First, can you let me know what you’ve been up to since your time the NFL – and how was the post-NFL transition?
Now I’m just investing in properties with any wife – we are in to real estate investing. Life is good.
The transition was extremely hard. When you play you miss time with your family but nothing can match the comradery you had after you leave the game. You can never have that again. You had it from Little League through the NFL. You can have a lot of friends after the NFL but nothing is like what you had in the locker room. I know they are trying harder now to get former players back together at events to help with that.
Who helped mentor you when you were drafted by Cincinnati – and how so?
Tony McGee and Willie Anderson were two big ones. Corey Dillon and I hit it off too since he was a running back and I was a fullback. I was also good friends with Adrian Ross and Akili Smith – I came in with him in the draft.
Willie showed me how to be a pro – Tony too. And I was lucky to have John Anderson as my running backs coach. Eric Ball was also there helping out the running backs. I think he’s still there. John Copeland was helpful too in his own way.
Those guys tight me to come early, how to save my money and told me what not to do. You need guys like that in the locker room.
Were you aware of the Steelers-Bengals rivalry?
In high school I really just paid attention to the college rivalries. But no doubt I learned about it really fast – with Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Baltimore and Tennessee a bit then too since they were in our division.
The week we played the Steelers they hammered it into us. The intensity in the practices picked up. All the coaches could really do was holler more! But I remember Jim Anderson also had a smirk on his face when he was angry or intense, and he had that smirk a lot during that week.
That Steelers defense was always good – they were a tough-ass group of guys. Especially the linebackers. I was a competitor – I really enjoyed playing against those guys.
What were those matchups like for you?
As a fullback you faced a lot of those guys – Kirkland – he and I went to war. We were both big guys and had some earth0shaking collisions! Holmes too – it was a great linebacking crew. I got the better of some of them and they got the better of me sometimes.
A lot of trash-talking?
Oh a lot yeah – from a lot of those guys. I was a physical player. They yell at me – I was Nick Williams then – I changed any name to Luchey in honor of my dad. They were a prideful crew and we all talked trash to one another. We liked to run the ball and I was in there fighting with them 20 or so plays a game.
I’d get some pancakes on some of those guys too, whether they’d admit that or not! But I had a lot of respect for those dudes. I miss running into them!
I was hurt when I was in Baltimore when we beat the Steelers. That was one of Cowher’s last seasons and you could tell we took a lot of pride in that win. You could tell we felt like we out-toughnessed them and took that away from Pittsburgh.
The AFC North was just an incredibly tough division then – a run-down-your-throat division. Pittsburgh had the Bus and those linebackers. Cleveland had big backs and really big linebackers. The Ravens had Jamal Lewis, Ray Lewis and Suggs. I noticed that when we played teams outside of our division we were usually the much more physical team.
Any memories stand out most?
I remember one series in Cincinnati versus Pittsburgh. It was a linebacker read and I ran the linebacker over. But something happened – I think a penalty so we had to do the play over. Well we ran the same play and I ran the guy over again, The players just looked at me – there was nothing they could say – you know when your guy lost! That was one if the funnest moments – two plays in a row. I don’t even remember who the guy was, but I wouldn’t tell you if I did anyway. You win some you lose some – you want to respect those guys. It just shows – you do your best talking with your pads.
Winning in ’99 in Pittsburgh was a nice win for us too. After struggling for so long, it was a nice win for the crew.
How did you guys turn things around in Cincinnati?
I think it was the combination of a lot of good, young guys that came in with winning attitudes. The defense and offense got better. They just drafted a lot better. Marvin Lewis arrived as I was leaving, but I think he brought a winning attitude as well.
And not many people will bring this up, but a real superstar there no one talks about is Paul Brown’s daughter, Katie Blackburn. She’s a quiet unknown there but a top-tier mind. She’s one of my favorite people there. She is one of those people who understands that you have to give power back to your staff. Teams who do that play better. The ship moves faster – you are less stagnant as an organization when you do that. Multiple minds coming together are better than one, especially with the complexity in this game.
As a former fullback, what are your thoughts on the way the game has changed?
I think it’s good and bad. Respect to the guys who are playing today – the game is much faster. But it’s bad and sad when I watch the game today and see tight ends who try to block defensive ends and linebackers. As a guy who took pride in his blocking, a lot of what you see now is trash. These guys are really just receivers now.
If I were a defensive guy, I know you’d have to run a lot more due to the passing game, but you don’t have to worry as much about going downhill and facing the big backs and fullbacks we used to have. Its not what it was – it used to be traps and lead plays. Now offenses are trying to stretch defenses out more instead of being physical.
The game has expanded a lot. I ran a 4.5 – I was a good athlete. When I went to the flat I was more of a decoy. Now guys are running posts and streaks. My God I wish I could have done that when I played. I think we missed that opportunity when I played.
What do you think of the rivalry today?
I think the Bengals-Steelers rivalry is better than it’s ever been. The Bengals had been the better lately though they are surprisingly struggling now. A lot of questions in the AFC North. With the Steelers remain stagnant or get better? The Ravens are rolling right now. And we have no idea who Cleveland is. No one can afford to lose – its exciting to me. I love it.
And one shout out as well to Steelers fans by the way. Last year I went to the Atlanta game and there were yellow towels everywhere! Without fans none of this matters. I love my Bengals fans, but my hats off to the Steelers fans who travel so well and give you Hell. Not like Eagles fans who threaten your family! Just good-natured Hell. There was no more fun environment to play than in Pittsburgh. Three Rivers and Heinz Field both rocked!