McCoy Says Tampa Folks “Are Not As Nice”
March 9th, 2011
Joe’s not going to completely blast Gerald McCoy for giving an honest answer about his off-the-field experiences in Tampa. After all, the guy is coached by the big D-line maven in the sky, but Joe is amazed by McCoy’s immaturity about all things media.
During a news conference in Oklahoma last week, per Rivals.com video, McCoy was asked about living in Tampa.
First he talked about his house and the weather, and then he spit out the following gem: “People are not as nice as Oklahoma. But it’s alright. I’m going to bring some niceness to Tampa.”
McCoy wasn’t joking.
Now Joe’s unsure of what McCoy considers “nice,” since he was the sweetheart Twittering play by play of an apparent domestic battery in San Diego last month rather than calling 911. Maybe that’s “nice” in Oklahoma, but in Joe’s Clearwater neighborhood, most folks call the cops when women are in danger.
Last Joe checked, those not as “nice” folks in Tampa gave McCoy $40 million and a radio show (he didn’t have one in Oklahoma). Plus he was embraced by Bucs fans before he ever did anything on the field, and he was given love and patience while completely clueless on the field for the first quarter of the 2010 season — and after that, and after he got hurt.
What, did some bagger at Sweetbay give him attitude? After McCoy bought Jeff Faine’s former palace on Rocky Point, did a landscaper trample his flower bed? Perhaps Jerramy Stevens gave him some odd smelling oregano?
It’s time for McCoy to hire a publicist, or simply shutup.
March 9th, 2011 at 1:34 am
A little butt hurt about this are ya Joe? Geesh…
I live in KS, and its true people in the midwest are “nicer” than “folks” on the coasts, its a fact. Ive lived in several places, Mississippi, Guam, Alaksa, Australia, etc and midwest people are simly “nicer” than people on the coasts. No reason to raise hell about it Joe, geesh!
March 9th, 2011 at 1:35 am
Just write up an article about how Raheem is going to unite the Barber twins and go drink you a beer, you need to cool down Joe….
March 9th, 2011 at 1:38 am
For what it is worth, you ask if the definition of nice in the Midwest includes leaving a woman to get abused in a room next door…to be honest, I have only heard of those things happening on the coasts; the big guy probably just was so unsure of himself that he didn’t know how to handle it; he is barely more than a kid after all, at what, 23?
March 9th, 2011 at 1:41 am
Addendum:
People in the midwest say hello to each other on the street. People in the midwest treat each other with respect. People in the midwest don’t go on a website and slam a guy for being young. The people in Tampa didn’t give McCoy a radio show, the radio station did. By the by, all this love he was shown; was that before or after people were calling him a bust because he wasn’t Suh? Oh wait, that was for five minutes after he was drafted!
March 9th, 2011 at 1:45 am
Joe here,
When Joe was young, Joe was responsible for what came out of his mouth. There’s no reason not to hold McCoy to that standard. … He said it, not Joe. … He’s entitled to his opinion, but he’s foolish for putting it out there in the way he did.
March 9th, 2011 at 1:48 am
How on Earth can fans allow a player to clown their fanbase?
Yet on this very blog, the people leaving comments are all too forgiving of McCoy?
Agendas, agendas… tsk, tsk.
Can I get a list of the guys on the “protected” list please? I find it tough to believe that veterans such as Davin Joeseph, Jeff Faine and Barrett Ruud can so easily get trashed in their contract years, but McCoy, Raheem, et al SHALL NOT BE QUESTIONED! (in the horse voice from the TD cartoon).
So, who is on the “protected” list and who is “unprotected” from criticisim?
I sure would like to know.
History 101: a former first round draft pick, drafted with the 4th pick, Gaines Adams was not protected in the slightest fashion as McCoy is. I even recall idiots justifying their critique of him even as they said their RIPs. So sad.
March 9th, 2011 at 1:55 am
WeNeedDefense:
NO d-tackle is ever good as a rookie, we were lucky GMC played as well as he did his rookie year.
Suh is a freak and a 1ce in a decade player, we dont have him, so get over it, its unrealistic to expect GMC to be Suh.
March 9th, 2011 at 1:58 am
Wienaman:
As a product of the Midwest, the people of the Tampa Bay area are as nice as they come.
Joe’s originally from the St. Louis area, southern Illinois. People there are mean.
Joe worked — in a very public position — in Kansas City and people there are downright angry 24/7.
Joe worked for years in Chicago — they hate the world unless it’s, of course, Chicago.
So Joe knows the Midwest.
Residents of the Tampa Bay area are the nicest Joe has encountered outside of Pittsburgh, Wisconsin and Michigan. It’s a significant reason Joe chose to live here… for good.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:01 am
Joe, from my personal experience here in ‘Fort Worth’ and interactions with folks in Oklahoma, people ARE more approachable and ‘nicer’ then in Tampa. I believe it’s due to so many northern transplants (New Yorkers) bringing some attitude with them down south.
That’s not to say, there are not a TON of nice folks there. It’s just that this area has more of a small town feel. People will go WAYYYY out of their way in these small towns comparatively speaking. It’s a completely different feel then Tampa.
Also, you are throwing a red herring into the discussion since the ‘domestic’ case happened in San Diego and NOT in Oklahoma. McCoy didn’t say San Diego folks were nicer…
March 9th, 2011 at 2:01 am
WND:
I think I will state my “agenda”, here and now. First off, I have only posted a couple of times on this site. Secondly, I believe in Joseph, and Ruud both; I look at a player’s body of work, and those two, in my opinion, stand up to the test. I don’t agree with peoples’ criticisms of their play, because I don’t see it. Insofar as McCoy, I don’t know if he will live up to the standard of being picked 3rd in a draft or not, but I DO understand that 3/4 of one year is not enough time to go to judgement on him; Suh did well this last year because he had vets surrounding him, and because he is an awesome talent that was going to the Lions regardless, so McCoy is unfairly compared to him? That doesn’t fly with me. For McCoy’s comments, I don’t disagree with them. As Travis said, people in the Midwest, quite simply, ARE NICER. McCoy made an innocent statement that is factual. His “personality problems”, from my point of view, are based in his age and experience, nothing else; hence, I don’t view them as problems and trying to rake him across the coals for such raises my ire.
Faine, however…he is the same age as me, so I know what kind of maturity level to expect out of him; his warping of the facts, and trying to jerk tears out of people disgusts me to no end, so no, he is not on *my* “protected list”.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:04 am
Joe here
@Scholty – Uhh, the Twitter episode is not a red herring considering McCoy was raised in Oklahoma.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:06 am
Joe: I live in KC now, and have no idea what you mean about people in KS being angry 24/7?
How so, I never see angry people, and when we drive past each other we wave, When i drive by people in FL they flip me off….
March 9th, 2011 at 2:08 am
No one said a word about suh.
Part of being an NFL Professional has to do with how they communicate to the media. Trashing the city you play in is BEYOND ridiculous. why are you defending him with:
“McCoy made an innocent statement that is factual.”
Now you, as a fan, immediately come to his rescue?
The guy made a moronic comment. Don’t apologize for him.
No different than Talib punching a cab driver in the back of the head, don’t apologize for him. And for God’s sakes, stop killing Joe over reporting LEGIT news.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:13 am
WND: I think your losing perspective here, saying fans in Oklahoma are better than in Tampa is not an issue to cut him from the team like you making it out to be, nor is it as moronic as punching a cab driver….
Form what he experienced in his rookie year (lowest attendence in the league) for a team that was 10-6 is disgusting compared to the sea of red OU fans that will show up if the team is 0-12.
Yeah id say they are better, kill me if im wrong….
Not to mention college fans in general are more “exciting” than pro fans, have you been to a college game? the expierence kicks pro footballs a$$, hot college chicks, crazy student sections, bands, etc. It just doesnt compare. And im a total pro football fan and only follow college football for the scouting process.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:14 am
Joe said it best:
“It’s time for McCoy to hire a publicist, or simply shutup.”
AGREED.
and good night.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:21 am
“…It’s time for McCoy to hire a publicist, or simply shutup.”
what in the hell? When did I say Cut McCoy?
The player of an NFL team said the fans in his NFL team’s city/community were not nice. That is Dumb and Moronic. You don’t trash the city you play in unless you want out.
About the Jeff Faine subject, I completely disagree with Joe on that one. To me, Jeff is trying to represent the union and trying to get what his fellow players deserve. He was also being honest about off-season get togethers and in no way was trashing Freeman. On that one, Faine is being unfairly villanized.
But for a player to trash his team’s city? That’s an EASY ONE! It’s downright stupid.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:22 am
Joe, there’s a big difference between your accountability for your statements when you were young and McCoy. I’d be willing to wager at 23 you both said and did plenty of moronic things. But I don’t think you were surrounded by media constantly looking for sound-bites, or had thousands of people reading your tweets looking for the smallest thread of indiscretion or had to worry at all about what you posted anywhere for that matter. The vast majority of us live in relative anonymity and the worst a dumb comment can do is hurt us in a job interview down the road or offend the ten actual friends we have. So yeah, we’re accountable, but not nearly at the same level. It’s not really fair to hold yourself and McCoy to the same scrutiny considering you don’t know how you would have handled being under that microscope.
Not to mention, the age of social media has had to make this current generation (myself included) much more self-aware about the things we say and write than any previous generation has ever had to be because there now exists a very public and exploitable record of every stupid thing you’ve every uttered or mashed into a keyboard. Apples and oranges.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:22 am
Oops…. the quote should have been “is not an issue to cut him from the team like you making it out to be..” Which I never claimed. Joe you need edit.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:24 am
It was a mistake for McCoy to stereotype all Tampa residents. If the US is a melting pot then Tampa/St Pete metro area is a snapshot of that. Our residents are from everywhere…. in the world and not just the US. He’s a good kid but has a lot to learn. Lesson number one as Joe stated is to keep your mouth shut. Answer their questions, think about what you are going to say before you blurt it out, and don’t volunteer too much information. The media is not your friend, not now, not ever. I think people as a whole were much happier a few years ago than now. C’mon Gerald, if we were all making millions each year, we would be the happiest, partying, money wasting people in the country.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:26 am
@ Pewter: You said:
“[Joe] I’d be willing to wager at 23 you both said and did plenty of moronic things.”
Joe says (writes) at LEAST 1 moronic thing every day on JBF! Just go look at his archives!!! 🙂
March 9th, 2011 at 2:31 am
If Joe and/or anyone else is still butt hurt, go over to twitter and check out GMC’s latest post.
Joe im sure that post was made JUST for you. GMC has love for you even if your hating on him….
March 9th, 2011 at 2:42 am
Okay, this is stupid. It is really ignorant to say that people in place A are nicer than people in place B. Unless you know every single person in all these places, versus basing your opinion of a region by the few people you do know, then you are talking out of your arse. This goes for McCoy, Joe, and anyone else who claims such ridiculous notions. I’ve lived and visited all over the world and I’ve learned that there are nice people everywhere, and there are arse holes everywhere. McCoy should not have made that statement, plain and simple. He needs to (and I’m sure he will) learn how to give the generic answers. However, like Joe, I’m not going to blast him for it. I guarantee you if any of us had a microphone around us all the time, we would also make some pretty stupid statements occasionally.
March 9th, 2011 at 2:53 am
What’s the big deal? The way I read it (I didn’t watch the video), he isn’t saying people in Tampa aren’t nice. He’s just saying that people, in general, are nicer in Oklahoma. I take no offense to this and I don’t think it’s fair to lambast the guy. I don’t think it’s a stupid statement and I certainly don’t thinks it’s newsworthy.
March 9th, 2011 at 3:27 am
“Last Joe checked, those not as “nice” folks in Tampa gave McCoy $40 million and a radio show (he didn’t have one in Oklahoma). Plus he was embraced by Bucs fans before he ever did anything on the field, and he was given love and patience while completely clueless on the field for the first quarter of the 2010 season — and after that, and after he got hurt.”
Because you know that McCoy is talking about the Bucs and their fans…right?
He said “Florida”….and then said he’s going to bring some niceness to “Tampa.” I don’t recall him saying that Bucs fans aren’t as nice…or that Dominik (or management) isn’t as nice. If asked, I’m sure he’d say that that the Bucs organization is nice and that the fans are nice. He’s probably said that (with different words) in several interviews already. Surely he has met people NOT associated with the Bucs in Florida…
Several people I know have met the kid and think he’s really nice and a good guy. I think you should stop being so butt hurt over small comments that most people seem to understand. (apparently not you though)
Look, first you say you don’t have an agenda against Faine…and you proceed to write several more stories criticizing him along with side comments in other random stories. Now, you write that you aren’t going to completely blast GMC for giving an honest answer….and you proceed to blast GMC for giving an honest answer (this coming directly after another story that everyone seems to get except for you).
March 9th, 2011 at 3:36 am
Travis:
Joe doesn’t “hate” GMC, but if you wish to believe that, knock yourself out.
Joe has spent a good portion of the offseason actually defending the guy.
March 9th, 2011 at 3:43 am
Travis:
Trust Joe, he knows all too well. Most angry people Joe has ever had to deal with. All people there do is b!tch night and day. The amount of phone calls Joe fielded from people b!tching and complaining was unreal. Nowhere has Joe worked and lived come close. Not even remotely close. People there are just angry with the world.
March 9th, 2011 at 7:21 am
could this just be paraphrasing from a conversation that these guys had? just asking….
March 9th, 2011 at 7:22 am
It’s funny. Sam Bradford more or less slapped Missouri fans in the face after MU beat OK this last season. He said to the effect that he went to OK because that program knows how to win championships and MU doesn’t. Outside of the fact that he’s correct (unfortunatly), media in St. Louis more or less laughed it off. They certainly didn’t get so defensive over such a meaningless statement.
I have lived in the Midwest most of my life, but have traveled to all the coasts with Florida being the most visited. There are pricks everywhere in this nation, so Joe claiming that KC is nothing but A-holes is more rediculous than what GMC said.
Since the interview, GMC has been tweeting about the fans in TB being great. I think he realized that his statement might rub some people the wrong way and is trying to right the ship. Joe must not have caught those tweets.
March 9th, 2011 at 8:01 am
He said what he feels. I don’t care. I know my Band loved the midwest, especially Kansas and Missouri, which had an unusually large amount of beautiful women of harvesting age. After much debate- we decided it most be the corn rich diet. People were very friendly, even to visiting musicians with bad intent !
McCoy is probably thinking about the local moron media, and idiots like Thomas 2.2 inches- who were loudly proclaiming McCoy a bust by the end of his first quarter of play.- yeah, that would make you question the character and intelligence of a lot of people! Had the same effect on me!
March 9th, 2011 at 8:34 am
Last summer I spent a week in Oklahoma, one of the many places I visit each year. I told my wife that the people were ridiculously nice, almost annoying so. It was something that you couldn’t help but notice. How nice does Tampa look when a guy can’t even give an honest answer to a question without being blasted. “Nice” people would just let it go.
March 9th, 2011 at 8:46 am
He’s right
March 9th, 2011 at 8:47 am
For a bit of perspective, I live in Miami and Im always telling people how much nicer Tampa people are than Miami people. Ask anyone down here about that and they’ll tell you to go f yourself. Then they’ll steal your car and talk about the Dolphins. Its horrible. Tampa people are saints (not the football kind) compared to people down here. However, it doesn’t mean they’re the nicest. Perhaps GMC is right when comparing to Oklahoma people. They may be OK.
March 9th, 2011 at 9:19 am
Wow, so sensitive…I appreciate the kid telling what he obviously believes to be truth. We complain when coaches and players just give us the scripted PC usual sports talk, then we bash a guy for speaking freely. If you were actually offended by that and not just writing to stir the pot, you are the one who needs to grow up.
March 9th, 2011 at 9:35 am
McCoy is right. As Csidedave said, people are so nice that it can become annoying. Good to see GM speak his mind. I wish he would have also said, “I wish the Tampa fans would show up to our games and sell them out.”
March 9th, 2011 at 9:52 am
If he wants to see rude and disrespectful, tell MCcoy to come down here to the South Florida-Miami area. It is true that Florida do not have the same southern hospitality culture as a Georgia, SC or maybe Oklahoma, but I wouldn’t say that Tampa is a down right rude place at least from my experience. He is just a young kid that had a culture shock and still trying to adjust to Florida. Naturally, when your from a place you over look a lot of the negatives because your used to it and feel comfortable.
March 9th, 2011 at 11:55 am
He didn’t “bash” Tampa at all. I don’t know where anyone is getting that. Bashing would be coming out and saying “Tampa sucks, the people in Tampa are mean, Oklahoma is better than Tampa.” All he said was that the OK folks are nicer. Maybe by his opinion they are! Who cares. Anyone who takes that comment personally needs a reality check. The kid didn’t say anything wrong or out of line. It’s really something else that that tweet even raised an eyebrow enough to write a whole post about it.
March 9th, 2011 at 11:59 am
Wow .. Talk about being sensitive .. He didnt even say Bucs Fans .. I have lived in Florida since birth and agree with McCoy .. There are a**holes everywhere down here .. Most people I meet from the midwest have a different demeanor and are friendlier .. So much for Freedom of Speech
He didnt say Bucs Fans … And plus look at our stadium as far as the Fans go .. How many half empty games did he play in while at OK ???
March 9th, 2011 at 12:56 pm
Joe, your response to McCoy’s comment is exactly what he’s talking about. He didn’t give the politically correct answer so you blasted him. That wasn’t very ‘nice’ on your part. The average fan in Oklahoma, or the southern states in general, would have given him a pass on it.
March 9th, 2011 at 1:36 pm
Bucworld said, “I wouldn’t say that Tampa is a down right rude place at least from my experience.”
McCoy wouldn’t say that either. Where are you getting that from? Go read his original comments again.
March 9th, 2011 at 1:42 pm
Thing is, he’s absolutely right! Buc fans are the worst in the NFL. There are a small percentage of real fans, but the majority are bandwagoners.
March 9th, 2011 at 4:19 pm
Thought I’d chime in here.. I think he was wrong to say it given the possible backlash— but I think he’s right. I, too, love it here in Tampa and moved here by choice in 1991 (of course the oak pollen is making me think twice about that).
My own impression is that people are more laid back and more casual in rural areas. Go into the panhandle or Ocala and you’ll find “nicer” people also. Tampa Bay is a metro area that has a lot of people in a hurry, and a lot of competition for attention. A big fish in a small pond is likely to be treated much “nicer” in a rural area of the country– as will most people. It’s a function of the area.
Tampa shouldn’t be offended by that statement because it’s true. The bigger the town the “less friendly” the people are simply because there are more of them in one small area.
March 9th, 2011 at 10:34 pm
McCoy is 100% correct. Tampa like much of Florida is over run with up North ***holes transplants. Florida 25-30yrs ago had a completely different vibe and attitude. I am from Florida and when I moved to South Georgia. I could not believe how polite and friendly the majority of the people were.
March 9th, 2011 at 11:48 pm
I guess everybody in Oklahoma is nice as pie, doesn’t smoke marijuana, or take their trips on LSD.
Personally, ill take Tampa.
March 10th, 2011 at 3:53 pm
Great read Joe! You are absolutely 100% correct! “Perhaps Jerramy Stevens gave him some odd smelling oregano?” ….LMAO! How do you consistently come up with these stuff! TOO FUNNY! 🙂 thanks man…keep’er comin!
March 10th, 2011 at 8:33 pm
I agree. If you want to see rude people, go down to Miami. There are so many stuck up a**holes down there.