the box. Probably one of the craziest ones.

Zach L’Heureux: Some small guy jokes. The short Kings are just getting crushed out there. They just eat it. The gingers always get chirped heavy too. It’s hard to, it’s hard to chirp when you’re a ginger.

Cause you just eat that back in your face. My roommate’s ginger and he just soaks it. Yeah. He just soaks them though, which is great. Man, I couldn’t, I don’t know, like, I don’t know. Any good specific ones you’ve heard about? Like specific, I’m trying to think, and nothing’s coming to my head. I’m sure as soon as we walk away, I’m going to be like, Ah, I remember that, but.

Can’t think of one? I can’t think of one. Not one shirt. I’m going to keep thinking though, if it comes to me,

Richie Burke: I’ll. Alright, what’s the craziest fight you two have ever been in?

Zach L’Heureux: Ooh, I got in a line brawl in juniors, which was, I guess, probably not my craziest fight, like one on one, but basically one of the, we’re on a PK and,our goalie spears this guy in the balls, like just like a nasty whack.

So the guy turns around and like, with the stick turns around with this, well, the goalie goes like this kind of, so this guy turns around and just smack right across the helmet with his stick. So, he kind of goes behind the net and our captain, like, I, like, one guy kind of grabs him and I grab him, and then our captain comes flying out of nowhere and jps over all of us and grabs this guy by the head.

Next thing you know, everybody’s piling in, we’re all, gloves are all gone. Ended up being my last game of the season, was, ended up getting suspended for like three games or whatever. It was like second fight. They just gave me a bunch of stuff. Random bullshit, and that was it, but I think that was probably the wildest one I’ve been a part of.

It was pretty cool. After you go back in the room, you’re with all your boys. I don’t know if you saw the New Jersey Devils against,Against the New York Rangers. They had that line brawl, and then after they’re all like just boys, like so happy to be together. They all fought together. It was kind of just that feeling of, you know, we all did it.

Fuck it. Who cares? It was awesome.

Kevin Wall: I don’t think I’m gonna have anything here for you. No fighting. No fighting in

Zach L’Heureux: college. That’s the thing, all these pretty boys coming out of college can’t fight.

Kevin Wall: Canada juniors, you can just let it rip up there. Well, this guy’s got like 19 suspensions and juniors, so he’s bound to have something crazy.

Have

Richie Burke: you ever gotten hurt bad in a fight? Hurt bad?

Zach L’Heureux: , concussions, bloody knuckles. So no, not really? Nothing, no. Nothing crazy.

Richie Burke: How long would it take you to knock me out?

Zach L’Heureux: Like a normal han. You got a good chin. You got a good reach. I would say, if it was a full on square up fight, you probably, you may beat me up.

You got me on reach and height. No, I’m not. Skate

Richie Burke: stuff. I don’t know if I’d call myself pretty, but I’m kind of in that camp. I’ve maybe been involved in a couple of bar fights, none that I initiated. They just kind of, you know. Happened. Yeah. They just kind of happened. I don’t know. I try not to fight off the ice.

I would not fight a professional hockey player. Yeah. Yeah. He’s wondering who’d win in a fight of you two on the rink

Zach L’Heureux: you see we’ve had this argent nerous times And I would have to kick his ass, but he says he wouldn’t it’s not and he does have a fat head So he’d probably eat a lot of my punches.

That has nothing to do. I think he

Richie Burke: has a lot more experience

Kevin Wall: exactly He’s got a lot of confidence in himself.

Richie Burke: I

Zach L’Heureux: agree

Kevin Wall: and like He’s not he we even if he

Zach L’Heureux: gets a couple punches off. There’s no way

Kevin Wall: he’d

Zach L’Heureux: ever beat

Kevin Wall: me both times We’ve sparred up after practice I was moving you around more probably because I got the weight advantage on you.

You wouldn’t but still okay, that’s fine. I mean I’d probably

Richie Burke: win though Johnny hockey 15 says hey kev we are ben state. What’s up? Johnny hockey 15 shout out. Johnny hockey this one’s for zach, what is cow bay And what is the best thing about it?

Zach L’Heureux: So, Cow Bay is where I billeted when I was in Halifax.

And a billet is a host family. It’s a host family. So, Cow Bay is a little city about 25 minutes, I’d say, outside Halifax. Right on the water and just beautiful little town. Beautiful people, you know, just so nice. And, you know, they welcomed me in with open arms. And it’s definitely like a second home to me here.

Richie Burke: Did they have a security camera?

Zach L’Heureux: They did. They did.

Oh, that’s great. Alright, so this is, so my billets had like a, like a ring camera. And, oh, that’s great. Who sent that? Oh, that’s awesome. So it was probably my first week I was there.they must have been out of the house or, or something. I think it was maybe in the middle of the day. And,so the boys, we, I think we were coming back from the beach.

So they dropped me off. And, so I go down, like I’m leaving. So they, you know, you turn and it’s kind of like on a hill. So they’re like at the top of the hill driving away. And I just kind of like, just drop my pants and start waving. Just like to say bye to the boys, like just trying to be funny. But Dave, there’s a camera right behind me.

And this is like the first week I was there. So, funny enough, they’ve never, they never told me the story until I was going to leave. And they said, you know, this happened your first week you were there and we knew you’d fit in right away. So yeah, that was my welcome to Halifax moment right there.

Shout out to Andrew Simp. Yeah, that’s my bullet dad.

Richie Burke: I think he messaged me that on Instagram like, am I, am I gonna wanna ask? Ask this. That’s great. Love it. Jenna was wondering, what’s the most embarrassing thing that’s happened to you during a game? Anything more embarrassing than your billet family seeing you drop your pants in front of their house the first week you were there?

Kevin Wall: I hope there isn’t on the ice. Embarrassing. I would hope

Zach L’Heureux: so too. Yeah, I mean, I’ve done some embarrassing things out there

Kevin Wall: during game.

Richie Burke: During the game, in the locker room, before the game, I don’t know. Like,

Kevin Wall: nothing like that. I mean, I’ve gone out, I’ve stepped out with my skate cards on before. Yeah, like, I feel like I fell during, I fell in warm ups this year. Base planted, helmet came off, it was horrible. Yeah, I did that. I ran into

Zach L’Heureux: one of my guys a couple years ago and like, I didn’t have my chin strap off because I thought I was the coolest junior kid ever.

And my helmet went absolutely flying and that was like a big no no. Yeah, so that was that was a little embarrassing definitely

Richie Burke: All right, Okay, kasha jenna. What is what’s ascii’s go to victory celebration after w?

Zach L’Heureux: And like on the ice he usually gives a couple Like down on a knee or oh, yeah one pp, but they both both like always

Kevin Wall: do it Yeah, it’s like a leg in the air and yeah a couple fist bps maybe or he’ll just pull the net down and doReverse push ups with it.

Zach L’Heureux: Yeah when he did that, that was cool He doesn’t he doesn’t have like a dance in the room though or nothing. No

Richie Burke: Just speaks russian. All right. We got some questions about what about after the game Ads have a big w where where are we going? Where are we going, Kevin?

Kevin Wall: Potter Street Brewery.

Zach L’Heureux: The brewery?

Kevin Wall: Yep.

Zach L’Heureux: That’s been our spot.

Kevin Wall: Good spot. We went there like once in the beginning of the year and then just haven’t Yeah, we go to

Richie Burke: That’s usually it. That’s really it. They did a nice job. It’s a newer spot. Yeah. St. Moners is the harp in Trinity. If you guys go there at all. We’ve been to the harp. Yep. We’ve been all over.

Red, white and blue. No problem. Are you too old for that? No, I haven’t been there. You might be too old for that. Is that downtown or on 3rd street? The red white blue. It’s on 3rd street. No. Solid spot. Ben Anderson was wondering if you’ve been to the upstairs area of Joe Katz before and if you have any thoughts on it.

So funny enough. Yeah, we haven’t been. We’ve been

Kevin Wall: in Joe Katz on the first floor, but apparently last year Joe Katz was like a popular spot. Yeah, it was their spot. They would always go up there. Haven’t been this year though. Maybe we’ll get out there. You guys gotta live a little. In Milwaukee? It’s hard.

We try to take advantage. There’s

Richie Burke: so much, like, most of our weekends we just play. So it’s, you don’t get that much time. Yeah, and on your kinda little break before the playoffs, probably not the best idea to be doing that. No, no, we’re turning. Trying to get dialed maybe the offseason. This is a great question from bones straight from the loopers barn at whistling straights He asks why are they so good at drinking?

I have caddied for a few and they are in a different league Not referring to you two specifically, but maybe hockey players in general I mean just I get that to athletes any of my friends who are in the military. I mean you guys yeah different

Zach L’Heureux: It’s a good point. But I mean, I think it was just kind of bred into my family at least So I kind of just grew up, you know being from Canada Yeah, it’s just

Richie Burke: you know, it’s something I mean, you’re from Bill’s mafia country.

Yeah, you’re from Bill’s monster country Basically the same thing if not more so Don’t see videos of Canadians jping through picnic tables. We chug our maple syrup. Yeah.

Kevin Wall: Yeah, I don’t I just think it’s somehow it’s started back in the old days that it’s just a a thing with hockey that after wins you guys go get beers and These guys are just pretty impressive with what they can take down

Zach L’Heureux: Yeah, there’s definitely

Kevin Wall: there’s some guys out there that are pretty crazy

Richie Burke: What, how many beers in a night would be considered impressive for a hockey player?

Richie Burke: I was going to say 18. Yeah, over 18 maybe. Kind of lighter beers. If you’re drinking like,

Kevin Wall: I’ve seen some guys hammer some IPAs. Yeah, I’ve seen some guys. Good nber, good nber. It’s like, wow. Like a 15

Richie Burke: IPA night?

Kevin Wall: Probably. Damn. Like a

Zach L’Heureux: 12 pack of IPAs. 20 pack of a light beer.

Richie Burke: Yeah. Are they cool the next morning too?

Not too bad. Go out with the boys and wake up with the men. Impressive. I have like six and I’m done the entire next day. I’m a 35 year old non athlete though. So,This one we got,This one’s for Zach, but Kevin, feel free to chime in. Zach, what is the most Canadian thing about you?

Zach L’Heureux: Ooh. He says I speak like a Canadian.

When I say certain words, it’s really different and he calls me out for it, but the most Canadian thing I do I say sorry a lot. I apologize for everything. I feel like that’s probably the most Canadian thing I do

Richie Burke: people in the midwest do that

Zach L’Heureux: Really?

Richie Burke: Yeah Well, I think people who do you guys think is more friendly canadians or midwesterners?

canadians What’s what about what about midwest what about

Zach L’Heureux: midwesterners new yorkers

Kevin Wall: New yorkers

Zach L’Heureux: No way. What’s Midwest? ? Midwest is like this whole area, right? Like Wisconsin? Yeah. Midwest is technically Iowa,

Richie Burke: min Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Illinois. Michigan is Midwest. Maybe Ohio. Yeah. Michigan is considered Midwest.

It’s an educational podcast. Yeah. Yeah. Every day. Everything on here. Oh boy This this one’s for this one’s for zach to joe vilmo Zach, I saw you did a hard launch with your girlfriend on instagram. Is it difficult to maintain? A relationship being an above average professional, an above average looking professional athlete in a city like Milwaukee where temptation is everywhere.

Joe Vilma.

Kevin Wall: Joe for that question.

Zach L’Heureux: It’s taking a long time to answer this one too. I know. stper from Joe Vilma. It’s definitely not the easiest but I have a loving girlfriend and we have a great relationship and.

Richie Burke: Good, good, good answer. Yeah, good answer by Zach that one will keep him out of trouble what is your go to restaurant in Milwaukee?

Ooh, good question.

Zach L’Heureux: I love the Calderone Club It’s a little pasta spot great great spot. Like I think it’s some of the best pasta that I’ve had So I’m gonna have to say there.

Richie Burke: Pasta. That sounded a little Canadian. Right? Yeah, you heard Italian. Call Their Own Club’s great. It’s on the Breaking Bread circuit.

If you guys have heard of that, it’s a group in Milwaukee that goes and gets dinner. Anyway.could

it be like a breakfast bar? Yeah.

Richie Burke: Sweet Diner.

That’s a good one.

Kevin Wall: Yeah, that’s a good

Richie Burke: spot too. Their pancakes are phenomenal. All right, since this question was so popular with the Marquette guys, I gotta ask, who’s one teammate you would not let date your sister on the Admirals?

Ty Feliber.

Zach L’Heureux: Liam

Kevin Wall: Foody. Oh, that’s a good one, too. Great guys, don’t get me wrong. Unreal guys. Yeah,

Zach L’Heureux: just would not let them with a 10 foot pole to my sister.

Richie Burke: Anyone else you want to mention is an honorable mention.

Zach L’Heureux: No, that’s it. That’s it. That’s probably the only guy I’d really be like, no.

Richie Burke: What about one guy on the team you would let date your sister? Well, that’s a good one too. Honestly, oddly enough, probably

Kevin Wall: Kevin Gravel, our captain. No chance. What do you mean, dude? Kevin’s like the straightest arrow ever. I would let I’m gonna disagree with your answer.

Zach L’Heureux: Jasper Weatherby. That’s a good one. That’s a good one. It’s a better one than you. He would date my sister for sure.

Richie Burke: Shout out to Jasper.favorite Milwaukee activity? You

Zach L’Heureux: know what, we went to Dave and Buster’s. I don’t know if that’s a Milwaukee activity, but.

Richie Burke: Yeah, that’s a Tosa activity. I’m right out there.

It’s so fun. I do,Big Brothers Big Sisters. I’ve been doing it for like three months and I got a high energy six year old, Rayshawn. Shout out to Rayshawn. AndI don’t have any kids in the first day. We go to, I take him to Dave Buster’s and he thinks it’s funny to hide from me. And I’m 35 with a sore hip and He’s fast for a six year old.

He’s like climbing in the machines and I’m like losing him sprinting around Dave and Buster’s. So,yeah, he’s gotten, he’s gotten a little better at that the last couple months, but yeah, I had a great time at Dave and Buster’s with Ray Sean. So it’s a great spot.all right. Dave and Busters for a fa if, if one pops in your head, that’s actually in the city.

And the next one. Yeah. I’m trying to wait. Feel free to shout that out. No, I’m trying to think.

Kevin Wall: We haven’t done lot. Do you guys like doing

Richie Burke: anything in the city other than going to the brew? I mean golf, but it’s not like actually great golf. Oh yeah. Really good. Wisconsin. Any

Kevin Wall: forces? The Bog. Bog. I thought that was a great course.

Grant Park. We’ll go do we go to Grant a lot. This one of the first ones open.trying to get out to Westling Straits at some point towards the end of this year.

Richie Burke: Oh, bones could caddy for you. Perfect. Done. That’s easy.from Romo Cop, we’ll end on some friendly ones. Favorite ads moment so far? Anything stand out to you?

Zach L’Heureux: I got one. Definitely when Cal O’Reilly broke the record. That was pretty cool and then you know for him to get it And I know I kind of had a big part in it, too So I thought it was it was it was definitely a special moment for for me Yeah

Kevin Wall: Because you got the assist. Yep. That was why I was a big moment for you Well, no It’s

Zach L’Heureux: just it was so big for the team and like for him and his family and you made the yeah And I was like a part of it.

So I was like awesome You know, I wasn’t you know, I didn’t do shit for him. He did everything but

Richie Burke: you have to assist

Kevin Wall: I’m just busting your balls.winning,getting the win streak at home.

Zach L’Heureux: That 19th

Kevin Wall: one? Yeah. Who did we beat? I don’t know, but especially with, I want to say Goose was in the net. And just him being from Milwaukee, it was just like, a very cool and unique moment, especially for our first years.

That was, That was pretty sick.

Richie Burke: How’s, how’s, how’s the fan base been in Milwaukee? It’s for an AHL team. I mean, we got a

Zach L’Heureux: Like, I’ve Really good. Like a lot of the guys have said like this year especially has been even over the top. So it’s, it’s like for us who don’t know any better, like this is awesome.

Like we love it.

Kevin Wall: Yeah, I mean you can see when you go to other places, Yeah. Nothing compares to our home rink. Yeah, there’s definitely

Zach L’Heureux: a few other barns that I’d say like are probably as cool and entertaining. Yeah. I think like just our fans are so involved to like they’re screaming at the other goalie Like I feel like we probably have like the most coordinated fans in the league.

Yeah, they’ve been great.

Richie Burke: Yeah We’ll end it here. Any any closing message you want to say to the ads fans of the city of Milwaukee?

Zach L’Heureux: Let’s go win a cup. Yeah, let’s do it. I mean we’re we’re on the train now and there’s no getting off of it. So Hopefully they’re all on board too and with us all the way

Richie Burke: Love it kevin and zach great meeting you guys today. Thanks for coming down. Yeah. Thanks for having us. Appreciate it Thank you for tuning into this episode of milwaukee uncut If you do want to support the show, please subscribe wherever you are listening Write a review that helps us out and share this content with your friends We’ve also got a lot of great content on youtube and instagram.

So check us out on there Milwaukee uncut is produced in the heart of walkers point by Story Mark Studios in partnership with OnMilwaukee and presented by Nicolet Law and Central Standard Distillery

You’ve probably seen his drone footage all over social media, but who’s behind the drone that puts Milwaukee on the map? We sat down with “Drone Nate” on the podcast today to learn how he went from engineering major, to pharmacist, to professional drone videographer/photographer. Not only does his Instagram account reach hundreds of thousands of people per month, he’s shot for some of the largest brands in the city and did the drone footage for Top Chef when they were in Milwaukee. We also go in depth of Nate’s favorite shots and go to spots in the city. If you’re looking to get to better know Milwaukee and the man who makes it shine this episode is for you! 

Transcript

Nate Vomhof: It was weird. You don’t know how to do these things when you pick up a camera, but then it’s when companies started asking, I was like, Oh, I might be onto something here. Northwestern Mutual wanted some photos. I shot for Top Chef. They had me for 12 hours and that day was just crazy.

Richie Burke: Hey everyone. It’s your host, Richie Burke. Welcome back to Milwaukee Uncut. Today we’ve got the man behind the drone that makes Milwaukee look beautiful. Drone Nate. His real name is Nate Vomhoff who has an interesting story of how he went from being an engineering major Turned pharmacist, which he still is as well to a professional drone photographer and videographer Also a good friend and a good guy to throw some beers back with before we dive in just a reminder Milwaukee uncut is produced in the heart of walkers point by story mark studios in partnership With OnMilwaukee and presented by Nicolet Law the midwest’s law firm and Central Standard Distillery and Russell Nicolet from Nicolet Law, the man behind all the billboards you see was on last week’s episode.

He had all sorts of crazy stories from the courtroom. We went over Wisconsin’s craziest laws and then got to learn about how he grew. Nicolay from a one man firm in Hudson, Wisconsin to where it is today. So make sure to check that episode out if you have not already. And a big shout out to our friends at Central Standard Distillery. As you’ll learn in this episode, drone, Nate at age 33 was out till 1 AM at the harp the night before this episode and still made it to this recording and then worked a pharmacy shift after this recording. So, , just a, just a genetic. Beast Drone Nate is, , just a physical and mental specimen right there.

So anyway, if you’re looking to send it, like Drone Nate, or just enjoy a casual cocktail with friends, we always recommend our friends at Central Standard Distillery. All right, on to the episode with Nate Vomhoff.

Nate Vomhof: I actually went to a school for engineering at UWM and, , I sat through a Calc 2 class and I just was like, nah, this, this isn’t it.

So I worked at Walgreens. I was like, I could be a pharmacist. So I went to pharmacy school.

Richie Burke: You were just like You’re at UWM for engineering and then were you just like working the counter at Walgreens and you’re like I could yeah pharmacy

Nate Vomhof: Yeah, I got kind of a foot in the door at the Walgreens. I worked at I worked at Oakland Locust I also worked at the Walgreens back in my hometown and just decided, you know Let me see what this is like and it wasn’t terrible.

Richie Burke: So engineering Engineering Pharmacy and photography and drone go very well together. Yeah. You’re a very skilled han being over there.

Nate Vomhof: You know, I feel like if you apply yourself, you can do anything, so I kind of, you know. Yeah. I wasn’t applying myself to go to college too though, so.

Richie Burke: So, you’re doing that at Walgreens, you go into pharmacy, when did the whole drone photography thing

Nate Vomhof: start for you?

So, for me, I, my last rotation of pharmacy school, so your last year of pharmacy school, you go on rotations, so you get that clinical experience, you’re working in hospitals, you’re working at a retail spot, you’re working, I worked with like a corporate Walgreens, , and each thing is six weeks. So my last one was on the Navajo reservation down in Arizona.

So, I wanted to have a nice camera to take photos of the great American Southwest. So once that happened, I picked up my first camera. , when I got back here, I just started taking photos of the city and the following year I figured it’d be cool to capture different perspectives. So I bought a drone.

Richie Burke: What year was

Nate Vomhof: that?

Richie Burke: 2018. How did it evolve from then? When did you start posting stuff on Instagram and getting your following there?

Nate Vomhof: So the photos I kind of just posted along the way, for me, it was more about, you know, This angle of the city school. This is something that I enjoy, you know, like it was never about a following at that point and it isn’t really now either.

I’m just trying to have fun. So finding new perspectives and just, you know, capturing that, , that’s, I don’t know. Yeah.

Richie Burke: When, , was there a moment when you really started to see things take off?

Nate Vomhof: Yeah. So it’s been a constant learning curve. So the first, Thing like people just were like, hey, how do I buy this photo?

So I’m sitting here trying to figure out like, how do I sell a photo? What

Richie Burke: was the first time someone asked you to buy a photo? What

Nate Vomhof: was that like? It was weird Like you don’t know how to do these things when you pick up a camera you’re just like oh You you want to buy this? How do I order a photo? So you just order it online and I like packed it up myself.

I shipped it to myself and sent it off and But then it’s when companies started asking. I was like, Oh, I might be onto something here. So, Northwestern Mutual wanted some photos and I was like, this is, this is crazy. So, and then you have to figure out how do you price a photo? How do you price a video? And it’s just been constantly learning.

Richie Burke: Yeah, you don’t learn that in engineering or pharmacy school. No, unfortunately

Nate Vomhof: not.

Richie Burke: Was there a certain point where like a video or photo took off on, online that was a bigger break than others for you? Or has it just been all pretty gradual since you started?

Nate Vomhof: So most of it’s been gradual, but every once in a while something hits.

Like the Harley Davidson lightning shot. I’m sure you guys have seen. , that one went crazy. I mean people are excited about the Harleys. People are excited about Milwaukee. So you just combine the two and It goes crazy, but it’s crazy how the algorithm works and everything. So I don’t really count on anything actually doing well, but when it does, I’m

Richie Burke: happy.

That’s a good way to look at it. It is kind of hard to predict. Yeah. I’ve been on both, , both sides where some just shoot off and you’re hitting refresh and there’s a ton of new people and others where you’re hitting refresh and there’s complete crickets and you’re like, shit, I thought that was really good.

I put a ton of time into that and

Nate Vomhof: like, no one is liking this. No. And then you throw something together in 20 minutes and it was crazy. It’s just like, you know,

Richie Burke: The value of putting stuff out there. You just, yeah, you don’t, you don’t know. You just gotta throw it up there and see what sticks. , just going on to some, some, some quicker questions.

What is the craziest shoot that you’ve

Nate Vomhof: ever done? Craziest shoot? , I shot for Top Chef and that day was just crazy. , they had me for 12 hours. The first shot they wanted me to do was to fly down Kilborn. I was hovering above a car and they’re like, we’re going to open the sunroof of the car, but we want to have sightline of the driver driving.

And they wanted me to be super low. And there’s like crosswalk signs that are above the street. So I’m trying to just avoid, you know, hitting the sign, but also this is the most technical shot I’ve ever done. I’m just trying to follow this car. And then they want me to pull back and expose the city that I got there.

And I did the shot. I think we did like five takes on it. Okay. I didn’t feel like any of them were exactly what they wanted, but they were excited about it still. But, , I was like, this is going to be a long day if you got me for 12 hours. That was how it kicked off? That was the beginning, yeah. Was it easier after that?

It got a lot easier, yeah. The other shots were just straight, just fly throughs,

Richie Burke: so. Any crazy weather? You run out to you get some good shots in the winter

Nate Vomhof: so Whether if there’s low fog, I am always trying to get out there for that Just because I have this shot in mind. I just want to see the top of the buildings exposed from the fog , but I want nighttime, but I haven’t been able to capture that yet nighttime will fog.

Yep So if you can make that happen,

Richie Burke: how often are you checking the weather?

Nate Vomhof: Weather I try to pay attention. Usually it’s kind of a last minute thing if I’m going to go out. I’m just looking out the back door at my place and just, the sun is setting and the clouds are in the sky. I’m like, there could be a good sunset.

So, I rush out.

Richie Burke: How often do you shoot? You’re putting new clips out several times a week it seems.

Nate Vomhof: Probably Two to three times a week if I can sometimes I don’t go out at all You know, it really depends if it’s rainy and depressing. I don’t usually go out. So

Richie Burke: yeah, what’s your favorite video you’ve ever done favorite

Nate Vomhof: video?

That’s a tricky one. I Enjoy capturing right home cello is probably my favorite last year So

Richie Burke: you want to tell me people about home cello home cello? No. Yeah this year. I believe you can plug it

Nate Vomhof: Yeah, so DJ Shauna Eric at Light the Hone and I just kind of dreamed up this idea to have, you know, a kind of a gala on the water, but also something that was just celebrating Milwaukee’s water.

And we put DJ Shawna on a boat, , we lined up a crap ton of boats that went up the river. DJ Shawna did her set on the boat and then, , we synced her set to the bridge. And then launch some fireworks. So it’s

Richie Burke: cool. I was hanging with Ian Abstin last Friday and he was talking about it. And I think it’s really cool.

You guys did that because every gala in the city basically seems the same. It’s nice to do something different, more engaging. It seems like it’s

Nate Vomhof: more of a celebration and this year is just going to be bigger and better. So,

Richie Burke: we’re just trying to find ,

Nate Vomhof: so it’s called Honecoming this year. Hone, H O A N, C O M I N G.

Yep, , so it’ll be on August 17th, so, book that date. Check it out. , what is your favorite Milwaukee landmark to shoot? So my favorite is probably the art muse just cause it’s world class architecture right there. , second favorite is probably the water tower on top of Coakley brothers. Shout out to Ben Jewick.

Yeah.

Richie Burke: Great guy. Any landmark that you love shooting that people would not be aware of that’s a little bit under the radar.

Nate Vomhof: So for me it’s not necessarily a landmark, but it’s like the density of the city, you know, finding different nooks and crannies that you can kind of show off that, Maybe people haven’t explored before.

So recently I posted a shot coming down Plankton and people are like, I’ve never seen that perspective of the city. The home was in the distance and they’re like, I’ve never seen that angle before. So that excites me. That’s cool.

Richie Burke: Outside of drone shooting, what is your favorite Milwaukee activity? , I mean drinking would be the easy answer , but you got a lot of options for there any specific spot you like to drink at?

Nate Vomhof: , usually, , it’s somewhere on mlk or third street. Otherwise brady street’s always a safe bet good

Richie Burke: options

Nate Vomhof: harp

Richie Burke: Love the harp. Yeah Harp gets a shout out on just about every episode. You were there. You were there last

Nate Vomhof: night last night Yep

Richie Burke: on thirsty thursday in your thirties

Nate Vomhof: thursday. Yeah. Yeah good for you.

Good for you You So I was meeting up with Wave Chappelle. I don’t know if you know him, but, . Met him and Kyle at Brought House and then moseyed on over to What time were you out till? , probably like, one. Not, not too late. Way to go, Drone Nate. You know? Way to go. Gotta socialize once in a while here.

Richie Burke: favorite Milwaukee restaurant? I know the harp does serve food, but if we can go somewhere else, we’re just giving them too much love for not paying to sponsor the show.

Nate Vomhof: Yeah, , favorite restaurant, there’s so many good restaurants, but a favorite recently has been Toro Casino over North Water Street there.

Richie Burke: Toro Casino?

Nate Vomhof: Yeah. I’ve never heard of it. What is it? You know where DeMoto used to be?

Richie Burke: No, no. Right off Water Street.

Nate Vomhof: Yeah. Do you know where, where like veers, where it splits from like to Brady Street and then Oh, yeah, yeah. Right, right past that bridge right there. There’s a restaurant. It’s kinda like a by the north end, A little past.

It’s by River House.

Richie Burke: Got it. Yeah. By e, , by Eagle Park? No, yeah, yeah. By Eagle Park. It’s probably a walk away from Eagle

Nate Vomhof: Park. It’s like a Italian, like Mexican fusion restaurant

Richie Burke: sort. Oh. You know, did that, what did that used to be? Okay,

Nate Vomhof: I think it was something before that. Yeah, it was something before that.

, truckadero. Yes. Yeah. Okay, I know exactly where that is. , I heard there’s a, , speakeasy upstairs too, so I need to figure out how to get in there. You don’t have those strings

to pull?

Nate Vomhof: , not yet, but I guess. Maybe after your

Richie Burke: podcast appearance you’ll be able to. Hey. Pretty big deal. , What is your favorite Milwaukee beverage?

Nate Vomhof: Beverage? , If you go to the trade, they’ve got a great like smoked Old Fashioned. It was really good. So, I’d go with that.

Richie Burke: Looking back at the following you’ve built and all the cool places you’ve highlighted, does, what are, what are you most

Nate Vomhof: proud of? , for me, I think, The pride comes from just like being able to share the city and, you know, capturing and seeing people’s excitement of the city as it grows and changes.

So for me, capturing the city as it changes is really cool. Like the couture I’ve been docenting pretty well, the new tower in the third ward, just seeing the skyline change and seeing the people really proud of their city and seeing where it’s been and where it’s going. And then I’ve had people reach out to me and, you know, ask or be inspired to like check out Milwaukee for the first time and seeing those comments and.

Seeing people actually move here is crazy to me, but if I can help inspire people to be excited about their hometown, that’s cool.

Richie Burke: Yeah, I saw some people you’ve like met some people who moved here because they discovered your footage.

Nate Vomhof: Yeah. Yeah, which is crazy. That’s nuts.

Richie Burke: And , why do you like Milwaukee so much and why do you choose to stay here?

Nate Vomhof: I feel like it’s got a good energy. , I think the pride here has changed, you know, exponentially. I think Milwaukee with Ian, Started things off really well. , and then that’s just kind of carried. So people are excited to live here. They’re proud to live here and, , I’m excited to see where it goes, I guess.

Richie Burke: Love it. Well, I appreciate all the, , how you’re making Milwaukee look in all your amazing footage. I’m proud of you for staying out till the harp at 1 a. m. last night. What are you, 32, 33? 33. Yeah. Still getting after it. Drone Nate. Yeah. Thanks for all you do. Thanks for

Nate Vomhof: coming on today. I’m inviting you out next time, so.

I will not be there on Thursday. Get ready.

Richie Burke: The combination of my relationship status and the level of my hangovers keeps me away from the harp at 1 a. m. Just the, .

Nate Vomhof: You can bring Bri with, that’s fine. I guess,

Richie Burke: that doesn’t, that doesn’t. Oakley can come too, you know. , Oakley, Oakley loves the harp. Yeah.

We brought him there in the smer. The harp allowed Oakley to stay until about 10pm when it got too crowded. Yeah. And shout out to Brandon Chalker who was just walking him around doing a lot of damage at the harp. Brando and Oakley were just a two man wrecking crew out there. It was fun to watch. I’m gonna need the footage of this.

Thank you for tuning into this episode of Milwaukee Uncut. Please subscribe and write a review wherever you are listening to this episode to support the show and keep up on this highly engaging Milwaukee content. Milwaukee Uncut is produced by Story Mark Studios right in Walker’s Point. It is in partnership with On Milwaukee and sponsored by Nicolet Law and Central Standard Distillery.

Who’s the man behind the 275ish billboards across the state? Join us as we sit down with Russell Nicolet, from a humble start practicing law out of a small room in the Wisconsin’s North Woods to creating a very recognizable and successful law firm spanning multiple states, we cover his early career to where he is now. We also talk through his most rewarding cases and what it’s like hiring, and working, alongside family. After that, we dive into the craziest Wisconsin laws and Russell’s favorite Wisconsin food and drinks. With roots right here in Wisconsin, this is one story you won’t want to miss.

Transcript

Russell Nicolet: I never really planned on being a lawyer. I used to like actually get so stressed out in the morning that I would eat breakfast sometimes and go throw up. Cause I mean, I was one man. I don’t know. There’s a few really crazy things. We had a whole trial over a dog. We went to a mediation at the courthouse and we get there and the mediator goes.

I just heard something this morning, guys. And I don’t think this case is going to get resolved today.

Richie Burke: Hey everyone. Welcome back to Milwaukee uncut produced in the heart of Walker’s point at Storymark studios in partnership with on Milwaukee and presented by Nicolet law. Speaking of we have the founder of Nicolet and the man.

On 250 ish billboards in this state and counting Russell Nicolet is on today’s episode and it’s a good one. If you’re interested in learning about the weirdest laws in Wisconsin that I couldn’t believe. Hearing some crazy stories from the courtroom and how he started Nicolet and grew it into what it is today.

This is a great episode for you. It’s a really good mix of storytelling, humor, and an overall great Wisconsin story. Business story before we dive in. Can’t forget about our other partner, our friends at central standard distillery who are not on the episode, but still valued sponsor of the show. Summer’s right around the corner.

Hopefully, who knows it was here in February and now it’s gone. But when it does come back, make sure to check out the rooftop. At the craft house not sure if there is a better place to enjoy a drink in milwaukee On a nice warm summer day or if you’re just looking to get after it like our good friend Joe vilmo or maybe drone a vom hoff who’s actually on milwaukee uncut soon.

He was on he made it out Till 1 a. m at the harp last week. I was very impressed. We all always recommend central standard distillery responsibly, of course All right. Let’s dive in to today’s episode with russell nicolet A lot of people don’t know a lot about you. They they’re starting to see you everywhere I think I started seeing you for the first time maybe last summer on my drive up to Green bay and you kept just popping up and popping up and I was like, who who is this guy?

But how did you initially? You Get your start. You’ve been going at it for a while

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, i’m almost on my 17th year in end of april. It’ll be 17 years as a lawyer for me. So It’s been a been a long ride, many years before I started popping out of all the billboards everywhere even though my first billboard actually was in I think 2009, but yeah, I started out in 2007 in april of 2007 as a lawyer up in hudson, wisconsin Then I got licensed in Minnesota.

Eventually I was licensed in North Dakota as well. So but I started out in Hudson, Wisconsin. I was born in Green Bay. But my wife is from Hudson and long story short, I was going to go to Marquette for law school. I was accepted. I was also accepted to a law school, which was called William Mitchell in the Twin Cities.

And my wife, I was dating at that time, lived in Hudson. So I was like, Hey, you know what, I’ll go check out the William Mitchell in the Twin Cities. And one of my buddies that had gone to Steven’s point with me I didn’t know he was going to be there. Just ended up at like the, it was kind of like not orientation because we hadn’t made a decision yet, but it’s a day where you tour.

And they like, I try to wine and dine you a bit to get you to go. And then I was like, I don’t know, this might not be bad. I’ve never lived in the cities. And so that’s where I ended up, but it’s kind of cool because I grew up on the east side of Wisconsin. I was born in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, but I lived in Sheboygan, I think starting when I was like in preschool, they moved up to Green Bay and lived there until I graduated college.

And so we used to come to Milwaukee a lot and it’s awesome being back in Milwaukee and having an office in Milwaukee and now like physically, like being here today is great. I love Milwaukee. So.

Richie Burke: We’re happy to have you and happy to be seeing your face all over the city right now. You’re really rivaling.

I mean, Gruber’s just been all over the place for 20 years. It’s nice to see a, a new, younger, better bearded face popping up around town.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah. I saw some Gruber boards on the way in and I was thinking like, we’re kind of the total opposite cause you know, he’s got the. He’s got the long hair at least in some of his billboards now, and I, I don’t, you know, I’ve just got the, the long beard.

No,

Richie Burke: he’s got, he’s got you beat in the hair department. He’s got me in the hair department too. And I’m a little younger than him. You and I got to stick to wearing these hats. Yeah. Congrats

Russell Nicolet: to the Groover on the hair, man. Loving it. Like, wait,

Richie Burke: How’s your company evolved you started as one person with one office I believe your was it your cousin who was working for you as a paralegal.

He’s still with the company Yeah, I believe how did things grow from there?

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, so I rented a room I think it was like 12 by 15 or something in downtown Hudson. It was In this building where like the old I think it was called the Hudson star observer, the old paper and Just got a little room and it was funny because you open the door into my office and that’s like right where we’re sitting It was kind of embarrassing because one time an opposing attorney stopped by and he opens the door and he’s like, oh, sorry, man and and then he asked if I could print something and i’m like Sound i’m Yeah, I was really new, didn’t have much stuff, didn’t have much money and he goes could you like print a copy of this for me?

I’m like, man, I just, I ran out of paper. So, you know, that was, but basically I would just kept taking anything that I made. I reinvested into the business, like marketing and trying to grow it. And my cousin he had gone to what was called Chippewa Valley Technical College. I think it’s still the same.

And he did the paralegal program there. And he was working, I don’t know if it was a, it was like some kind of title company or whatnot. And I’m like, Hey man, you want to, I need somebody to like do my paralegal work and things like that and help me. And he was like, Oh, that’d be great. Yeah. And so that was back in 2007.

And yeah, he still works there today. So

Richie Burke: that’s cool. A lot of family working for

Russell Nicolet: you. Yep. My so my cousin, obviously he joined and then my brother was in the army. He was going to Madison. He dropped out of Madison, went to the army, got injured. His now wife, but at that time was his girlfriend, we, we kind of like came up with this plan to like convince him to go back to Madison, get his degree.

And then he went to St. Thomas Law School and then he joined me. So that was pretty awesome. My, that’s my brother, two years younger than me. And then my other brother who’s eight years younger than me. It’s kind of a cool story, but like my mom and dad split up. So when I would go back home He had this like duplex we lived in and I was kind of when I was in college I was practicing for what we call the LSAT to get in the law school And I was like taking, taking practice tests and doing this stuff.

And I remember getting really frustrated. So I was like, dude, just take this. And he was a little kid then and he did pretty good on it. I’m like, man, either I’m an idiot, I’m really overthinking this. And it really was. I was overthinking it and I didn’t think anything else of it, but that was cool. You know?

And then he ended up going to Eau Claire and then one day he tells me, Hey, I’m going to law school. And so that’s pretty fun. So then he joined us as well. He went to the U of M. And yeah, so then my other brother joined as a lawyer and that’s been pretty cool. And then my sister, she joined as a paralegal.

She graduated from Eau Claire and she joined. And then eventually my mom, who’s a nurse now or wasn’t, she is a nurse still, but she now joined the office and like does a lot of record review and things with us on complicated cases because she was a nurse in the ER and like the old folks home and she has a lot of Experience that way now.

So it’s pretty cool.

Richie Burke: That’s cool. You got your mom on payroll now.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, it was awesome I mean My mom’s too like kind of a fan favorite at the office because she’s like, you know How nurses are always really like kind and caring the nicest

Richie Burke: most patient people. Yes

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, so everybody loves her The only thing is now that she works more from home after that when the pandemic started She started working from home so she’s not in as much, but yeah, like all, everybody loved her.

Like, you know, they’d ask her questions about, you know, everything. It’s when you’re a nurse, you get all kinds of questions, but yeah, so she still works with us and that’s pretty awesome.

Richie Burke: How’s the family dynamic? You arguing much with your brother or cousins or are you pretty, pretty smooth?

Russell Nicolet: It’s actually pretty smooth.

My brother Adam and I, which is the one that’s two years younger, him and I butt heads on things once in a while, but like, he’s a, he’s good, he’s a good dude, and like, a lot of times, you know, sometimes he’s right. Other times, I’m right, but he usually comes around to it. Like, so, if we get in a little bit of arguments about stuff, we usually move past it.

That’s good. That’s

Richie Burke: important when you got a family business going.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah,

Richie Burke: yeah. You’ve obviously grown a lot since those days. What was the biggest break that you’ve ever got, or when did you really start seeing a high growth trajectory?

Russell Nicolet: It’s kind of, there’s a few things that happened. I mean, I’d say the biggest break, and it sounds kind of, it’s sad for the economy, but when I was a brand new lawyer in 2007, you know, I was kind of doing, a lot of lawyers when they go out, if you’re going to be, and I don’t know how many people do it anymore, but it used to be more common, like you hang a shingle, right?

Like I said, I had that little office. So I was kind of doing general practice because you just need work. And so whatever’s coming in, I did a lot of family law. I mean, that’s how I got a lot of trial experience and courtroom experience. I was doing family law, some criminal stuff, some civil, anything that would come through the door.

And it was a lot of fun. It was pretty stressful. I mean, now looking back, it was fun, but at the time it was kind of stressful. I used to like actually get so stressed out in the morning that I would eat breakfast sometimes and go throw up. Cause I mean, I was one man. I’d, I fortunately I was able to find mentors that would like help me.

And one is a judge now and he’s still like just the other day I’d ask him for something. Just, I needed some kind of a reference thing. And you know, he’s always been there for me. It’s really cool. But basically I was doing that work and folks started calling me. Yeah. In like 2008 like hey, I’ve got these debt issues And so I was trying to find a place to send them and I people kept calling and calling And so I reached out to an attorney that was in new richmond and I said hey I think i’m gonna try some of these bankruptcy cases at that time and he’s like, well, don’t do it alone He’s like come over and he actually took me out for like a burger and stuff and he had a paralegal That was kind of a contract paralegal So then she started helping me and then I got pretty heavy into bankruptcy because we had that great recession.

So the cool thing about that I mean, obviously I helped grow the business at the time But like we got to help a lot of people out save their homes get rid of debt I actually got believe it or not I got trial experience in federal court because banks couldn’t believe that like people should be able to discharge debt So they would like argue fraud and so i’d fight for small business owners and I put you know I won against a couple banks.

So that was pretty awesome And you know you’re fighting for the little guy and the family and so that, that was, that’s kind of one of the things that got me going. And I was always doing a little bit of personal injury work, but personal injury work is really competitive. I mean, you got people like Gruber and, you know, you got Habush, there’s all these law firms and they had a big budgets and they’d been around for decades.

So it took me a long time to kind of get to the point where I could market enough, you know, had enough funds to market and just to eventually rely on it. I, you know, I was doing family law quite a bit and that’s a pretty stressful practice area. So one day I just decided you know, no more family law.

We’re just going heavy into the injury law and, you know, and that’s what we did.

Richie Burke: Was that, was that a big point for you when you were able to narrow your focus and say, Say no to other things. I know it’s, it’s hard as a business owner and we deal with this sometimes in the marketing world because there’s so many different services you can ask for, ask from people in so many different services our clients are asking for, but I feel like sometimes it’s better to just pick a lane and go all in there.

Russell Nicolet: I think you should if you can do it. I mean, like you said, when you’re starting out or when you’re just, it’s hard to say no to people. Yeah. Especially when you want to, you can know that you can help people. Especially when you’re, you know, you’re trying to make payroll for all your employees and things.

But I do think if you can get in like a, you know, a niche and you can kind of focus, you get better at it. I think the word gets out that you’re, you know, that’s what you do. You know what you’re doing. And I found out like, you know, I think for anybody, even what you guys do too, right? whatever, whatever you’re in, if you can like perfect your craft or get better and better at it, there’s a lot of satisfaction in that.

I mean, one, you do a better job eventually for your customers or clients or whomever, but you start to like satisfaction, you know, cause we work obviously to earn money, to pay bills, get, you know, get food and stuff, but you start to really enjoy perfecting your craft and getting better. And that has a lot of satisfaction.

I think that’s, Even another reason to like focus it when you’re able to do it.

Richie Burke: Yeah, I agree. Very well said. Sticking on the business side of things, how is your marketing really evolved over the years? I heard you designed your first billboard, that billboard that was in 2009, I believe.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, yeah.

Basically, one day I was like, man, I should get a billboard. So I put a billboard on when you’re coming back from the Twin Cities to get to Wisconsin. How big were you at this

Richie Burke: time?

Russell Nicolet: Oh man, I probably was like, I might have had two employees, like a cousin and maybe a legal assistant. So, yeah, probably a legal assistant.

And it’s funny because I have like some folks too that were, work for me part time, you know, and help out here and there. So, I might have had two employees maybe, besides myself. But I was like, you know what, I’m getting this billboard because all the traffic commuting back to Wisconsin from the cities.

If I have a billboard, they’re all going to know me and see me. So I put up a billboard and I’d really just took this picture that I think I had my wife take that I’d put up On my website was just like me standing in this Kind of it wasn’t a courthouse, but it was like it looked like a courthouse in downtown st Paul like it was a cool area It was I think the James J Hill library so kind of historic and really cool So I put that up and then next I like all the I think all my practice areas which were mini at the time And it was just a lot.

I don’t think it was a success. I do know the people that did see it were generally like other lawyers and judges. And I, not everybody thought that was pretty cool. They were kind of like, well, you got a billboard, you know, what kind of lawyer are you going to be? And all this stuff. But it was a start.

You know, so you have to, sometimes you just have to try something and see how it works and eventually evolve to where we are now. But you know, you’re talking. Over a

Richie Burke: decade later. You have a very hectic life. So you’re a practicing lawyer. You’re responsible for running a business You have five kids that are all between the ages of like 5 and 14 or something in that range How do you how do you balance everything?

Yeah, I mean I’ve got one business and a puppy and it’s it’s a little hard. Hey puppies are a lot of

Russell Nicolet: work though Yeah, so yeah one you’re pretty close three to fourteen five different five boys. And yeah, it’s it’s it’s tough I mean, I’m gone a lot, especially during the week, but on the weekends I try to be home and like, you know, I’ve actually got into coaching one of their basketball teams at the YMCA So that’s been pretty fun So I try to do somebody told me a long time ago like when you’re gonna be that with them be present so You know rather than like hanging out at home, but you’re checking your phone or whatever So I try to balance it, but i’m not great at it.

But at the same point too. It’s kind of like When you choose something There’s like a good vince lombardi quote I don’t know if you’ve ever seen it But like the price for success is once you do you decide that you and your family are ready to pay it like that’s what? Happens and so hopefully when they’re when they’re older, they won’t hold it against me, but I do work hard I mean, I haven’t been involved in some of my commercials, but I do work hard as when I’m home to be present and to like, to get to some, you know, to do things with them.

And we go on vacations, like I’m working hard right now so I can go on this vacation in the first two weeks of April because then I got trials after that. So I try to do that stuff. So they have some good memories every year. You know, we went out snowboarding in January out to Colorado for a week. So like, that’s pretty cool.

And then we have a cabin in Northern Wisconsin and what we typically do now in the summer is, They’ll like live up there and then I’ll use that as my kind of home base. So I have a little like bunkhouse thing right by the water that uses my office and then I’ll just drive to court, you know, so I might be actually living out of a hotel in some other town.

But when I come back home, I’m not going to Hudson. I’m going up to the cabin. So, so hopefully when they’re older, they’ll, they’ll, it’ll be, they won’t be upset with me. But that’s

Richie Burke: how you’re coaching hoops. How old is that one?

Russell Nicolet: He is in sixth grade. So fifth and sixth graders, man.

Richie Burke: How many technical fouls have you gotten?

Yeah.

Russell Nicolet: Okay, well, so here I’m pretty good because, and this is one of the reasons is as a, so, you know, my oldest is 14. So I watched a lot of basketball and I’ve seen the coaches and I’ve seen the fans and I do get excited, but I’ve always really tried to work on keeping it positive. So the why I was asking me to coach the next session because I think I think I’m taking a break and they’re telling me like you get so energetic out there and I really try to keep it all very positive.

So I haven’t got any technicals. I do when they’re not listening, though, I will come out with kind of the angry time out, you know, like time out, you know, like, get in here, guys. But I figured to like one of the things, you know, it’s fifth and sixth grade basketball and you’re in there, they’re getting better.

And I feel like it’s a fundamental thing. And we’re learning there. I keep the practices high pace because I’m kind of that guy to have that energy. But at the end of the day to like, I think in a lot of us learn this and you probably if you played sports to write like sports are more than just a sport itself.

It’s like teamwork. It’s ups and downs. It’s like life lessons. So I’m trying to incorporate that. I mean, I’m not perfect at it, but I’m also like teaching them that like, you know, there’s just because you didn’t make a basket like you might have said an awesome pick. Like there’s so many things that you can do.

And then on top of it, like just being a good sport, being a good teammate. You know, knocking down. I mean, there’s games where we’ve been down and we’re in the scores, right? But they, they’re, we get to halftime and bam, you know, we come back and win it. And it’s just like, there’s so many life lessons. So.

But yeah, I haven’t got any technicals. Hopefully I don’t, I just get the angry time out. Once I

Richie Burke: had to ask. So my dad who was also on the road a ton for business when I was growing up, he was my middle school basketball coach, fifth through eighth grade, and had to give John Burke a shout out to career technical fouls in the Madison parochial school league he had.

One clipboard toss and then was melting off to a ref once. I remember who I think was a high schooler with a ponytail, turned around and told them to be an example and got them out of there, man. Shout out to JB. Great shout out.

Russell Nicolet: Hey, I mean, the cool thing is. Obviously he had a lot of heart and energy in the game, you know, and it’s, it’s, it’s sports are that way.

You get into it, man. You get into it. And

Richie Burke: he had, he had a lot of heart and energy guy. Guy only has one gear. Absolutely. I love that. Great human being though. Yeah. Very awesome. Yeah. Those are great memories growing up. Yeah. So that’s cool. You’re doing that. All right. Let’s move on to some quicker questions.

The craziest thing that you have ever seen in a courtroom? Well,

Russell Nicolet: I don’t know. There’s a few really crazy things. I’d say one crazy event when I was actually family law is we had a whole trial over a dog. So that was really crazy. Now, and I’m not saying anything wrong with the dog, but About

Richie Burke: custody of the dog?

Custody

Russell Nicolet: of the dog. And my guy was this really big guy with his little dog, and it, his soon to be ex wife, well, like, apparently it was, she was the one who wanted the dog, but you know how dogs are, right? Like, the dog might become, sometimes it’s one family member they just bond with, right? And so he really wanted the dog, and I was like, alright, man, well in Wisconsin, unfortunately, dogs are just considered property, right?

So they’re just divided like normal property. But, I had an idea the judge was probably a dog guy, because I grew up around dogs too, and he just kind of, I don’t know, I had a feeling. So the other attorney goes in with the whole judge, this is property, blah, blah, blah. And I told my guy, when you get up on the stand, you’re going to tell this judge how much every little thing that this dog means to you.

It walks. So he gets up there and, you know, I go through all of it and he just talks about how much he loves this dog. And yeah, he wasn’t, didn’t want to buy the dog originally, but over the last so many years, they’ve become best buddies. And then we get done and the judge says in Wisconsin, dogs are property, but we all know they’re locked.

And I was like, we won. And so we won on the dog thing. And I mean, he was so happy, but it was, it was this, it was, so that was, I don’t know if that was a crazy story, but I, I remember telling the other attorney beforehand, I said, are we going to have a whole trial here on a dog? And he’s like, yo. And I was like, okay, so

Richie Burke: how much an attorney fees do you think were racked up over that dog?

Russell Nicolet: It was like, I mean, it wasn’t a full day, but I mean, yeah, I mean, you got lawyers billing at least, back then too, I was a discount attorney because I was new, so I always gave a good discount, so maybe my fee was 125, 150 an hour or whatever, I don’t know with the other attorney, but if you add it all up together, I’m sure it was a lot, you know, it was quite a bit for that day, and we could have done, the other thing too is I also pushed out the other issues like, you know, prop, other property, bigger assets and things, but it was a good story, I think, And it was, I was really happy for him because actually when I was, cause that was when I was a smaller law office.

So most of my clients were in the community. And so I would see him out sometimes around town with the dog, right. And you’re like, Oh man, I was so happy for him. But so that’s kind of a story. You know, I’ve got some crazier stories, but that was, that was, I don’t know, that’s just a memorable story. Hey

Richie Burke: everyone.

It’s your host, Richie Burke. Just wanted to take a sec to remind you that we are picking a weekly winner. Who’s mailed one of our Milwaukee Uncut guest hats. They’re the hats we hand out to every guest that comes in the studio and a central standard gift card. All you have to do is subscribe and write a review wherever you’re listening.

Just make sure to leave your Instagram handle or email at the end of that review, so we can reach out. Also, just a reminder, Milwaukee Uncut is presented by our friends at Nicollet Law and Central Standard Distillery.

Russell Nicolet: This is just a crazy story. So I had a case because I used to do real estate litigation, like up in the North woods.

And so often what would happen is people would have You know, at one point it was potentially, like, I wouldn’t say a campground, but maybe a little resort. And not like, you know, where people had little cabins as part of a resort. Or it was owned by the family. But at some point they would, like, divide it up between the family or they’d sell it.

And we had a case where there was, you know, I represented one family member, another lawyer represented, and there was a fight over who would get what and all this stuff, and who was supposed to get what or whatever. And so we went to a mediation at the courthouse, and we get there, and the mediator goes I just heard something this morning, guys.

I don’t think this case is going to get resolved today. Okay, what’s that? He’s like, well one of the other gentlemen that’s says he’s got an ownership interest went to all the cabins last night and spray painted his name on it Like, you know like tagging like like if I write my name on it, I own it we had the case ended up going to trial and yeah, the judge was not impressed with that kind of stuff, obviously.

But yeah, you went up there. I don’t know what would possess like if you spray paint your name, it

Richie Burke: was a trial over the cabins and he just went and spray painted his name on him. Yeah. Apparently

Russell Nicolet: he thought like that would give him ownership if he wrote his name with a spray paint bottle on it, which obviously just fired up everyone else.

He wasn’t,

Richie Burke: he didn’t do it as a prank or anything.

Russell Nicolet: No, it was legit. Like he just wanted to let everybody know he was laying claim. So.

Richie Burke: That was an interesting one.

Russell Nicolet: I could see like Dwight Root from The Office doing something like that maybe. He probably would. You know, like that’s, I would, you know, I never really got to the bottom of like why, like what he thought like that would actually work, but I could see Dwight doing something like that, right?

He

Richie Burke: might’ve been back during the office era when it happened. He might’ve been, maybe that was his inspiration. Yeah. He saw the episode where Dwight paints the whole office black to intimidate the employees. Maybe he saw that and spray painted the cabins. Oh, maybe it was out of

Russell Nicolet: intimidation, right? He thought if he spray painted, like we would just think this guy is so wild, give him whatever he wants.

Right.

Richie Burke: I personally would not want to mess with a guy who would go out in the middle of the night and spray paint his name on, on cabins. You don’t know what that guy’s got up his sleeve. So. I don’t know if it worked out for him in the case, it seems like, maybe not,

Russell Nicolet: but. Yeah, it maybe, it would have initially, but I, I think once we went to trial, the judge was kind of like, yeah, that’s not how we claim things around here, like.

Richie Burke: Any funny or crazy loopholes that you have exposed or seen used during a case?

Russell Nicolet: I’m trying to think what would, like a loophole. I do know once when I was doing a, I was doing a trial, a divorce trial. And I’ve had a couple of these where basically, You send over what we call discovery and you’ll get, you’ll ask for all these records and documents and anything that they have and usually authorizations too.

And you’ll get the authorization sent out to whatever financials or records and then basically you get that stuff back and often times you’re going to give copies to the defense counsel but I think sometimes they just forget to look through it. So I was thinking of two instances, once I had a divorce trial.

And the, not my client, but the was going to be ex husband said on the stand that he had lost all of this investment through the market and the market was just terrible. And so I had, he had, he had only given me through his attorney, like certain statements and there was just some happening missing, but I sent out the authorization and got all the statements.

And so I’m like, you know, I got them up there. It is like, I don’t know what they call it, like a Perry Mason moment. And I’m like, so you lost all stuff. He’s like, yeah, market was terrible, man. Mark was terrible. I’m like, well, that’s really strange because right before that statement you had, and I show him the missing statement and he goes, where did you get that?

I said, from your authorization. And he starts like fake crying on the stand. I gave it all away to my son. I gave it to my son. I’m sorry, judge. And it was like the, so. I’ve had things like that happen where you like, it’s not really a loophole, but it’s just funny because like we have that too in text messages, there’ll be a driver that causes an accident.

And I had a case like that once. And he was a young kid and he went through this intersection and hit my client and the insurance company was saying like, my client was at fault. And I was like, this doesn’t make sense at all. So, and then I got his text records and again, his attorney didn’t look at them.

So we were doing a deposition. That’s where you get to ask questions on your oath. And I’m like walking him through and I’m like, so you came up to that intersection and, and what were you doing? You, you were looking down at your phone, weren’t you? And he kind of looks at me and then I slide him over the, the text thing and he didn’t even, I mean, it doesn’t have the actual text.

It just shows the time, but he knew in his heart of hearts in his head and his, he was a probably 19 year old or 20 year old kid. And he had, I also thought because he had left his girlfriend’s house and I don’t know if there’s something, maybe they’re in an argument, but you know, he’s probably texting her, she’s texting him.

Yeah. But anyway, I slide it over to him and I’m like, and you were texting right through that intersection where he goes. Yeah, it was and his dad jumps up and the lawyer jumps up and he’s like and he goes to his dad daddy busted me They take him outside and I hear all this Outside the deposition but technically in a deposition because it’s still ongoing Even though that’s your lawyer and there’s like a privilege.

It doesn’t exist in the deposition So it comes back in and I and I was being a little feisty at this point And I was like not to the kid but kind of aimed at the dad and the lawyer and I just said You know So, now that you went outside with your lawyer and your dad, and you’re gonna change your story, and then the lawyer jumps up and goes, He’s not changing his story!

And I was like, so, you’re gonna admit, right? You were texting, and, you know, the case got settled after it. But that was a, that was a pretty interesting one, so.

Richie Burke: How nervous do you get in those situations when you have to call people out for stuff? So, not

Russell Nicolet: so much, just because I’ve done it so much. I mean, sometimes you get There’s a lot

Richie Burke: at stake.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, and it’s how you do it. Like, you have to let it sit for a while and work into it. The only thing that I’ve found over time Which has been in, in credit to that kid too. Like he, I mean, yeah, he thought he was caught, but he just told the truth is, I try to get people that I’m deposing to just understand that like, and I mean, I, this sounds bad, but no matter what the defense attorney, the attorney that is, you know, basically bond paid for by the insurance company, no matter what they say, And I’m not saying all of them are bad like this because there’s a lot of good lawyers out there regardless what side you’re on That are ethical whatnot, but the truth is the truth man And like I slide up next to the client and some court reporters don’t like it because I sit too close But I just like this is your time to just you’re under oath Just tell the truth and you know I circle back and I give them a lot of opportunities and I you know Usually show them stuff that like hey, I kind of know what happened But I found out more and more that people want to tell the truth You And if you give them the opportunity to tell the truth, and often the way I like to sit next to my client, or the person I’m deposing, it’s like we have more of a conversation, and so it’s not, it doesn’t seem as formal.

They often will tell the truth. You gotta, you know, sometimes you gotta help coax them to it, but I think for them, it’s kind of like, you know, it’s just a relief, right? Like, yeah, you know, I did run that stop sign, or I did do this. And so, but you, you also get nervous because usually the night before, the morning, you realize the case hinges on you doing a good job and getting them to testify to the truth.

So he has a little bit of that nerve, but I think that’s part of the fun too is like getting amped up and ready and super focused. Right? Yeah. So

Richie Burke: what’s the most impactful case that you’ve been involved with other than the man getting to keep his dog and sitting around the neighborhood? Yeah, that was a big deal.

Russell Nicolet: You know, well, like I, so there’s a lot of cases that there’s been terrible injuries and I’ve been able to often get a substantial recovery. And many times that has started out with the actual defense taking the position that the recovery should be zero because my client was at fault. I think though, like I was telling you earlier about one time when I had a bank trying to say that my client who owned a small business had to file bankruptcy.

Because the recession happened, and then they tried to say that he got the funding through like fraud, like fraudulently obtained the funds, which wasn’t true, but the bank couldn’t just come to terms with like, you know, the guy already lost everything, let’s just hit him for some more. And so when the judge ruled in my favor that he did nothing, in my client’s favor that he did nothing wrong, him and his wife were like crying outside, and I remember just thinking like, If we didn’t win that this bank would be after him forever and now they get a fresh start.

So that that was pretty cool. I had a big jury trial verdict against a a large company with like about 12 months ago. And that company, like they were just kind of harassing my client and saying like he, he was at fault. He wasn’t really injured this and this and this. And he was the nicest guy, nice blue collar working, hardworking guy.

And when we, when the jury verdict came back and it was big, I mean, it was multi million dollar verdict. And that was just so sweet because my client was the nicest guy. And one, he deserved that money because it really impacted his life big time. He went from, you know, he was an older gentleman, but he was super active, like snowboarded did all, he did all these different activities outside, you know, snowmobiling, hiking.

He was always the guy that, like, if you needed him over, he’s helping build a house, helping build a shed, whatever. And he couldn’t do hardly anything anymore because he had neck surgery. But when we won that and it was just, I mean, the money was great for him, but it was like, no, these, this jury like of the community was like, you’re right.

You know, you were right the whole time. You’re not a liar. You weren’t making this up. You didn’t do anything wrong. And, and that was pretty awesome. And then when we were in the hallway, the jury kind of walked past and like just all gave us a nod. Like, you know, and it was, it was just really therapeutic for him to but I remember telling him cause he was super nervous.

Cause you’re just, I’m gonna be nervous. And I said, ma’am, cause he’s going to get up and try. So what’s the most comfortable place like in the world for you? He’s like sitting on my back deck with a beer. I’m like, when you’re up on the stand, I’m talking to you, you’re on your back deck with a beer man.

And he did it, you know, cause he, he was, he’s a real quiet guy, man of more of action than words, but he got up there. And. And you know, it was hard for him to tell the jury that like, yeah, I’m a changed man, not like this, but he did it. And so that, so that was really impactful, I think, for I mean, it was on me, just the whole experience, but for him and his family it was awesome.

And then that company now I heard has Has been a little bit different when they’re dealing with people that get injured on their premises So

Richie Burke: you’re ready to get in to the most bizarre laws in wisconsin. I think so Let’s see. Let’s see how well you do here. Oh, man Okay first law There’s a law that Mandates serving all apple pies in Wisconsin with a slice of cheese.

False. Correct. Wagon camping prohibition. Camping in a wagon on any public highway is prohibited in Wisconsin with violators risking a fine of up to 10.

Russell Nicolet: True.

Richie Burke: That is actually true. No butter substitutes without permission law. Butter substitutes are banned without permission in public places in Wisconsin.

Is that true? It is true. It sounds true. It is true. Alright, this one. This is a big one. You can operate your business using the hours of any time zone in Wisconsin. I think that’s false. False. There is a law against that. Accompanied women at night. This is interesting. An intriguing historical law states that women must be accompanied by a man while walking the street at night.

This unusual requirement reflects the historical context of the state’s legal landscape. Is that true? It is actually true.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah. It seems a little bit outdated. Outdated to say the least. Cause there’s probably a lot of ladies that, you know, guys that might need a lady helping them down the street too.

Right. So

Richie Burke: I would agree with that statement. I know several probably after the game last night that could have used that. Yeah. Next law, it is illegal not to give a farm animal the right of way on a public road. True. Correct. You must give a farm animal the right of way on a public road. Adultery is illegal and It is a felony with either jail time or up to a 10, 000 fine.

I think that’s still true. Correct. Those people who might be in trouble. I was gonna say, there’s a couple of laws that are outdated that maybe may There’s some people listening to this episode that may not be that happy right now. Yeah. Next law. Are you legally married after being together for seven years in Wisconsin?

Russell Nicolet: No.

Richie Burke: That is correct. There’s no common law marriage in Wisconsin. You can marry your house.

False. Correct. That is false. In La Crosse, Wisconsin, you are not allowed to play checkers within city limits. Is that true? That is true. According to the internet. You know, I think you and I are going to

Russell Nicolet: have to go out and like talk to the legislature about some of this stuff we got going on here.

Local government bodies. I could

Richie Burke: really go for a game of checkers in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Like, come on! This may be the craziest one. In Connersville, Wisconsin. Do you know where that is?

Kind of right up the road from you. I looked at it on a map. Which county is it in? Is it in Dunn County? I believe this is in Dunn County, Wisconsin. There is no shooting off a gun while your female partner is having an orgasm.

I, I don’t even,

Russell Nicolet: I don’t even know how to answer that, like, let’s go, let’s go true.

Richie Burke: True. You’re kind of acting like you didn’t, didn’t know what it was and Connorsville’s not too far away from Hudson. Did you or do you know anyone who shot off a gun while making love to a female? You know,

Russell Nicolet: I, I’ve, I’ve been involved a lot of cases.

I don’t know if I can even talk about it, but yeah, I did. I have not, I have no personal experience. You did

Richie Burke: not do that in your earlier years.

Russell Nicolet: In my earlier years? No, no, I did not. But I was thinking to myself, like. This sounds like it can’t be true, but it’s just so specific that it probably is true.

Richie Burke: So, and it said, yeah, you read that right in Connorsville.

This is the law, which means at least one person has done this before maybe, and we can formally announce it was not Russell Nicolet.

Russell Nicolet: Yes. Not me. Not me.

Richie Burke: Okay. We’ll move on just to some quick Wisconsin questions and then we will get you out of here. All right. All right. What is your favorite Wisconsin brewery?

Russell Nicolet: My favorite Wisconsin brewery. All right. So I have, I really like lakefront brewery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Over by, in Hudson, there’s a few breweries, Hoppin Barrel, so it’s really hard to pick one, but I know Lakefront, I’ve been a huge fan of for a long time. Rush River, if you’ve ever had Rush River it’s actually like kind of in River Falls, a little bit south of

Richie Burke: I think I have.

So, Bree and I were on a a bar crawl in your area around Christmas, and I went to Hoppin Barrel, they had a Christmas cookie, It was very good, so I’m a fan of hop and barrel right on that main road in Hudson. And I think we did go to Rush

Russell Nicolet: River.

Richie Burke: Yeah. Is that the one that’s in like a massive barn type building or is that a different one?

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, there’s a warehouse. You’re thinking, I think, Tattersall. Tattersall. Okay. There’s Tattersall there too. But yeah Rush River’s got some good beer, some strong beer.

Richie Burke: There’s good beer in your neck of the woods. Yeah. Liny Lodge isn’t too

Russell Nicolet: far

Richie Burke: away.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, I think you’re, you can, if you’re, if you get a brewery that’s legit Wisconsin brewery, generally there’s going to be some good beer there, I think.

But yeah, we’re fortunate on the Western side. I mean, obviously Milwaukee’s known for beer, like, right? It’s like kind of the genesis of beer in Wisconsin. So

Richie Burke: can’t really go wrong. I’m happy to show you around sometime when it’s maybe not the middle of the day on a Thursday and you got a little more time on your hands.

Or not, right? You don’t have to sell me too hard.

What is your favorite Wisconsin food? My favorite Wisconsin

Russell Nicolet: food. That’s a really good one. I think that my favorite Wisconsin food. Probably be, if you consider Wisconsin food, it’d be like chili. Is that Wisconsin food? Can we consider that Wisconsin food?

Richie Burke: I think we can pass chili off as Wisconsin food.

I don’t know,

Russell Nicolet: I’ve always liked it. You know, in Green Bay too, we had the booyah stuff too. That was pretty good.

Richie Burke: I have no clue what that is. This could be your favorite Wisconsin food. What’s, what’s booyah?

Russell Nicolet: Well, it’s, it’s kind of like a soup mixture. But what happened, we used to, like, When I lived in Green Bay, my neighbor would basically, like, they would be, you’d have it, like, cook it outside.

It was, it was like a big thing. It was like a big kind of, like, community, almost, like, soup type thing. It was really awesome. But yeah, I mean, I, I think, like, chili is just where it’s at for me. And, I mean, and I’m Wisconsin, so I really love cheese, so I’m always putting cheese in. Probably too many crackers in it,

Richie Burke: and, you know, that’s Especially with the cheese and crackers addition, we can, we can pass chili off as favorite Wisconsin food.

Well, what’s your favorite Wisconsin food? Probably cheese curds. Yeah, I Fried cheese. I try and avoid them as much as possible, but if they’re on the menu

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, I think cheese curds are pretty much, I mean, anywhere you go and you get cheese curds, there’s usually like beer, so then you get some beer with your cheese curds, pretty awesome.

I know, where, where was I? Oh, I was at Lambeau Field, and my kids, we were getting cheese curds, and they had like chicken tenders and all that stuff, and I just wanted to not have to go back and forth, so I just bought a ton of it, right? We went out there, and my one guy, I think he’s already overdid it on junk food.

And he couldn’t eat any more of his cheese curds and this lady next to me is like That’s like a crime in Wisconsin. Not to finish your cheese curds. like, trust me, man. He’s at way too much cheese. Cause we’re not going to push him on this one, but you know, cheese curds are awesome. So

Richie Burke: you spoke of cheese curds and beer combo one good brewery with great cheese curds here is Eagle park.

All right. They have really good beer. If you want to. Have four IPAs and some cheese curds and just go into a coma for the rest of the evening. Eagle Park is a fantastic spot to do that. They have great beer. They have great curds. If you want to pound like a thousand calories worth of beer and some cheese curds on top of that, Eagle Park is my favorite place to go for that.

That sounds good. I’m gonna check it out. It is good. They got one on Brady street and then another in Muskego. Favorite Wisconsin getaway spot?

Russell Nicolet: All right. Well, so as a kid, we’d always like most people go up to Door County once in a while. Right. But my favorite, like favorite Wisconsin part is, so anywhere you can get north, like north of eight, I mean, that’s a long way from Milwaukee, but when you get north of eight.

Richie Burke: Does Minocqua qualify as that? Yeah, I think that’s north

Russell Nicolet: of eight. Yeah. Generally when we, so, because my family’s all from western Wisconsin, like the Eau Claire, Oliva area. So we would go up like you can follow the Chippewa River up and then it goes to like the, the Chippewa and the Flamborough.

And so up there’s really, really awesome area. But now where my cabin is that I have, it’s north of 8 by a considerable amount. It’s like basically in the south end of Douglas County. Douglas County is the county that Superior’s in. So it’s just the middle of nowhere. What town is

Richie Burke: it in?

Russell Nicolet: So it’s right by minog If you know like minog it’s famous for beef jerky.

That’s where the lynx beef jerky is from. Ah How far is it from superior? Some my cabin maybe 50 minutes.

Richie Burke: Okay, so you’re just a little south of there.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, and but that I mean Very very cool tons of pine trees very rural still the water up there is awesome because it’s got that kind of sandy soil You So, all the lakes, and this is kind of like if you go north of Green Bay too, like in the Krivets area, they have similar lakes that way too, but You know, not flowage.

So they’re kind of like, they call them seepage out of the water table, but like the lake that we go to, it’s like 15, 20 feet clear. Like, it’s just awesome, man. It’s so you know, they got, we got wolves up there. You’ve got all kinds of eagles.

Richie Burke: And it’s a little different than Bradford beach in Milwaukee, where I think you can see about two inches down at water park, slightly North of the city is more clear.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah. I think if you can get up into the North, which doesn’t have to be all the way up North of eight, but If you can get up there, like that’s to me, quintessential, just like Wisconsin, Northwoods relaxing. Okay. Favorite Wisconsin supper club. There’s a place called and I don’t know, I, I would call it considered a kind of a supper club and it’s, it’s near my cabin.

It’s a, it’s called a Pogo’s. But man that place is pretty sweet. So pogos pogos. Yeah, it’s right on the mine on flowage And right on

Richie Burke: the water.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, right on the little flowage. Yeah, you pull up, you know they’ve got people and you can pull up your Pontoon they’ve actually got a little boat launch there Which is a source of entertainment too as you know boat launches all kinds of stuff happens there But yeah, it’s it’s a pretty cool place I mean, it’s like the one place to eat in that and on the flowage that like right by the right by my cabin We’ll count that pogos pogos Favorite

Richie Burke: Wisconsin sports team?

Russell Nicolet: I mean, I, so I spent most of my life in Green Bay, so it’s going to be the Packers. You know, my brother Adam and I used to go to the Packers practices and this is before Green Bay was what it is now. And so, you know, it was like the Don Hudson practice field. It was a lot different, right? And we used to go down there and I just remember it wasn’t all the fanfare.

There was like some bleachers. You could get a seat on the bleachers easy for practice. When, you know, you get further into or closer to the season. They would put up the like green tarpa on the, on the fence and my mom would pull her van up and we would sit as kids up on top and still watch. Cause like, you know, we’re not, we’re not spying for the bears, man.

But yeah, so the Packers were big for me, you know, growing up in Green Bay and like most kids too. I was talking to somebody the other day about this is like, you know, the Packer game was on and you’d be outside with your friends playing football and then like coming in and check on it. But. In the 80s and early 90s, you know, Packers weren’t doing so great.

Then obviously, Brett Favre came along and Reggie White and things changed. But yeah, Packers. I love the Brewers too. I think I told you too that my brother, when we lived in Sheboygan, my brother Adam and I and my dad would go down to Coney Stadium and that was pretty fun.

Richie Burke: Favorite Wisconsin winter activity?

Russell Nicolet: So, I used to really like to snowmobile. We, I’ve gotten, I got into snowboarding at, I think in high school. So, I’d say that’s probably it now is snowboarding. My kids, I was fortunate. I started getting them into snowboarding like when they could barely walk. And so, on what, in the western side of Wisconsin, because when I grew up in Green Bay, there wasn’t a lot of places.

I think there was like Hidden, Hidden Valley was kind of south, or you had to go up to Michigan. We’d go up to Michigan. But in by Hudson, it’s like 45 minutes from there’s Trollhagen, super good place. Or you can go over to what we call Afton Alps. It’s right, it’s, it’s part of the Epic system. So we, like where we are now, we have good access.

I mean, the snow hasn’t been great this year, but they’ve been making fake snow. But yeah, I think snowboarding is probably the big activity. I used to like to hike and, and snowshoe, but I broke my foot wakeboarding this summer. So I’ve been a little bit, yeah, it’s, it’s doing much better now. It sounds

Richie Burke: like a painful, annoying injury.

Yeah.

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, it was, and I like to run, and I couldn’t run, and then even though, you know, I should know better, I didn’t follow all the, the rules with the boots and the crutches, and so that delayed my, my healing, so. Doing good now? Yeah, I’m doing good now. Alright, good. Favorite summer activity? Definitely being at the lake.

Like I said, I like to wakeboard. I grew up wakeboarding a lot and so we spent a lot of time on the lake wakeboarding, and my kids like to fish a lot. Everyone was like, it’s a mini pontoon, I don’t know if you’ve ever seen it. It’s supposed to be like two people, but we probably put five on it. And it’s got a little electric, like trolling motor.

And so we go out and fish on that thing and they really love it. So, you know, it’s basically a hang at the lake doing fishing and then we go wakeboarding a bit and that’s pretty awesome.

Richie Burke: Nice. Final question I got for you. Is there any message or anything you want to say to the people of Milwaukee?

Russell Nicolet: Yeah, I just like, I really appreciate the fact that, I mean, it’s awesome to be back on the eastern side of Wisconsin.

Now, we’ve been here, it’s almost been two years, so, but, you know, now people are getting to know us a little bit better, but the opportunity to be here and help folks out in Milwaukee you know, that’s great. We’ve got employees and lawyers that work here. At our Milwaukee office from the Milwaukee area, and I’m hoping to get in more with the Milwaukee community.

We’ve got some partnerships on the on the horizon, and it’s great. I’m hoping to spend more time over here. Like I said, I grew up on the eastern side of Wisconsin and, you know, being in Sheboygan being in Green Bay have traveling in Milwaukee a lot. When I came into Milwaukee this morning, I was just like, Oh yeah, I, I don’t know, Milwaukee just, I love the vibe here.

I just love it, man. So I appreciate everyone that’s, you know, allowed us over the last couple of years to represent them and the folks that will in the future. And you know, hopefully We get to spend more time in the community kind of giving back and helping out and that’s what we’ll work on as well because We like to be good stewards of for the community as well

Richie Burke: Thank you to russell nicolet for dropping by the studio and coming on this episode.

Thank you for tuning in Milwaukee Uncut is produced in the heart of walkers point by story mark studios in partnership with OnMilwaukee and presented By Nicolet Law and Central Standard Distillery

Wonder what it’s like to play in the NFL? From being on the 1-16 Jaguars to the #1 seed Packers Tyler Davis has seen it all in his first four years in the National Football League. 

Tyler Davis has an incredible story from growing up on Long Island and going on to play college ball for UConn and Georgia Tech before getting drafted by Jacksonville in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL draft (yes, the COVID year). 

He then played for the 1-16 Jaguars under Doug Marrone, and then was in camp the next year with Urban Meyer and Tim Tebow (he has some good stories on the pod) before getting cut by Meyer and ending up on the Green Bay Packers catching passes from Aaron Rodgers. 

He was poised for his best year yet in 2023 catching a TD in the first pre-season game against Cincinatti only to tear his ACL and be out for the season minutes later.  He’s been working everyday since to comeback strong in 2024. 

If your interested in learning what it’s like to play in the NFL and hear a lot of amazing behind the scenes stories about the Green Bay Packers make sure to tune into this episode. 

Milwaukee Uncut is produced by Story Mark Studios 
In partnership with OnMilwaukee 
Sponsored by Central Standard and Nicolet Law 

Transcript

Tyler Davis: Like I said, I grew up a huge Tim Tebow fan myself. And then I go from that to in the tight end meeting room. I’m, I sit here, he literally sits right there. And he’s nudging me, asking me questions. Aaron Rodgers is about to throw me a ball. I’m like, holy crap, this is freaking awesome. Everyone’s just getting easy throws, all this stuff.

And I get a ball launched. And then I come back to the huddle. I’m like, everyone’s laughing. And I’m like, what’s everybody laughing at?

Richie Burke: Hey everyone, it’s your host Richie Burke and welcome back to Milwaukee Uncut. There’s been a lot of news out of Green Bay recently and we’ve got a good one today with recently re signed Packers tight end number 84 Tyler Davis.

He’s had a very interesting journey from growing up on Long Island, playing for UConn and Georgia Tech. NFL career on the one in being in camp with urban If you remember that sag it and he’s got some good He then ended up in Green for the last three years. time was there through th He caught a touchdown.

He was looking good in that first preseason game against Cincinnati. Then unfortunately tore his ACL in that same game shortly after that, and was out for the season, spent his time in rehab, but recently got re signed. He’s been progressing. We’ll hear all about it. He’s got no shortage of behind the scenes stories about his time in the NFL.

And with the Green Bay Packers, before we dive in, just a reminder, this podcast is produced by Story Mark Studios, right in the heart of the Walker’s Point neighborhood in Milwaukee, in partnership with On Milwaukee and presented by Nicolet Law and Central Standard Distillery. Speaking of both, we just had Russell Nicolet in here, the man behind.

The billboards that you see all over the state, it’s dropping next week. It was a fun one. It was great getting to know him a lot of good stories on that one. And speaking of our friends at central standard distillery, they just released their new canned old fashions in collaboration with Leininkugel’s.

They’re amazing. They’re also 8 percent ABV and go down smooth. So be careful. I had one during this episode. I loved it. Tyler Davis, on the other hand, was drinking a nice bottle of water, which further speaks to his commitment to being a professional athlete, definitely the kind of guy you want on your team.

All right, let’s dive in. With Packers tight end, Tyler Davis. Man, so you have had a very interesting welcome to the NFL. You were on the 1 15 Jaguars, then Urban Meyer comes in. You get, you, you weren’t on for that season. You were on the Packers that year, but you were in camp with them. And then you get, go from that to the team with Super Bowl expectations and the Rodgers love, kind of, I wouldn’t call it a clout.

I don’t know what I’d call it, but that overhanging it. And then this past year, I mean, the, the, the, Yeah. What a, what a welcome.

Tyler Davis: Yeah. It’s been a crazy journey. Very rewarding. Just like you alluded to, you know, getting drafted to the Jags and being on that team 1 15 and then the next season getting cut and going to the number one seed.

Going from the best to the worst was the best, like, experience for me to be able to see, like, what the NFL is all about. Definitely got to be around cool people during the journey. It was very rewarding, been able to play with some of the best players in the league, which is awesome. Just very thankful for the way everything has turned out.

Richie Burke: Yeah, before we dive into that, so you grew up on, on Long Island, not necessarily a football hotbed. What was that upbringing like? And what was your journey to the, to the college and

Tyler Davis: the NFL like? It was definitely interesting. You know, like you said Long Island is not a football hotbed. It’s not Florida, it’s not Georgia, it’s not Texas, it’s not California.

So there isn’t a lot of people with the aspirations that I had when I was growing up. You know, I always knew that I wanted to play in the NFL when I was six years old. Fell in love with the game. And I didn’t have a true role model or someone I could look to for advice because it’s just not the area for it.

And just growing up, I knew I wanted to do it, so I knew that I was just going to have to work as hard as I could to make sure that that happened, to achieve that dream. So, put everything that I had into it. I remember when I signed to play at UConn, there was three players from Long Island that went Division I.

There hadn’t been a Division I player in my high school in 23 years. So, like I said, there was no clear blueprint on how to do it. All I knew is to work, and I’m a true believer in hard work pays off, and kind of just went with that and worked as hard as I could, and I’m glad that it’s all worked out when I sit here today.

Richie Burke: I was doing some homework. So you were playing quarterback. You had no power five offers at that position, but some people wanted you to play tight end, but you didn’t want to do that.

Tyler Davis: From Long Island, I grew up a Florida Gators fan. Two reasons I bring that up. Number one is I took a visit there, and they wanted me to play tight end, and I said no.

Richie Burke: After growing up a Gators fan?

Tyler Davis: After growing up a Gators fan, I said, I’m gonna play quarterback. I want to be the guy when there’s two minutes left in the game and the game’s on the line I want to be the guy in the center that makes the plays that leads the team that wins the game I want to be that guy so I said no second reason why I say that and we’ll come back to this is I wanted to be exactly like Tim Tebow when I was a kid, exactly like him.

Everyone said he couldn’t throw, he was just a runner, he was just a big guy, and I kind of fit that similar type mold in high school. People who can’t see you, you’re 6’4 250, 60? Yep, 250. Yeah. I kind of fit that mold in the, this guy is a great athlete, but can he throw? So I could always fit into that kind of category, which motivated me.

You know what I mean? I was like, then Tim got drafted first round by the Broncos. And I was like, okay, you know what I mean? This is possible. You know what I mean? Of course, he’s got doubters, but everybody’s got doubters. You can all do it. So like I said, I said no, and there was a bunch of power fives that I said no to because they just thought that I can play tight end.

I was a big guy, a good athlete. So I ended up with three offers to play quarterback. And UConn I thought was the best opportunity at the time for me to go and play quarterback. Kind of like a pro style offense. Like I said, I mean, I had the dreams of playing the NFL since I was six years old. So kind of, I was like, how can I take this next step to.

mold me into that. So did that and yeah, red shirted, played quarterback ran the scout team and then second year came along and I got called into the head coach’s office and it’s a funny story. It’s after a summer workout, we’re going, I’m going in my second year at Yukon and I’m in the weight room and it’s like 45 minutes since the workout ended.

I mean, everyone’s out of the weight room. There’s like me and another guy probably in there doing our extra stuff that we always do. And I come back in the locker room and everyone’s saying like, Hey, Tyler, the head coach is looking for you. And I’m like, Oh God. Yeah. I mean like what does the head coach want to talk to me about?

And so I eventually go up there and he goes, Hey Tyler would you move to tight end? And I go, absolutely not. I could have done

Richie Burke: that at Florida. Yeah,

Tyler Davis: I could. Right. Exactly. He goes, How about outside linebacker? I laughed. I was like, I’m a quarterback, man. I’m not playing outside linebacker. Yeah. I mean, you’re crazy.

You want me to hit people? Yeah. I’m like, I’m a quarterback. I’m a pretty boy. Like I’m not hitting anybody. I haven’t hit anyone. I’ve been a quarterback my whole life. Like I’m not going to go hit somebody now. So I kind of like laughed and I was like, Nah, man, there’s no way. And I kind of left that day, like, thinking like, Oh, man, maybe this guy doesn’t see me as a quarterback.

You know what I mean? And so he gave me some time. We had, like, a month between like, summer training and camp. Get a little break. And I went home and I really thought about it. And he’s like, whenever you come back, just let me know, like first day of camp, whatever, let them know. And I thought really hard about it.

And I decided to do it. And during that whole process that month, it was like crushing on me because you, like I talked about, like I always wanted to be that quarterback, that guy. And I finally made it to the show. You know what I mean? 50, 000 people, you’re the guy, division one, ESPN, all this stuff.

And now. You’re switching positions. And it was, like I said, it was hard. And the physical part of the learning curve was even more interesting. And I’m very thankful because I can think back to, it was a week into camp. Maybe it was the, it was the first live period that we had. I was playing tight end and it’s crazy.

I, I was doing all right the first week, you know what I mean? No pads, it’s easy. Everyone, you know what I mean? It’s like, you don’t gotta be anything crazy. Like my athleticism just worked with no pads on and it’s the first live period. And I got like this kickout block on like. I mean, no disrespect to this guy, but he didn’t go on to do anything.

I mean, like he was like an, an average college player and I went to go kick this guy out. And I’ve never seen this happen ever in any football. I got knocked so far backwards on this run play that I tackled the running back. I was on offense. He knocked me over that tripped me into the running back. And it was a three yard loss because I tackled the running back.

And I still have that play on my phone and it’s a daily reminder. And when I go back and I think about my career where I’m at now, I give a lot of credit to that play. Because I can still put myself in that play on the ground, hitting the ground with my hand on how pissed I was at that being the result.

And it’s like, that’s always been a theme for me. My whole life is like, I hate losing. I hate getting beat. I hate all this stuff. So when I was on the ground, beating the ground, pissed off, looking down, I was like, I’m gonna make sure that this never happens ever again. And ever since that day, kind of just.

Worked as hard as I could to get to this point where I’m at today. So that point was definitely just an interesting, I’d probably say like a very impactful experience that has gotten me to the point where I’m at today.

Richie Burke: Love how you bounce back in. You went on to set some, I think you set some tight end records at UConn.

Tyler Davis: Yeah, I did. I believe it was I tied the touchdown for a tight end record. Yeah. So like things, I just worked from that day on to this day. Just worked as hard as I could and glad that it paid off. Like I was able to do that

Richie Burke: stuff. What was, what was tech like? Cause you go there for your final year.

You’re you’re, you don’t put up the numbers. You want to. It’s a bigger stage than UConn, obviously. Then you still kind of go and you’re a captain of the team. What was that year like for

Tyler Davis: you? Oh, it was interesting. There’s two reasons why I wanted to go to Georgia Tech. I hadn’t played in a bowl game at UConn.

We were in one my red shirt while I was red shirting St. Petersburg bowl, but I didn’t play. You know, I mean, I was red shirting, so I had all my people that I knew in other teams, what it looked like on social media, what a bowl game looks like. I was like, man, like, this is the college experience, you know, this is college football.

Like I got to make one of these before I get out of college. And Georgia Tech had gone to like 22 straight bowl games, longest in the country, longest bowl streak in the country. So I’m like, okay, this is a good one because I’ll get to play in a bowl game. And secondly always in the back of my mind, I want to play in the NFL.

And the first game of the year was in Death Valley at Clemson off their national championship. So I was like, you know, Tyler, if you want to go play in the NFL, you go play the best team in the country and you go see if you can play. And first part of the story looking forward is we did not make a bowl game, which was very upsetting, but.

The second part, when I played Clemson, that’s kind of the moment where I seriously knew that I was good enough to play at the next level. You could hold your own against those guys. Against the very best. In that,

Richie Burke: in that environment. Absolutely. Absolutely. So you spend a year, a year at Tech, then you get drafted, right, kind of after COVID hits, essentially.

What was that? What was that experience like? And when, when were you projected to go? You end up going in the sixth round? Crazy.

Tyler Davis: Yeah, it was just a crazy story. It was a crazy story. So I go out to California to train for the combine and pro days and all that stuff. And then I was a few votes short of making the combine.

So how does that work? So you need certain amount of votes per team that you’re a draftable prospect. And I don’t know the exact number, you know, it’s more than majority. So, you know, more than 16 teams need to vote that you’re a draftable player. So I was a few votes short of getting that. So I didn’t end up making the combine.

So pretty upsetting. I knew that my athleticism, like that’s like a big deal. I’d be able to showcase that. And so that was upsetting and I was training out in LA. And so the guys I’m training with go to the combine and that’s last week in February, kind of now. And then I’m in California and this COVID thing starts to come up and, and, and it’s coming up in California.

Yeah. And I was like, oof, what is this? You know, I’m trying to figure out what’s going on. And I’m like, my pro day is next week. So I’m like, I don’t think anyone knew that, what it would become. Yeah, I mean unless you’re good at predicting things, but No, I remember thinking it was like, okay, it was

Richie Burke: over in

Tyler Davis: China.

Richie Burke: Yeah. Like, this isn’t really going to make it to the US. I remember that in like February

Tyler Davis: of 2020.

Richie Burke: I saw the same, I

Tyler Davis: saw the same exact thing. And I was like, oh yeah, this will be nothing. Yeah. And then I’m like, all right, well let’s just get my pro day in at least. And my pro day was scheduled for like, I’m so lucky.

My pro day was scheduled for like the first week in March. So it was like one of the first pro days coming off the combine. So they’re starting to talk about like canceling pro days, like two days before mine, I was like, Oh no, no way. Yeah. I mean like now that, that would significantly hurt my chances because I didn’t make the combine and now pro day I know is a great chance for me to showcase.

So, I get my pro day in, very lucky, all of them get cancelled two days later. All of them get cancelled. So, and pro days are a big deal too, you know what I mean? Because, again, you get to see, the scouts get to see players up close, you get to talk to the coaches that are in, you get to talk to everybody. I mean, they talk to everybody, they talk to trainers, they talk to equipment staff, they talk to coaches, they talk to professors, like, That’s a big time for scouts to come and see because like they want to find the right guy.

Especially if you don’t make the combine. Exactly. It’s that much magnified. Absolutely. Coming off a bit of a down year too. Absolutely. So, I was very fortunate to be able to get mine in. Very lucky to whoever scheduled that. One of the first ones coming off the combine, so. I got very fortunate with that timing because if that didn’t happen, then who knows, you know what I mean, where I’d be today.

I don’t know. Who knows. So, yeah. And what was, what was the draft like? I’m sure that was a nerve wracking experience. So, I really didn’t know what was going to happen there. I knew there was a slight chance that I would get drafted towards the end day three, but wasn’t exactly 100 percent sure that I would.

So then kind of, you know, around four goes by around five goes by you know, beginning of six comes and it’s like picks are starting to come against, you know, I mean, there’s only so few left left in the draft and you start to think what’s going to happen on the board on no, I don’t think so, no from my memory, no, but and then I had a list of the I always kept notes on anytime I talked to a team, just interview whenever they call and all this stuff.

And I kind of had a general idea on the teams that were interested. And it’s like, I’m looking at my phone and I’m looking to see just like I’m on ESPN. I’m like. Looking like, okay, this team has this pick coming up, this team has this pick coming up, this team has this pick. I’m like, okay, like, there’s a couple guys left that might, you know what I mean, take a shot on me.

And as I’m looking at my phone, I’m looking like, okay, Jacksonville’s pretty interested in me. I kid you not, one second after looking at that, I get a call from Jacksonville Area Code. And I’m like, no way, this is it. Your heart just started pounding. Started pounding. And there it was. It was the general manager at the time, Dave Caldwell, and told me that they were going to draft me and started crying.

You know what I mean? The second that you told me that obviously a lifelong dream of mine. I’ve watched guys my whole life get drafted and that experience to be able to have your family around and you know, Be with the people that sacrificed so much for you and loved you so much and want this to happen to you so much and be able to share that moment with them.

Um, just like a truly special day. And then also to just being in New York at a time you know, I mean, it’s kind of covert central. So restrictions were pretty tight. You know, if it was up to me I wish I had everybody at my house, you know, which we would have been, maybe we would have rented a restaurant like guys do and all this stuff, but couldn’t do it at the time, you know what I mean?

COVID restrictions were tight, like I said, but within five minutes of me getting drafted, we broke. Every COVID restriction that was ever put in place. And there was a hundred people on my front lawn celebrating cars driving past my street, just honking. People going nuts. It was freaking awesome.

Just like a truly like dream come true. Yeah. I mean, cause that’s kind of when you realize like, okay, like this is for real, like everything that you worked for your whole life, everything that you sacrificed, everything that you gave up was worth it for this moment for achieving your dream. So getting drafted, it was just like such a special moment for me and my family.

Richie Burke: Well, were you like the hometown kid? Cause you said there was no D1 athlete in 23 years from your school. So someone. To go to the league, which is far beyond D1, had to be special for all your family and friends.

Tyler Davis: Oh, yeah. I think it was cool for, for them. I mean, my dad always I don’t get home as much as I, I’d like to just with the nature of the business, but my dad always says, you know, I mean, even to this day, so and so asked about me.

This guy’s cheering for you. This guy says you look great. All that type stuff. So, to be able to be home at least for it was pretty

Richie Burke: cool. Yeah. And then that first year in Jacksonville, you got, you got on the field. And what, what was that like? And then what was the transition like right after that kind of watching it unfold when they bring in urban Meyer and stuff like that?

Tyler Davis: Yeah. So it was a Florida guy. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Oh yeah. So it was definitely interesting the way we started with just COVID and whatnot. And So we get drafted. Oh yeah, so

Richie Burke: no fans. It’s hard to remember all this now. Yeah.

Tyler Davis: Jacksonville was lucky too because like, Florida’s one of the open stadiums.

But it was like, it was like half open, but like we played stadiums that were, I mean, no fans. That’s interesting. But it was a, it was a crazy start just in general you get drafted, excited about everything. And now You’re on, you’re on calls about what happens if we don’t play the season because of COVID.

You know, I mean, at, at that time we didn’t even know if we were going to play. You know, I mean, it was early COVID was kind of on the rise. Nobody knew what was going to happen. So there was a plan in place if we weren’t going to play the season. Which is crazy to look back now on. And then fast forward, no preseason, no OTAs.

So like OTAs and preseason is huge. Especially for a rookie, younger player to be able to get reps in before the actual real deal, regular season, because the NFL and college is very different in terms of speed, size, strength. Like it takes some getting used to to get under your belt, to feel comfortable with, with the level of competition, but so didn’t have OTAs.

Didn’t have preseason. You showed up like a week before camp and just went. And I remember I was, I, I didn’t notice at the time that how badly I wish that I had all that stuff my rookie year, how much that would have helped, how much that would have accelerated my game even more my rookie year. Because instead of doing it in practice a hundred times between April, May, June, July, August, instead my first time doing something is against J.

J. Watt. Instead of all the reps that I could have gotten beforehand, I had such a limited in just three weeks in August. Is that real in your first game? Yeah one of my first game, that’s probably one of my biggest like wake up moments in the NFL. We played at Houston. And I remember coming out the huddle and I just put my hand in the dirt, just kind of like looked up to kind of see where my work was at.

Yeah. And I kind of stopped right before the cadence start. And I was like, Oh dang, there’s JJ Watt right in front of me. And that was kind of like a wake up call. I was like, okay, like, you know what I mean? Let’s go. And but like I said, I wish that I had like some preseason, some work before that cause I wish I did better not just in that situation, but, you know, I mean, over the course of that season definitely things that I look back on that.

If I had previous reps and I’m talking about hundreds of reps, you know what I mean? Thousands of reps, you know, in practice all those reps are so valuable. Everyone, because you can’t just football is not played on paper. You know what I mean? Every rep is something different. So every rep is so valuable.

I just wish that I had that my rookie year would have helped out. And

Richie Burke: you’re just hopping on Zoom calls and going to the gym on your own. That’s what it was. Trying to learn the offense on Zoom. What was that offseason like? Are you, when you’re learning about the coaching changes and Urban Meyer coming in and stuff like that, are you finding out on TV or how does that all work from a player’s perspective?

Tyler Davis: I think I probably found out yes through that way. I think that’s just like the fastest way of Like news nowadays is just see it on Twitter or something like that ESPN What

Richie Burke: was the instant reaction because that that was like the splashiest offseason thing that

Tyler Davis: happened I mean like we like we talked about I was excited.

This is the guy that I grew up watching You know, his teams were damn good when I watched him national champion, all of them. Yeah. He’s a good football coach, so I was very excited for him to come in and be able to work with him.

Richie Burke: And then what about the T Bone news? You had to be like, awesome, dream come true.

A lot of people were pissed about that. They’re like, they should not be giving him a spot because he’s Urban Meyer’s guy and taking a spot away from someone

Tyler Davis: else, but

Richie Burke: what was it like inside the locker room? I was the

Tyler Davis: opposite because I was extremely fortunate. Like I said, I grew up a. Huge Tim Tebow fan myself and here I am watching this guy afar and just wanting to be Exactly like him and then I go from that to in the tight end meeting room I’m I sit here and he literally sits right there and he’s nudging me asking me questions And he’s texting me asking questions and he’s like, hey, can we meet up at this time so we can go over stuff?

I’m like You kidding me? You’re Tim Tebow. Come on, man, of course, whatever you need. Yeah, I mean, so like, I enjoyed every second with him. He is everything that everyone sees out of him. Best human being I’ve been around. Yeah, I mean, just a true, genuine guy. Had us over his house a bunch. Gave his shirt off his own back.

I mean, you know, it’s obviously seen. Does any story stand out from your time? First time we go over to his house for like, has the tight ends over. We’re going to barbecue. Great. You know what I mean? Great idea. Florida. It’s the summer. Let’s have a barbecue. He’s got a nice house, got a nice pool, got a nice backyard.

Great. Sounds great. We get there and he’s cooking up burgers and hot dogs and all this stuff. And he’s keto. He’d been keto for a long time, so no bread, right? Yeah, no bread. So he’s finished cooking the burgers and he realizes that he’s keto. So he doesn’t have any buns. He doesn’t have any bread for any of us.

And he’s like, oh my god, guys. He’s like, I didn’t even think about this, but you guys aren’t keto. I was like, no, I’m not keto . Like I, I, I’m a carb guy, you know what I mean? I grew up on carbs. That’s all I eat. And we just like looked around and laughed at each other as we’re like sitting down at a barbecue eating burgers with forks and knives.

Richie Burke: Hey everyone, it’s your host, Richie. Thanks again for tuning in. We’ve got some giveaways coming up on Milwaukee Uncut. If you do take a minute right now, you could even do it. Leave a review and subscribe on Apple. We will automatically. Enter you into our weekly giveaway, which is right now, a nice Milwaukee uncut hat that we give out to the guests and a central standard gift card.

Just make sure to leave your Instagram handle or email at the end of that review so we can reach out to you. Also follow along on Instagram. We’ve been getting a lot of traction on our clips there, and we’ll likely have some giveaways coming up over there as well. Also a reminder, this podcast is brought to you by Nicolet law, the Midwest law firm and central.

standard distillery. Okay, back to today’s episode with Packers Tyda and Tyler Davis.

Tyler Davis: So I was asking him, this is like beginning maybe like the second week of camp, you know what I mean? It’s our, it’s a grind. And we get like our first off day and I mean, guys can’t wait for the first off day. You know what I mean?

Like it’s 6am to 9pm for the whole week. And it’s like, you just can’t wait to make it to the off day. So we have the off day, come in the next morning to go in the hot tub, get ready for the day. And I see him, I was like, hey Tim, how was your off day? He said it was good. I said, oh, awesome, what’d you do, just chill out?

Chill out in the pool, all this stuff? He’s like, no, I flew to Mississippi, Nebraska, and Texas. I said, no, no, no, I said, Tim, what’d you do yesterday? He goes, yeah, I flew to Mississippi, Nebraska, and Texas for the work that he does, you know what I mean, the charity work that he does. I was like, dude, how do you do that?

And he’s like, no, man, you don’t understand, like, that’s the stuff that gives me life. He’s like, some people think it’s tiring, but that’s the stuff that gives me life. That’s the stuff that gives me energy. That’s the stuff that gives me motivation. So that, that was a very, like, impressive moment for me to be able to hear it from him.

Yeah, I mean, because you see what he does on Instagram and, like, You’re like, oh man, is this stuff really real? I’ll tell you what it is real. Well for

Richie Burke: 99 percent of people They’re just throwing an airbrushed version of themselves on instagram I did for all the tim tebow haters out there. He actually real deal.

He’s the real deal. I never met many like him It’s good to hear. So you have that. Then you get signed by Green Bay and you go there and you’re on a Super Bowl contender and You’re watching all this news come out of Jacksonville about the were you grateful to be in Green Bay at that point in time?

Tyler Davis: I was think I was just grateful to to be on the team in the position that we were in I don’t think that I don’t remember exactly what their record was, but I knew we were the number one seed So just thankful to be on a contender.

Richie Burke: What was your first impression of Aaron Rodgers? Like, was there a moment where you saw him in practice and you were just like, Oh, this, this is different.

Tyler Davis: Yeah. I remember my first day just seeing him and I was like, I mean, there’s, I think as I got older in the NFL, like maybe at first, like there’s some like star struckness, you know what I mean?

Like you see a guy and you’re like, Oh wow, that’s so and so or whatever. So I think that kind of went down as I, my career went. Yeah. But when I first, my first day with him, it was as high as it’s ever been. I was like, holy crap, that’s Aaron Rodgers. Yeah. I mean, this is one of the greatest players of all time.

And I remember my first day I had a lift and he was in our little indoor facility, kind of just had the script with them and he was just doing things visualizing things, going through the. Huddle going up to the ball, just doing it all by himself. And I was like, wow, like this is legit. Yeah. I mean, this is awesome.

And then he introduced himself to me and welcomed me and said, whatever you need, let me know. Yeah. I mean, very nice. And then we went to the practice field and it’s funny knowing what I know now. We do like, it’s called Pat and go, you know, it’s warmup quarterback pats the ball and you run just like a fade.

And it’s mainly just to, like, warm up, get loose, all this stuff. I get out there, and I’m like, line up all the way out there. I’m like, Aaron Roder’s about to throw me a ball. I’m like, holy crap, this is freaking awesome. He throws this thing as high in the sky as possible. As high, and I’m like, trying to, like, do everything that I can to find this ball.

Because it’s as, launch as high as he can. And, like I said, it’s funny now, because he does that on purpose for the new guy. Because the new guy wants to, like, Make sure like he proves himself to the most nerve wracking warmup route. You first one ever to, I mean, it’s like, you want to make a good first impression, like everyone’s just getting easy throws, all this stuff.

And I get a ball launched. And it’s funny because like, like I said, what I know now, it’s like he does that for everyone’s first day. Like when you come on and also to, he’ll, he’ll do this thing. This was memorable too. Did you catch it? I did. I did, but no one really said anything and which is fine.

And but then we went to team period and I ran a little stick route. Five yards, you know, I mean not a very far throw. He throws this thing as hard as humanly possible The second that I come out the break and I was like, you know I mean and then I come back to the huddle and like everyone’s laughing and I’m like, what’s everybody laughing at?

You know, what’s so funny and like everyone’s laughing at how Aaron does that like he just wants to test guys Right when they get there by throwing the ball as hard and yep, this guy’s got the greatest arm ever Yeah, I mean like he’s gotten with it on his ball And so I caught that pass and he kind of just gave me a wink when he, when I came back to the huddle and everybody laughed and it was a cool experience.

And then it was cool to be able to start our relationship like that. So it was awesome.

Richie Burke: Did, does the media or did the media paint it a lot different than the reality of the situation, because at that point in time, that year, and I believe the, the next year, which would have been his final in Green Bay, he He was getting shredded and I don’t know if you pay attention to that stuff But he was getting shredded for like not being a good teammate to the younger guys being all about himself things like that Is it is it a lot different from that inside the locker room?

Tyler Davis: I think it is. I think The only thing that I saw with him is that he was one of the greatest competitors I’ve ever seen He does he’s not a bad teammate. He wants to raise your level to his And I think that’s what gets a bad view. It’s people that don’t know what it’s like to be in that huddle and be in that locker room.

I don’t think any player on the team would tell you he’s a bad teammate. He was demanding, but does that make you a bad teammate? I don’t think so. If he wants me, if he sees my potential this and I’m at this and he’s demanding of that, I don’t see that as a bad teammate. I see that as a great teammate.

That’s someone that wants to get the best out of me. And I think that that, single handedly, has impacted my career so much because when you go into the huddle, in a game, With Aaron Rodgers, Devontae Adams, Randall Cobb, Aaron Jones, your expectations is here. It’s at the roof. And you better not let anyone in that huddle down.

You better not. It’s an accountability thing. Like, these are the best guys in the league. You better not be the one that ruins this whole thing. So your standard gets from here to here. It raises. Just with the competition, the, the demand that these guys put on you. So that I think is the single greatest thing that has happened to me in the NFL is being surrounded by those guys and having the standard set so high for myself that you’re either going to fall off or you’re going to reach that standard.

And I think that’s been one of the biggest thing in my whole career. Did some

Richie Burke: people get rubbed the wrong way and you were like, Hey, this is good. He’s holding me to a high standard. Like I’m going to rise with it. I think,

Tyler Davis: I think the beauty of. Green Bay and just general NFL is that if you don’t rise to that occasion They’re gonna find somebody else that’s gonna that will so I think that’s just that’s how the league works You know, I mean, it’s a performance based business If you’re not gonna rise to that level of performance unfortunately, you’re gonna get let go and you’re gonna go somewhere else and They’ll find someone else to do it.

But I think that was the beauty of what what we were Has made everyone in Green Bay so special because the expectations are extremely high all the time.

Richie Burke: What was any, any first stories or first impressions of Devontae?

Tyler Davis: I mean, other than Aaron, just the best football player I’ve ever seen in person.

I remember my first couple practices, Aaron would throw him a go ball and Devontae would overrun it on purpose and just catch it behind his back. Yeah, I mean, just like ridiculous stuff, like the quickest dude I’ve ever seen. And extremely like helpful to, you know, I mean you know, I’d probably say I have a little different skill set than he does, but he’d always be willing to coach me and help me.

And I might not be able to do the same exact things that he does just from a athletic standpoint, but he’d be able to coach me through. As close to Devontae Adams as I could get, so he was very helpful the whole time. Yeah,

Richie Burke: and you guys get the one seed there. Yeah. Disappointing ending at home against the Niners.

Yep. Then the following year, missed the playoffs, and then the whole Aaron Rodgers darkness retreat, etc. happens. What was it like being a player on the roster and just not really knowing if he’s coming back or it’s going to be Jordan’s year? Was you’re kind of just sitting in uncertainty.

Tyler Davis: Yeah Yeah, exactly I think that was the thing I didn’t have any control of the situation.

So let me just do my thing here but obviously, you know, Aaron’s one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, but also like You can see that Jordan was going to be a great player too. And I’m glad that everyone got to see it this year because all of us had seen that, you know what I mean? The potential that Jordan has the last two years I’ve been in green bay.

So yeah, just focused on what I could.

Richie Burke: I mean, from a fan standpoint, I think I could speak for a lot of fans who are not inside the locker room at all. Like we were very pleasantly. Surprise because we saw him in limited game action. I think he started at Kansas City the year before that and maybe at the end of one game, which weren’t great performances by any means.

And then he, yeah, a little slow starts this year and then just went on an absolute tear. Yeah. And now I think is the favorite to be the MVP candidate out of, out of, out of NFC quarterbacks. Wow. Not AFC, but like NFC quarterbacks. That’s awesome. He looks like the real deal. He looks like great teammate.

What’s it, what’s it like? I guess you haven’t. Been in the huddle with him in a regular season game since your injury this year. But what’s what’s he like to play with?

Tyler Davis: He’s awesome. He’s awesome. It’s been cool to be able for everyone to see, you know, I mean, what we see a practice which has been cool.

Like, yeah, me and Jordan I mean, for the majority, when I was here for the first two years playing scout team with him and having fun with things me and him while Aaron was playing was awesome. So like me and him had a great like relationship, a lot of trust, a lot of like work together.

So that was kind of when we transitioned, when it was a for sure thing, I was pretty excited because I was like, okay, like I’ve worked with this guy for two years, got a great relationship, all this stuff. And then his knee happens and then pretty upset for that reason, but yeah, I was glad that everyone got to see the type of player that he is, like he’s a special talent.

It’s, it’s funny back when I was training for the combat and out in LA in 2020 and he came out the same draft class as I did. Yeah, and We went to this barbecue and Jordan was there and we all took a picture and all this stuff. And it’s funny because me and Jordan always joke around, like me and him have known each other more than anyone longer than anyone that’s currently on the team, like that I’ve known him the longest, so.

We got a great relationship. He’s an awesome dude. What’s he like off the field? Oh, great guy. Great guy. The nicest dude ever. We’re always constantly going out to dinners, having a good time. He always has, over his house, he’ll cater food and we’ll just watch the games, like a Monday night game or a Thursday night game.

Just an all around great guy.

Richie Burke: Nice. Before we get into some quick questions, the, the, the ACL, was that the first major injury you’ve ever suffered? And what, what’s that? Been like for you.

Tyler Davis: Yeah first major injury finally hit me 20 years of playing this game. Yeah, I mean start playing while six and then 20 years later now I’m 26 and finally hit me obviously a devastating blow I was really excited for the season for the reasons we just talked about Knew that I was hitting like the top performance in my career.

Had a great opportunity. You know, I mean, I learned a lot from Mercedes Lewis, Bobby Tanya and my previous two years. And I was really looking forward to putting it all together. You know, I mean, getting a good opportunity. I 10 tackles on special teams the year before I was looking to build off that.

So you’re preseason for Yeah. And then it’s crazy how it happens. You know, I mean, you You score, and then two minutes later, you’re out for the season. It’s crazy how fast things can change in an instant. And you just take it with, you just. Take the, the, the injury and you, you move on, you tack it like you do everything else.

I mean, that’s kind of what I’ve done the whole time. It’s just I’m not going to change who I am just for a circumstance. You know what I mean? It’s like, I’m gonna work as hard as I can, whether it’s ACL rehab or it’s playing the season. So, I know that I will be able to look back on this injury 10, 15 years from now and think that this was the best thing that ever happened to me.

And I know that’s crazy to think, but just philosophy wise, mentally, I think that this, an injury like this, really sets you apart in certain aspects of how you look at things in terms of perspective. You realize, like, how much you love something when it gets taken away from you. I think that’s huge and not, like I said, it’s not that I didn’t love the game before and not that I took stuff for granted.

I didn’t, but it heightens it and magnifies it even more. You know, like I I, I think back a lot to the times where I was a kid and I go on my front lawn by myself when I was six years old, seven years old and I’d take a football, I’d throw it up to myself. And I’d say, oh, Aaron Rodgers drops back to pass, he throws the ball up to, oh, Jordy Nelson makes the catch.

Like, that’s everything that I dreamed about, and that’s where I’m at right now. So, like, I think that’s given me more perspective to enjoy every single second that you have doing this. Because the NFL is like this compared to someone’s entire life. You know what I mean? It’s only a short time. It’s a physical game.

It’s gonna stop eventually. So, I think that’s been a, been a big thing for me. And then just like, I always think back to this quote my college strength coach said this to me. It’s like, are you willing to sprint when the distance is unknown? I think that kind of like stuck with me because it’s easy, like if you’re running a mile, And you’re at the three quarter mark and it’s like, okay, I only got a half mile.

I mean, I only got a quarter mile to go. Like I can make it through this. Yeah. I mean, that’s easy. You know what I mean? You can push through. Okay. We’ve got 10 gassers today. We’re at number nine. Anyone can make it through one. You own the sprint when you don’t know how many we have. There’s no book on how to come back from this perfectly.

You just got to give it every single day. And it’s like, when stuff bad happens to me, I’m the kind of guy that cranks it up. Like, I’m not the type of guy to wave the white flag and give up. Like, what example would that be to my future kids? It’s like, oh yeah stuff got hard for me, so I took it easy. I waved the white flag.

Like, what example would that be for them? Like, I want to be the guy known to like, when stuff got hard, He pushed even harder, long story, but to the original point, I’m confident that this will be the best thing that ever happened to me. I

Richie Burke: give you a lot

Tyler Davis: of credit

Richie Burke: because it’s got to be boring work for you.

Day after day, after day, after day two, you’re not putting on the pads. You’re not running routes. You’re just, you’re just in there doing these little exercises, probably every single day, trying to progress and getting up early and doing that.

Tyler Davis: That’s, that’s, that’s. That’s what it is. It’s all the and I’m glad that I already had that, but it’s just discipline.

You know, motivation is fleeting. You know, I mean, motivation is like, somebody could give me a speech, but like, that’s only going to last me an hour. That’s only going to last me two hours, a motivational speech. It’s the internal discipline is what’s going to take you a long period of time. It’s like, like you said, there’s points of the rehab that it is the same thing every single day.

Same thing for a three month period. Same thing for a six month period. And I’ve gotten to the point where I’ve gotten over that period, but it’s the discipline that’s been inside of me to know that I need to do this. What I did this year for special teams the coaches, they they got some like respect for me.

So what they wanted me to do is stick around and write up personnel reports. So I would watch the other team. I watch every player, every snap and write up something on them. And this takes like nine hours. So I’m in the facility longer than guys that are playing the season and I’m not even playing. And my point going back to that is that I was so determined from the beginning that I’m not going to let this year go to waste and I’m going to make something good come from it.

Because my end goal is to come back better than what I was this season. So, very thankful for those guys for giving me the opportunity. But like I said, I’m very determined to do that and excited for it. Yeah,

Richie Burke: you get through all that. Actually coming back when you’re on the field, you should be in a better space mentally than you were before it happened.

Absolutely. Let’s get to some quicker questions. What would be your single biggest wow moment in the NFL where you’re like, Holy shit, I can’t believe this is happening.

Tyler Davis: I think a cool one was Aaron’s breaking of Brett Favre’s touchdown record on Christmas. That was kind of cool. It’s one that’s just always in my memory bank to be able to, like I said, watch him as a kid and then watch him be there for the record.

I remember he beat the record. We. Alan Lazard scored a touchdown in our home tunnel section and then you look up on the screen and I’m on, I’m on field goal on the field and it’s Brett Favre at the top with a message to Aaron congratulating him. That one was cool just because you grew up and you got to see it and then be there for the moment so that was cool.

What is the biggest NFL? I think the biggest misconception is probably just. That these guys are superheroes. I think that’s what I thought as a kid. These guys are superheroes, but we’re regular human beings at the end of the day. And we have the same emotions. We have the same at home issues. We got the same stuff that regular people deal with.

I think people expect us to be like these super humans that can’t have emotions, can’t have a bad day, all this stuff. It’s like, can’t make a mistake. It’s like. We’re just like you, you know what I mean? We’re the same type of people. So I think that’s the biggest. So if you can do some superhuman stuff on the

Richie Burke: football field, you guys can do that.

That’s what y’all think. Yeah. College football or pro football.

Tyler Davis: The NFL is obviously always my dream, but I love college football. Any big purchases after getting an NFL check? My first purchase was a stim unit for my body to be able to recover faster.

Richie Burke: What an exciting answer, okay. Yes,

Tyler Davis: yes. Nothing major.

Richie Burke: Joe Vilmo was wondering, how difficult is it being a Young, somewhat attractive, professional athlete who’s married in the Green Bay, Wisconsin market where temptation could be everywhere.

Tyler Davis: Well, I appreciate that. I don’t know how true it is, but Green Bay, Green Bay is fun. Green Bay. It’s fun. Glad to have my beautiful wife here with me though.

That was a very well put politically correct answer right there. What’s your

Richie Burke: favorite thing about Wisconsin?

Tyler Davis: I think in general, if I were just a Green Bay it’s like a football town. Everyone loves the football. So I’d probably say Green Bay.

Richie Burke: Are people more friendly in Green Bay, Wisconsin or Long Island?

Tyler Davis: Oh man people probably won’t like me, but Green Bay. Very nice people up here. Crazy. You know, a New Yorker,

Richie Burke: come on. Yeah, I know, I know. Kind of setting you up for that. Craziest fan interaction that you’ve ever been a part of or, or just witnessed?

Tyler Davis: Oh, that’s tough. I wouldn’t say crazy. I mean, it’s crazy to me how diehard these fans are.

We’ll come back from a away trip and we’ll land at 4 in the morning, 3 in the morning, and there’s 50 fans there. Just a regular season away trip? Just regular season away trip. We win the game, we come back, they got signs, they’re all clapping us in to the airport. So, I’m, I’m nervous. That, that backs up your answer

Richie Burke: on friendliest people.

I agree,

Tyler Davis: yeah.

Richie Burke: Not, not many people doing that. Okay, out of these, the last three, I agree. Packers, starting quarterbacks, who throws the best ball? Jordan Love, Aaron Rodgers, or Craig Nall?

Tyler Davis: I can’t answer that one. Aaron, Aaron and Jordan.

Richie Burke: Who has the highest career passer rating out of three? Out of the three?

Tyler Davis: Jordan is young.

Richie Burke: Craig Knoll? Craig Knoll, 123 passer rating, career 5 touchdowns, 0 interceptions. I know my Packers history. What a legend. Kicker Ryan Longwell. Came under fire for saying Applebee’s is the finest restaurant in Green Bay and he eats there five to seven times a week. Has the restaurant scene improved since Ryan Longwell’s day and where, where do you go to eat when you’re in Green Bay?

Tyler Davis: I will absolutely say it’s improved. I will give a shout out to Angelina’s in Green Bay. Me and my wife go there every single Friday, every single Friday night.

Richie Burke: Angelina’s in Green Bay. Yes.

Tyler Davis: I’ve never been there.

Richie Burke: Check it out for sure. What is the biggest highlight of your career? Biggest

Tyler Davis: highlight of my career?

I mean, personally it’s probably kind of set me up. I had a big catch versus the Ravens in 21. Like a 30 yard seam down the middle, that was a cool play. Kind of sparked my career, so I’d probably say that. From

Richie Burke: Aaron, right? Oh yeah, from Aaron. Career goals moving forward? Right now? You’re an unrestricted free agent right now?

Yeah. I think things indicate that you’ll be back next year. We’re hoping to have you back next year. Any, any just career goals moving

Tyler Davis: forward? I think it’s just give everything that I have. It’s kind of just the same formula that I’ve stuck to my whole life. It’s like, if you give everything that you have, everything will work out.

And if it doesn’t, you can look yourself in the mirror and be able to say, you got no regrets, you gave everything you had. So just give my all every day and I know everything will work out.

Richie Burke: Love that answer. Going off of that. What makes you so motivated and disciplined? Have you always been that this way?

Is there a moment? Was there people in your life?

Tyler Davis: I think obviously my parents, you know what I mean? They held me to a high standard. I was the oldest. I kind of set the example. I hope that I’ve set a good example for My younger brothers. Were they, were they athletes? Was your dad an athlete? No very thankful that I was even able to play football because my dad was not allowed to play football by his parents.

I mean, I thought it was too dangerous. So very thankful to my parents for letting me even play. But I think just the, it comes from obviously that, but I’m just so self motivated that, you know, I don’t really need anything else. I feel like that’s the best way to go about things is that you’ll never need.

Any other additional motivation, if it’s all self driven advice to younger athletes who want to make it someday, I’d say there’s no substitute for the work. There’s no, there’s no substitute. Like I said where I come from, there’s no, I didn’t know anyone that played in the NFL. There’s no book on how to get to the NFL.

You just got to give everything that you have every day. I mean, yeah. What do you want to sacrifice for it? I feel like I sacrificed a lot for it. It started in high school I left high school early my senior year Missed the back half of my senior year because I didn’t think that It was important to stay and do all the fun stuff that you do your senior year in high school When we were in college and there was a party I was the guy with five guys that was throwing routes.

I was willing to sacrifice all the social stuff to hopefully achieve my dream. And if I were to go back and do it again, I’d do the same thing all over again, because at the end of the day, if it didn’t work out, I could say that I gave everything that I had. There’s nothing more I could have gave, but there’s not a single day where I.

Regret not going to a college party. And not yeah, I mean instead of going to work my craft So I probably say I mean there’s no substitute for the work and what you’re willing to sacrifice to get what you what you want

Richie Burke: It’s a great answer to go off that for those listening to I did offer tyler a central standard new brandy old fashion That they collaborated on with the line and kugel’s that is very good just came out It’s a saturday afternoon and he is drinking a nice bottle of water You That is the kind of guy you want in the locker room right there.

Final, or second, final question. Most most memorable moment as a Packer?

Tyler Davis: I think when we clinched a 1 C that was fun. Kind of to know that we were the best team in the NFL. It’s crazy the things that, it didn’t work out that year. I always say this, I said there’s not a team in the league that you know, the best team doesn’t always win, but I always hold that to my heart that I know that we were the best team in the league that year.

So I’d probably say that was pretty cool.

Richie Burke: Yeah. And then final question. Is there one thing that you want a message you want to say to all the Packer fans

Tyler Davis: out there? I think, you know, there’s a great future here. We’re really excited for, we’ve got a young group of guys that are hungry and motivated.

So. We’re all excited for the future and we hope you guys are just as excited.

Richie Burke: I can say we are as one, one Packer fan of very many. Well, thank you so much for coming on today. It was great seeing you and that was awesome. Appreciate you having me. It’s awesome. Thank you for tuning into this episode with Packers tight end, Tyler Davis.

We’ve got some more good ones coming, so make sure to subscribe wherever you are listening. And if you do write a review, leave your email or Instagram handle at the end of that review, and you’ll automatically be entered into our weekly giveaways. This podcast is produced by Story Mark Studios in partnership with On Milwaukee and sponsored by Nicolet Law and Central Standard Distillery.