The Colt McCoy Story

football has been what I've done for 37 years 3 years old and I was the water boy on my dad's football team and I've been around the game every day ever since McCoy's going to run he's to the 30 to the 25 doubt that I didn't give my best foot forward that I didn't work harder I I couldn't I couldn't watch more tape I couldn't do more right for Touchdown Texas Co McCoy his sixth touchdown pass of the night that is a long McCoy scrambling trying to keep the Play Alive McCoy comes back to Texas Victorious as I kind of move on from the game I gave it all I [Music] had be team Two Bills going to be team three John going to be team four h will be team five only my games after that so we'll rotate through the game I was born in Hobs New Mexico I can't confirm or deny this but they said that my dad drove across the border wasn't that far a few miles filled up a shoe box full of dirt and slid it under the hospital bed so I'd be born Over Texas dirt I decided that if he wasn't going to be born in Texas he could at least be born Over Texas soil all my heroes growing up were the quarterbacks for my dad high school football teams and Colt was one of those kids that was intensely interested in what was going on to the point that he was on the sidelines a lot from a very young age but he actually knew what was happening you know I'll never forget it we were in a playoff game one year I think he might have been a fifth or sixth grader and I I feel somebody kind of tug at me you know and I'm I'm looking and it's my you know it's my fifth grade son he said Dad thr the screen don't the screen I'm like what thr the screen and it's like well I can't nothing else has work why not try it and we throw and it goes for about 45 and we score the next play and I'm like okay he's got he sees it I just remember growing up when he would drop me off at school or my mom would drop me off they always told me do do your best and be a leader and you learn all those lessons when you play sports having my dad as my coach was special you he pushed me to be the absolute best I could be and if I was good enough I could play I just wanted to win every time I stepped inside those white lines that competitive side of me just kept growing and growing growing Colt made the guys in his high school better you know because they didn't want to let CT down I wanted to be the best you know I seen all the guys that my dad had coached I wanted to be better than all of them right and I knew what that took and what that looked like and smelled like and tasted like because I got to see a bunch of different versions of it I just committed myself to being able to do that McCoy's going to run he's to the 30 to the 25 to the 20 Colt McCoy he Dives he's in touchdown Colt McCoy we were undefeated Co junior year we lost the state championship we were on the field offensively when the game ended we get beat by a touchdown everybody's kind of heartbroken I look out there and Colts on the ground I I didn't know if he would got hit in the last play so I make my way out to him and he's just struggling and I said you okay and he was heaving and he was just crying was just distraught and I'm like hey man you're okay we're going to line up do it again next year good job Y and he just kept on it got it got to the point I got mad at him and I said hey suck it up let's go take it you know you're you're a big boy we got beat let's go and he looked at me said I don't know how so when you don't know how he said I don't know how to do this I've never I've never been on the field after I lost he's a junior in high school he' been undefeated as a seventh grader undefeated as an eighth grader undefeated on our freshman team undefeated uh as a as a as a sophomore junior year here we were 15 15 and0 and that was the first time he had ever been standing on a field uh after a loss and that hit me really hard I mean like that's unbelievable people just kept asking me as he grew you know can he play at Texas I said I don't know I've never coached division one but I know what he can do and people will follow him it's hard to get recruited when you grow up in a town of 700 people I'll never forget the day that the phone rang and I got to answer m brown was on the other end of the line want to talk to coach McCoy and and I don't think I it really set in on how special that was he graduated from high school was 6'2 168 lbs and got a full scholarship University of Texas it wasn't because he was bigger stronger and faster than everybody it's because m brown had seen those relational skills those leadership skills those how his teammates followed him through High School how he made them better when Texas offered me it was kind of like yeah this is what we're going to do that just doesn't happen where I grew up I don't know that anybody's expectations were for me to go in there and play four years at the flagship School of our state right I don't think I expected that I didn't know what I was getting myself [Music] into the Texas Longhorns when they're good college football is good when my dad dropped me off Coach Brown knew I was a coach's kid he knew I would grew up around the game game he knew I knew the expectations and so he pushed me hard all the time there was no shortcuts there was nothing going to be handed to me but I realized real quickly there was going to have to be some massive changes for me if I ever wanted to play here when I got to UT I was a little bit under 61 and 170 lbs and like looking around and being like I don't think I belong here I put on a bunch of weight I got stronger I sat in meetings every day I ran the scout team I ask everybody questions all the time what about this what about this I absorbed everything when we were at the Rose Bowl the night before the game you know I've run the scout team you know giving it my best all week and now it's like I'm just eating hamburgers I don't I don't do anything but we're at Universal Studio and Vince he comes up to me puts his arm around me and say hey young fell like this is this is my last game right this is going to be your show next year I knew that he was going to go out and play well in the game and I knew he was going to go NFL and so that I didn't sleep that night can can I do this right it there was a a a long period of that break after the Rosewell game before we went back to school just like cannot do this you're following a program that just won the National Championship I mean that's stress I have to figure out who I'm going to be and how I'm going to do this we had got jevin Sneed as a freshman and it was basically he and I gonna you know the best May the best man win as Coach Brown said I wasn't looking to the first game I was looking at I want to win this job I want to win this job I want to be the best for this team what am I doing today to make myself the best Coach Brown told me that I would start the first game as a freshman um but that we were both going to play and so I said okay well all right like my job is to not come off this field again right and we go in and play North Texas and I throw four touchdowns and I don't ever come off the field again scram left escapes a tackle looks Fires for the end zone that ball is juggled and caught touchdown T it bootle rolls right throws right The End Zone caught touchdown rolling back right McCoy he's looking toward Pitman In The End Zone throws back over the middle C touchdown Texas back to pass he's going deep up the right sideline for sweep he makes the catch playing at the University of Texas like I owned that I was playing for all of them I recognized that like that's the best school in our state and I get to play here like nothing but my best I remember colle from the very beginning he was like I want to win a National Championship that's my goal since he was in the seventh grade I've been calling plays I've been calling protections I've been doing everything to make him safe protect him all and all a sudden I'm sitting stands and I'm somebody else is doing that the pride of that and watching games that he came back and led his team in in wide freshman year and won the Alam bner that's a step in the right direction but we can't be going to the Alamo Bowl anymore right like that's not good enough that's not the expectation got banged up my sophomore year turned the ball over too much some days you didn't want to go to class cuz you were frustrated or you were embarrassed and the stress and the the anxiety of making sure at all costs that you figure out a way to to uphold these expectations these Traditions so we get into the bowl game prep we're going to go play Arizona state in the Holiday Bowl and Coach Brown calls me up and says well I've watched all your tape I appreciate you fighting through injuries you know you're the leader of this football team guys guys follow you but it hasn't been good enough you're going to split reps with the other quarterback in the bowl game as a sophomore I already I mean I've played almost 25 games up to this point and so I was like okay we split time uh in the first half of the Arizona State Holiday Bowl I still want MVP don't get it twisted but the pressure and the expectations were well known Not only was I pissed off about that what I ultimately settled on was like you know what he's right wasn't good enough I got to be better it worked I was super pissed about it but it worked touchdown Texas how about Gold mcoy Fires for the End Zone caught touchdown Texas no one touchdown Texas mcoy does it on his feet I was going crazy cuz I just wanted to tell everybody hey I know that guy and we could not have dinner for the amount of people that would line up and want autographs I'm your biggest fan and I was like I know you are but I'm his mom and I just really want him to be able to eat I mean he's tired rolling left looking at thr still looks now Fires for the endone sh did he make the catch he did touchdown [Music] Texas it was really cool to see him in the background just so steady and so focused and so humble too I think he did a great job of celebrating his teammates and those around him but never really celebrated and let it affect him okay I guess I'll enjoy it he's not he's not going to it's ties for the looking for oh my goodness we won basically every award outside of the Heisman you know and a lot of them for a couple times and it was a representation of how good our coaches were you know how great my teammates were this means a whole lot to me yes I'm thankful for this and I worked really hard but I couldn't do this without everybody else I almost left to go to the NFL after my junior year as I was projected as a first round pick mid to late first round pick I could care less about going back to a highman trophy ceremony like I want to win the national championship and and when Coach Brown and I talked about it in his office like he committed to it I committed we we knew we had a chance I want to win a National Championship and that's going to drive me all offseason that's going to be my goal and that's why I'm staying you know the bond and the and the camaraderie the joy that we all had playing together we had battled through a bunch a lot of adversity that year so much that people didn't understand or recognize or realize [Applause] to get to that point was a credit to everybody shley score touchdown Texas oh mama playing the Rose Bowl is I mean there's nothing like it I felt great about the plan I knew that sa was going to pressure us I knew every Blitz he had I knew every coverage behind that Blitz I recogn I'd watched it all I mean I was ready now the option look and col McCoy bang col is hurt that means the untested Freshman that's Garrett gilber one of the most unfortunate things of my career uh it was just you know to have that one just not been able to play that game that that stung that will always sting you know he was sitting on the train room all by himself he'd run everybody else out and he just looked at me he said dad I had them said I had them I knew what they were doing before they did it why does this stuff happen there's no answer to why but you know I just flashed back to that high school game that he lost and all of a sudden we're here again he said i' I would have given anything every reward I ever won I would give anything to just a finished with my team I question God you know of of of all the people why Cold injuries happen there's 100% chance you're going to get hurt you just don't want to get hurt in that moment on that stage and in that game and that's that's the part that's tough you know I felt like I let everyone else down that was the hardest part for me I can deal with an injury it was my teammates I was telling my daughter I explained you know your dad had this really exciting game you know he got hurt and they lost and it was so disappointing and I'll cry and think about it but I loved that I got to point her to his interview of handling defeat the way he didb Colt McCoy Colt what was it like for you to watch this game your your last game in a longor uniform from the sideline uh [Music] I love this game I have a passion for this game I've done everything I can to contribute to my team and we made it this far and and it's unfortunate I didn't get to play I you know I I would have given I'd have given everything I had to be out there with my team but congratulations to Alabama I love the way our team fought things happen the way they do uh God is in control of my life uh and I know that nothing else I'm standing on the Rock days after that I just was depressed and down frustrated and angry because I felt like I let everyone else down this thing bothered me my whole career this is I I'm reminded of this all the time right this isn't something that just goes away so when I went to the combine you're seeing all these like team doctors and you know everyone's trying to figure out they got their own diagnosis we can't dve we can't we can't we don't know if he's going to when when is going to shoulders going to be ready you know I think that scared off a bunch of teams that were probably interested in me earlier and the Browns took a fly on me in the third round at the time I just was so frustrated as a competitor because I knew I was going to be better and there was I was just helpless at the time Young quarterback Colt McCoy yeah Colt McCoy's all eyes will be on him in his Jake delom gets hurt and Colt has to walk in as a rookie and start on a team that wasn't real strong I wasn't fully healthy like my whole rookie year I was not fully healthy but we actually I actually played pretty good my Rook here MCO throws on the of his corner but I loved Cleveland you know I gave it my all I got no regrets from Cleveland it shows you something about Co McCoy I just wanted to win more racking my brain every Sunday night I'd go home and just put my face in my hands and be like Colt's expectations on himself were just so high trying to do it all he's trying to be the best on the field the best in the locker room the best husband you're were just married so we were just learning how to navigate what else can I do like I have to work harder I got to figure this out like I'm better than this we're better than this this I just could never figure it out I felt my football days were about like I I I was like I just I don't know what to do right so we good stuff if you don't have your t-shirt on we kind of want you to do that maybe at the first break Cleveland was just so taxing on his body on and just the stress that he had you guys ready to have some fun today yes sir hey let's do this man we got great weather I don't know that he really got to enjoy football maybe like he used to and so once we got to San Francisco he absolutely lit up and that team just had so many awesome veterans too just to see that is how you win this is the caliber players this is what they do in the building and be able to sit back and learn how you should be able to when you're 24 San Francisco reviv survived my career and then I had a chance to become a free agent for the first time and that's when I signed in Washington and I played there for seven years I wanted to play for Jay I had loved watching his offenses play the coaching staff that we had there from him to Shawn McVey I mean I could go down the list I was able to just reimmerse myself in the football that was the most fun I had in a long time I was playing in a system that I really liked and enjoyed I understood the why it was fun again like football was fun again like a picked me up B12 shot like I enjoyed it again he texted us and said hey I'm starting on Monday night football versus the Cowboys I want y'all there and so the guys got together he got his tickets we're up there going nuts for the Redskins about to get killed by all these Cowboy fans and we finally said listen we're rooting for Colt not the Redskins and we want him to have a good game cuz we coached him boy looks deep takes a shot to Shan Jackson Breaking Free and caught it at the 40 yd line first and 10 playaction pass shot downfield to Deshawn Jackson separating and Hauling it in Jackson inside his head first and goal Washington how about that quarterback drum touchdown then all of a sudden just like in everything else our whole section is rooting for Colts even though they're Cowboys fans gold mcoy comes back to Texas Victorious football's hard like there's there's nothing about this game that's easy and when you recognize that and then you go out there and you just do it over and over and over day after day like you start to see a little bit of improvement I played in Washington for seven years and I had uh many chances to start and be the guy and I battled injuries in in those Seasons the hardest part about the NFL is injuries at least for me like I just was always banged up and I always had something in times where I felt like I could kind of take the job and run with it I would something would happen really I would say he's had a lot of instances in his career with as many wins the disappointments have been major disappointments the faith of that kid is huge because it just every time he got in a position to be the guy you know something happens he has fought his way through but he would tell you and I would tell you and his dad and Rachel would tell you that their faith has got them through and that is something that's going to carry him onto the rest of the life that he's going to lead I think there's definitely injuries that anger you especially when they come in the wrong times right like senior year in college or couple years I had in Washington where I was playing good and and just kind of something happens break your leg you break your thumb they had I think four surgeries in 5 months or a lot quite a bit and our girls were old enough they were Todds at the time and so they saw how difficult it was it was awesome and hindsight that our kids got to see him struggle and see how he came out of it and how hard he worked and that this isn't just something that he's walked into and was handed but have that perspective of the struggle too I think has just been a gift [Music] you know every day I approached it as what can I learn today how can how can I grow like I know the the physical tools that God gave me I'm grateful for them but my Edge is how can I outsmart somebody else what what else can I learn how can I grow to make sure that like quick second decisions are are done I'm confident in those that I can recognize coverage that I can recognize pressures and blitzes and fronts how they match up all like that's what I've trained my mind and my brain to do year after year after year after year and that's why I love the game one chapter of it is coming to an end the chapter of going out there and playing I just it's it's I I can't my elbow just doesn't not going to allow me to do that that's not an excuse that's just how it is and and but the love for the game the passion for it the the enjoyment I find from it um listen like I love football it's a beautiful sport it's a great game and it's taught me so much about my makeup my DNA my competitive Spirit I'm very very very appreciative of it I hate that that I can't play anymore but I'm also grateful for what the good Lord allowed me to do and and how long I got to play like I as a kid growing up in West Texas like you know we all have dreams but pushing myself and and working and being fortunate to be around great great people and coaches and teammates it was a it was a dream come [Music] true there's a lot of things I want to pursue and and learn and go chase I'm so excited to see him learn a new craft and to be able to put passion into something else being around a great group of guys at Underdog and and being able to talk scheme and and football is a blessing and it comes from a really pure place in my heart of like talking up like how good these guys are how tough it is to play at at the professional level at any position and then to be able to be in a booth and call games and be in awesome stadiums and atmospheres whatever the next chapter holds I'm excited for and I'm truly grateful for my career in the NFL and there was highs and lows and yeah there was there was things I would have loved to accomplish and didn't but you know I didn't come to UT to go to the NFL like I came to UT to come play football and it turned into a 14-year career in the NFL which I'm very grateful for and humbled by and but I'd be crazy to not say that there was so many people from this place in particular that impacted me and as a person as an athlete as a quarterback so I mean I can't think enough people you know who you are but I get a little choked up when you walk in here and you start thinking about like man this was this was kind of a place where I developed confidence and I want a job and then I got to play for 4 years I don't know if anybody's everever going to do that again through it all like I became a a better man and you I'm I'm so grateful for that