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Interview With Tom Fox

Aired September 05, 2003 - 14:39   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Colonel Sanders was 65 when he introduced to world to Kentucky Fried Chicken. Grandma Moses didn't pick up a paint brush until she was 78.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And then there's Tom Fox. Fox is a first string quarterback at Blackburn College in Carlinville, Illinois. OK, so you haven't heard of it. That's not the point here. He's a first string quarterback who's older than four of his coaches.

PHILLIPS: Tom Fox -- are you ready for this? -- is 34 years old. Lucky for us, he still has the strength to pick up the phone. Hi, Tom.

TOM FOX, : How are you?

PHILLIPS: Good. Thanks for being with us.

FOX: You're welcome. You have me in pretty esteemed company. I don't know if I'm going to measure up to Colonel Sanders or not, but...

(LAUGHTER)

FOX: ... we'll give it a go.

PHILLIPS: Well I'll tell you something. Looking at your picture here, baby, you look nothing like Colonel Sanders.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: All right, let's talk about how this came about. You're 34, you have a 13-year-old daughter. Why go back to school? Why try out for the football team?

FOX: It had always been a life-long dream of mine to play football. I didn't play in high school just for a variety of circumstances. And one of things that I always knew in the back of my mind that eventually I wanted to do when I grew up, which if I was ever going to, was I wanted to coach football.

And I had never played so I felt that it was probably going to be hard to get the respect of my players not having played the game. And, you know, so when I hit 30, I didn't know if it was the trauma of turning 30 or not, but I decided it was time to -- you know, if I wasn't going to do it at 30, I certainly wasn't going to do it at 40. So it was time. O'BRIEN: All right, so you got paint the picture for us. When you went to the coach there at the school and said, Coach, I'm a walk- on, I'd like to try out for the team. What happened?

FOX: Well he wasn't actually the first coach I talked to. I'd talked to a couple others and that had fallen through. They weren't too keen on the idea of it.

But the coach at the time was Coach Chen, and he was super. I called him about five days before training camp started, he told me to come on back. I was in Montana at the time and now I'm back in Illinois. He said to come back and they'd try to find a place for me. And that place was quarterback. So it's two years later here and I am starting my third season.

PHILLIPS: So, Tom, how do your teammates react to you? Is it sort of like are you one of the guys or do they (UNINTELLIGIBLE) look up to you and talk to you about all their problems?

O'BRIEN: They call him "sir."

PHILLIPS: Yes, exactly.

FOX: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) on check in day for all the incoming freshman, I'm mistaken for a coach. But a lot of it, I guess because I'm older, they come to me for legal advice, medical advice. They ask all kinds of bizarre stuff.

O'BRIEN: Can I borrow the car keys, please?

FOX: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Will you buy me beer, Tom?

FOX: Yes, I do get that and I always say...

O'BRIEN: You better say no to that one.

FOX: Right.

But they've been great. You know, there's 53 guys on a team and 52 of them are in the 18 to 23 demographics so obviously we have a lot of fun and there's a lot of laughs. And it's just a tremendous amount of fun.

Football is one thing. And then the guys, just the friendships and the joking around, that's something else. It's been incredible.

PHILLIPS: You know what I heard? I heard Tom had to cut class to come do this interview.

O'BRIEN: Oh, gosh. Oooh. Don't tell the prof what you're doing.

You're definitely a demographic admiration. I've got to ask you, Tom, what is the biggest advantage to being older than your teammates and what is the biggest disadvantage?

FOX: You know, the biggest advantage I think is just the mental aptitude, you know, just the ability to slow things down in your mind and the ability to put mistakes behind you. I think it's, you know, just sometimes when you're young you get frustrated and carry that with you. As I've hopefully matured I can learn how to put those things behind me quickly and move on and obviously when you're competing in athletics.

The biggest disadvantage, you know, the body -- the mind wants to do things that the body just simply just doesn't do any more. You know foot speed, we watch tapes after our games and with the coaches. And the first time I watched myself on videotape I was like -- I knew it was my jersey number, I knew that was me. But I was like who is that old man on the field?

(LAUGHTER)

FOX: You just look so slow because in your mind you're always 17, 18 years old and you can do all those things, you know. But obviously, I know better now.

PHILLIPS: I bet your daughter thinks you're pretty hip.

FOX: She does. She's a teenager now and I don't know where that time went. And I think that was part of what brought me back and wanted to fulfill this.

I think it's very hard, especially with your own children, to try and tell them that they can do what they want and to pursue their dreams when you really haven't done it for yourself. So that was a big part of it and we talk every day and she's wonderful.

She's into athletics, as well. I am very proud of her and I think she's proud of me, as well.

PHILLIPS: Yes, she's the running partner. She keeps Dad going. Come on, Dad. Ten more laps.

FOX: Yes, very much. We're a lot closer. I'm 34, she's 13. But there is not 21 years of age difference.

O'BRIEN: So will we see you in an NFL draft?

(LAUGHTER)

FOX: I don't get a lot of ribbing about my age from my teammates. But with a lot of the media attention lately, they think I'm upping my draft status. But unless I buy a ticket, probably not.

PHILLIPS: Tom, we have a favor to ask of you. After the game on Monday, will you come back and tell us how it went?

FOX: Certainly will.

PHILLIPS: OK. You promise to call in? FOX: I will call in.

O'BRIEN: We'll try to get some of the tape shot that's at the game or something to see how fast you go there.

PHILLIPS: There you go. Quick as a Fox, Tom Fox.

O'BRIEN: Well we're proud of you. Of course, Kyra's a lot younger than I am. But as a 44-year-old, I could tell you I'm proud of you, Tom. Keep up the good work and enjoy it.

FOX: OK, I will do it. Thank you very much.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Tom.

FOX: Bye-bye.

PHILLIPS: What a class act.

O'BRIEN: Yes.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired September 5, 2003 - 14:39   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Colonel Sanders was 65 when he introduced to world to Kentucky Fried Chicken. Grandma Moses didn't pick up a paint brush until she was 78.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And then there's Tom Fox. Fox is a first string quarterback at Blackburn College in Carlinville, Illinois. OK, so you haven't heard of it. That's not the point here. He's a first string quarterback who's older than four of his coaches.

PHILLIPS: Tom Fox -- are you ready for this? -- is 34 years old. Lucky for us, he still has the strength to pick up the phone. Hi, Tom.

TOM FOX, : How are you?

PHILLIPS: Good. Thanks for being with us.

FOX: You're welcome. You have me in pretty esteemed company. I don't know if I'm going to measure up to Colonel Sanders or not, but...

(LAUGHTER)

FOX: ... we'll give it a go.

PHILLIPS: Well I'll tell you something. Looking at your picture here, baby, you look nothing like Colonel Sanders.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: All right, let's talk about how this came about. You're 34, you have a 13-year-old daughter. Why go back to school? Why try out for the football team?

FOX: It had always been a life-long dream of mine to play football. I didn't play in high school just for a variety of circumstances. And one of things that I always knew in the back of my mind that eventually I wanted to do when I grew up, which if I was ever going to, was I wanted to coach football.

And I had never played so I felt that it was probably going to be hard to get the respect of my players not having played the game. And, you know, so when I hit 30, I didn't know if it was the trauma of turning 30 or not, but I decided it was time to -- you know, if I wasn't going to do it at 30, I certainly wasn't going to do it at 40. So it was time. O'BRIEN: All right, so you got paint the picture for us. When you went to the coach there at the school and said, Coach, I'm a walk- on, I'd like to try out for the team. What happened?

FOX: Well he wasn't actually the first coach I talked to. I'd talked to a couple others and that had fallen through. They weren't too keen on the idea of it.

But the coach at the time was Coach Chen, and he was super. I called him about five days before training camp started, he told me to come on back. I was in Montana at the time and now I'm back in Illinois. He said to come back and they'd try to find a place for me. And that place was quarterback. So it's two years later here and I am starting my third season.

PHILLIPS: So, Tom, how do your teammates react to you? Is it sort of like are you one of the guys or do they (UNINTELLIGIBLE) look up to you and talk to you about all their problems?

O'BRIEN: They call him "sir."

PHILLIPS: Yes, exactly.

FOX: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) on check in day for all the incoming freshman, I'm mistaken for a coach. But a lot of it, I guess because I'm older, they come to me for legal advice, medical advice. They ask all kinds of bizarre stuff.

O'BRIEN: Can I borrow the car keys, please?

FOX: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Will you buy me beer, Tom?

FOX: Yes, I do get that and I always say...

O'BRIEN: You better say no to that one.

FOX: Right.

But they've been great. You know, there's 53 guys on a team and 52 of them are in the 18 to 23 demographics so obviously we have a lot of fun and there's a lot of laughs. And it's just a tremendous amount of fun.

Football is one thing. And then the guys, just the friendships and the joking around, that's something else. It's been incredible.

PHILLIPS: You know what I heard? I heard Tom had to cut class to come do this interview.

O'BRIEN: Oh, gosh. Oooh. Don't tell the prof what you're doing.

You're definitely a demographic admiration. I've got to ask you, Tom, what is the biggest advantage to being older than your teammates and what is the biggest disadvantage?

FOX: You know, the biggest advantage I think is just the mental aptitude, you know, just the ability to slow things down in your mind and the ability to put mistakes behind you. I think it's, you know, just sometimes when you're young you get frustrated and carry that with you. As I've hopefully matured I can learn how to put those things behind me quickly and move on and obviously when you're competing in athletics.

The biggest disadvantage, you know, the body -- the mind wants to do things that the body just simply just doesn't do any more. You know foot speed, we watch tapes after our games and with the coaches. And the first time I watched myself on videotape I was like -- I knew it was my jersey number, I knew that was me. But I was like who is that old man on the field?

(LAUGHTER)

FOX: You just look so slow because in your mind you're always 17, 18 years old and you can do all those things, you know. But obviously, I know better now.

PHILLIPS: I bet your daughter thinks you're pretty hip.

FOX: She does. She's a teenager now and I don't know where that time went. And I think that was part of what brought me back and wanted to fulfill this.

I think it's very hard, especially with your own children, to try and tell them that they can do what they want and to pursue their dreams when you really haven't done it for yourself. So that was a big part of it and we talk every day and she's wonderful.

She's into athletics, as well. I am very proud of her and I think she's proud of me, as well.

PHILLIPS: Yes, she's the running partner. She keeps Dad going. Come on, Dad. Ten more laps.

FOX: Yes, very much. We're a lot closer. I'm 34, she's 13. But there is not 21 years of age difference.

O'BRIEN: So will we see you in an NFL draft?

(LAUGHTER)

FOX: I don't get a lot of ribbing about my age from my teammates. But with a lot of the media attention lately, they think I'm upping my draft status. But unless I buy a ticket, probably not.

PHILLIPS: Tom, we have a favor to ask of you. After the game on Monday, will you come back and tell us how it went?

FOX: Certainly will.

PHILLIPS: OK. You promise to call in? FOX: I will call in.

O'BRIEN: We'll try to get some of the tape shot that's at the game or something to see how fast you go there.

PHILLIPS: There you go. Quick as a Fox, Tom Fox.

O'BRIEN: Well we're proud of you. Of course, Kyra's a lot younger than I am. But as a 44-year-old, I could tell you I'm proud of you, Tom. Keep up the good work and enjoy it.

FOX: OK, I will do it. Thank you very much.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Tom.

FOX: Bye-bye.

PHILLIPS: What a class act.

O'BRIEN: Yes.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com