Make Me Proud | Sunday Night Swift Bowl | NFL Draft ‘24 | Saint Peter’s Hoops | YouTube Rabbithole
Okay @YouTheReader,
Make Me Proud by Drake features Nicki Minaj. This is the 10th song off the Take Care album and the 2nd single from the album. Drake and Nicki were a rumored couple at the time, although in hindsight it seems like it was a publicity stunt. Whatever the deal was, it helped further both of their careers as at this point in time Nicki Minaj was on the rise as the best female rapper and it felt like the two were constantly making hits as features together.
Imagine being a college athlete right now and randomly getting tagged on Instagram by an account called @You_The_Reader at 1:30 AM on a Monday to a song about Drake serenading Nicki Minaj that came out back in October ‘11.
Drake told Funkmaster Flex, “A girl actually, a girl whose opinion I respect greatly, hit me and she was like, ‘There’s nothing on the radio for us right now. There’s nothing to make women feel good like they did when we had 'Best I Ever Had,’ which was the reference that she made. The song’s called ‘Make Me Proud.’ So it’s a moment, go out and make me proud, baby.” (SongFacts)
Drake told MTV News, “Whenever I make songs surrounding women, I always try to find refreshing stances to take as opposed to just like, ‘Oh, you’re sexy’ or ‘Oh, I want you.’ The song, it really came up in passing conversation, just being like, ‘I’m proud of you. Not even necessarily that a woman has to go achieve grandiose things to be proud; it’s just that I’m proud of you for trying. It’s hard to be a woman out here these days, especially to be pretty and especially to be smart and want something for yourself. So I’m just proud of you whether it’s Nicki or any girl that I’ve ever known in my life that’s doing well for herself.” (SongFacts)
This song became Drake’s 11th #1 Rap Song Category for Billboard. It overtook Diddy for the highest number of chart-toppers since Billboard started the Rap Genre Subcategory. Pretty crazy that Drake was able to do that in less than 3 years.
Nicki Minaj was one of the baddest rappers around and she kept her business close to the vest.
Pink Friday was Nicki Minaji’s debut studio album and OVO is October’s Very Own - Drake’s own label. Not only was Nicki Minaj making a fortune on the radio, selling records, and touring; but she also had her own brands of fashion and fragrance.
Alright, let’s talk ball…
Sunday Night Swift Bowl
Pregame
- I HATE the name Travis*. What a tool.
*If there are any Travis readers out there reading this, my bad it was in the heat of the moment. I was heading into battle. In fairness, I know it’s not your fault, I blame your parents.
- Mac Jones, the pervert, got benched. Creep.
- Taylor Swift is in the building!! She arrived with Ryan Reynolds. Black long-sleeve top with jean shorts and red lipstick. @Ladies Is that the look this fall?
- All pregame analysts are taking the Chiefs to win. It’s us against the world.
Quarter 1
- During kickoff, Melissa Stark reports that Aaron Rodgers was basically sprinting around in crutches, looks great, and plans to return this season. He has been rehabbing 6 hours a day.
- Stupid penalty by Jermaine Johnson on the first play. He’s good for a dumb personal foul every 3 games. 1st drive the Chiefs easily moved the ball down the field before settling for a field goal. 3-0 KC.
- Jets 1st drive, G Wilson has to make that 3rd down catch. Tough catch but he’s elite. 3 and out punt.
- Chiefs score on an Isiah Pacheo long TD run. 10-0 KC. NBC pans to Taylor Swift who seems to be half-heartedly celebrating. There is no way Taylor likes hanging out with Britney Mahomes. @FellowSwifties we must get Taylor away from Britney Mahomes, she will drain her energy!
- On the 2nd Jets drive they tried feeding Breece Hall. Worked for a 1st Down. Then they punted. 17-0 KC. Jets attempt a flea flicker and get sacked. Aaron Rodgers is every Jets fan right now.
Quarter 2
- Jets get a safety of their own on a facemask in the end zone. 17-2 KC.
- Allen Lazard with a nice catch downfield. Nice play by Zach Wilson. Jets kick FG. 17-5 KC.
- Ashtyn Davis picks off Patrick Mahomes. Jets score a TD on a CJ Uzomah goal-line fade.
- Patrick Mahomes throws a 2nd INT, this one to CJ Mosley guarding Travis Kelce.
Quarter 3
- Zach Wilson comes out slinging it. Drives down the field for a great TD throw to Allen Lazard.
- Q-Ball sacks Mahomes. Sauce Gardner with great coverage downfield. Jets force 3 and out of their own. Xavier Gipson with a solid punt return. Jets then 3 and out, punt. Down ball inside the 10-yard line of Chiefs.
- I’m at the point where I’m pacing around the apartment like a lunatic. I can’t sit still.
- Chiefs get the ball. Proceed to have another 3 and out. The defense is getting stops.
- During the break, one of Travis Kelce's new 15 commercials gets cut off mid-commercial. Good. F*** ‘em.
- Breece Hall rips a nice run. Ineligible downfield brings the next play back. Drive stalls and the Jets punt.
- Quarter 3 ends with Taylor Swift looking sad girl.
Quarter 4
- Now the broadcast has shifted to talking a ton about Taylor Swift. Melissa Stark reports that Travis Kelce has made 900k followers since last week. I don’t give a flying f***. NBC really? C’mon, it’s the 4th quarter of a close game. Chiefs field goal. 23-20 KC.
- Breece Hall gets crushed in the backfield on the first play of the drive. Garrett Wilson makes two straight catches for a first down. Zach Wilson fumbles a shotgun snap.
- Mahomes gets a 1st down on a 3rd and 22. Jermaine Johnson was clearly being held.
- Sauce gets called for a bullshit holding call. Would have been an INT from Michael Carter II. Absolute horse shit call. Robert Saleh is livid.
- Patrick Mahomes ends the game on a scramble for 1st down. That’s the ball game. Robert Saleh is about to get thrown out of the game for the Sauce call.
Zak Zinter is from North Andover, Massachusetts. As a freshman in ‘20, he made 4 starts with Michigan while also playing special teams. Zinter in his sophomore season made 12 starts at right guard. He was a part of the Michigan offensive line that was honored with the Joe Moore Award which goes to the top offensive line in the nation that ‘21 season. He earned All-Big Ten 2nd Team selections from media and coaches. Last year as a junior, Zinter made another 14 starts at right guard for Michigan and he again dominated becoming a consensus 1st-Team All-Big Ten player as the Michigan offensive line was once again honored the Joe Moore Award. This year, Zinter was named a 1st Team Preseason All-American by the AP. At 6’6” and 322 lbs., Zinter should have no problem continuing to move people in the NFL.
Patrick Paul is a native of Houston who attends Houston University, very convenient. The 6’7” and 315 lbs. offensive tackle wasn’t always a giant on the football field. Paul actually started his high school football career his freshman year as a 5’6” defensive tackle. He grew 9 inches over the course of his freshman year of high school and yet still wasn’t recruited much to college. “I didn’t have a lot of attention on me, so I didn’t even really think I was going to play college football.” Paul didn’t even have a college offer entering his senior year of high school as a defensive tackle and he didn’t gain recruitment until he switched over to offensive tackle. It took a ton of work but Houston University eventually noticed this stud in their own backyard. Immediately after graduating from high school in Houston, Paul moved onto campus to start his career as a Cougar. (Sports Illustrated) The long-armed tackle has already started to see a ton of interest from NFL scouts and he will assuredly be invited to the Senior Bowl all-star game.
Caelen Carson is from Waldorf, Maryland, and goes by the nickname “Los.” After playing in a reserve role for Wake Forest as a true freshman, Carson was able to redshirt due to COVID in ‘21. He was a big part of the defense at Wake Forest’s historic season, appearing in 9 games and catching 2 INTs. Last year Los cracked the starting lineup for the Demon Deacons and had 22 total tackles including 18 solo tackles while having 1.0 tackles for loss and seven pass breakups. In single coverage in ‘22, Carson had more forced incompletions (5) than he had allowed catches (4). He seems to have good ball skills for a DB and is a physical tackler. College QBs have tended to shy away from throwing at Carson which is always a good sign.
Trey Zuhn III is from Fort Collins, Colorado. The 6’7” 315 lbs offensive tackle was a 4-Star prospect coming out of high school. His first season with the Aggies ended up being just a redshirt year where he only got 4 games of playing experience. That said, Texas A&M liked what they saw as he was awarded the Freshman Academic Award at the annual team banquet. Last year in ‘22, Zuhn started all 11 games at left tackle. He earned the offense's Attitude and Most Improved awards at the annual team banquet. Thus far in ‘23, Zuhn has again taken over the starting LT responsibilities for the Aggies and has excelled. In the last 3 games, Zuhn has not allowed a single pressure across 104 pass-blocking chances. (@suttonturner) If he can continue to dominate as a pass blocker and create holes while getting to the 2nd level of the defense on run plays, Zuhn will be on the NFL’s radar come this offseason.
Cedric Gray is from Charlotte, North Carolina. A 4-star prospect, he chose to stay in the Carolina area as a Tar Heel and made his debut with the team as a True Freshman in ‘20 where he played mostly special teams. In ‘21, Gray got 11 starts at linebacker. He made the most of them as he was tied for 4th in the ACC with a team-leading 100 tackles, 5 tackles being for a loss, 2.5 being sacks, and catching 2 interceptions. Last year as a junior, Gray made all 14 starts at linebacker and improved upon his impressive ‘21 season. He earned First-Team All-ACC, was named Team Captain, and earned the team’s William Fuller Defensive MVP award as he had 145 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 2 INTs, 3 forced fumbles, and a sack. Gray is a hard hitter who can run like a shooting missle. He has already had an impressive start to his ‘23 season as a productive leader of the UNC defense.
Roy Clarke is from Brooklyn, New York, and he played his high school ball at John C. Fremont High School. Clarke started his collegiate career at West LA College in Cali where he led the team in scoring en route to their program’s first CCCAA State Championship. While he was on the West Coast he also played in The Drew League and Crew League which are very popular and intense offseason leagues that sometimes even have NBA players compete in them. Clarke moved back home to Brooklyn to play for Saint Francis in Brooklyn. As a Terrier, the 6’4” guard averaged 7.1 points, 2.8 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and a steal per game while shooting 36.3% from 3. Looking forward to seeing Clarke’s jump to Saint Peter’s this upcoming season.
Corey Washington is from Sherwood, Arkansas, and played his high school hoops at Sylvan Hills. Washington is a 6’6” forward with some nice finishing ability around the rim. His former coach said of Washington, "Corey might just be the steal of the entire 2022 recruiting class in Arkansas. You won’t find a young man who plays harder and is as relentless as Corey. He is going to push for early playing time with his motor and athleticism. It’s a big get for St. Peter’s!" Last year as a freshman at Saint Peter’s, he made 24 starts for the Peacocks and averaged 6.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, and a block per game. I’m a fan of undersized forwards who can play big.
Latrell Reid is from Willingboro, NJ. He played his high school hoops at Trenton Catholic. Prior to becoming a Peacock, Reid attended Coffeyville Community College where as a freshman he averaged 10 minutes a game and shot 36% from the floor. In ‘21-’22, Reid transferred to Saint Peter’s where he started in 8 games and finished with a 2.8 assist-to-turnover ratio. Last year with Saint Peter’s, the 6’3” guard’s role expanded as he averaged 27.5 minutes per game in 23 starts. He put up 5.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game. Reid is more of an attacking slasher than a shooter, but he has been putting in the work this offseason so expect career highs in the scoring columns.
Michael Houge went to high school in Chattanooga, Tennessee. His nickname is “Gravy” and he balls with powerful force. Houge played at Mars Hill University in ‘21-’22, where in 12 games he averaged 6.3 points per game and 3.1 rebounds. He transferred for the ‘22-’23 season to play for Walters State, another Division II program. At Walters, Gravy averaged a double-double with 19.1 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. At 6’7” and strong, there is a good chance that Houge could be one of the Peacocks’ top rebounders this upcoming season.
Marcus Randolph is from Willingboro, NJ, too. Twice Randolph was named All-State in high school where he played for Archbishop Wood in Pennsylvania. This will be his first year at Saint Peter’s. The junior guard previously went to school at Richmond University. After appearing in 9 games in a reserve role as a freshman, Randolph received more playing time last year as a sophomore. He was one of just four Spiders to appear in all 33 games last year. Although he may have only averaged 3.3 points per game, the lefty guard did so while shooting 40% from 3. As a Peacock, Randolph may have more opportunities to put up shots this upcoming season.
Best of Luck Peacocks!
YouTube Rabbithole
Drake & Nicki Minaj - "Make Me Proud" live at Roseland Ballroom