Well, welcome in to My Dogs Are Barkin on MPW Digital, presented by Heath Riles Barbecue.

And man, we have such a great episode for you today as Northern Illinois head coach Thomas Hammack stops by to talk Mississippi State and Northern Illinois.

Incredibly, incredibly privileged that Coach Hammock would give me, of all people, some of his time, really, really personal.

You can see why players enjoy playing

for him and why, you know, last year when Northern Illinois upset Notre Dame, that post-game

press conference was, was so good. And it's one of the things that makes college football so great

is the humanity of it all, you know, of the David beaten, the Goliath kind of thing and getting to see the emotion because of all the hard work they put in. And so I really enjoy this interview. I hope you will as well. We ask him about the cowbells. We ask them about, you know, what it's like to play in that environment. And also kind of one of some of the things he kind of stuck out thus far. He said they've already gone through some of their game planning for Mississippi State. So we will be able to take a look at that on this episode of My Dog's Pot, presented by Heath Riles barbecue. And speaking of Heath Riles Barbecue, I want to let you know that each and every episode is brought to you by them. They're our presenting sponsor. Heath Riles is home to award-winning rub, seasonings, glazes, sauces, and marinerades, created by 2025,

Memphis and May Grand Champion Heath Riles, 81-time Grand Champion Heath Riles, that is,

and his products are trusted by Pitmasters all over.

Look, you can get his products at over 15,000 stores nationwide, or just go toathrilesb barbecue.com and put in

promo code dogs 10 da wg S 10 for phenomenal rubs.

Put this on some steak this week and actually third on the blackstone and it was

phenomenal and I'm a big fella.

You can you can trust my judgment.

Um,

always thankful for Heath,

uh,

for being the presenting sponsor of our show. Also, we want to thank our caffeine sponsor of our show, Arpas.

Arpa's in the heart of the Cotton District in Starkville. Arpas understands that great food and drinks are best enjoyed in the company of friends and loved ones.

And in the heart of the Cotton District and the best part of Starkville is ArPA. So if you're looking for a great cup of coffee, you're looking for a great Venezuelan meal. Arpas is a spot to go. Man, it's such, such a good place to hang out. To me, there's nothing like ARPA's in the evening. Arpa's in the evening. There's something to that. That has a nice ring to it. But just the sunset and being in the Cotton District itself with a great cup of coffee is wonderful. And hey, we'll get you 15% off each and every time you're at Arpas by mentioning that you love the My Dogs Pod, 15% off discount. Jose and his family will take care of you for sure. So without further ado, let's get into this episode with head coach of Northern Illinois, Thomas Hammock.

Special edition of My Dog's Pod, we have the absolute pleasure of getting to talk to head coach of Northern Illinois, Thomas Hammack.

And Coach, you know, last season, so many people got to know you and also got to know your

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