Hey thanks for stopping by, {Instert Reader Name Here}, you know you’re my favorite reader from {Insert State Name Here}. What a beautiful state, and those {Insert Favorite School Mascot} really look good, that quarterback has some real talent! Ok, enough about you, let’s talk about me. Today is a special day for us down at SDS, because we get to interview one of our personal heroes, Tim Masthay. Tim is that guy, you know that one I’m talking about. Everyone of you had a Tim Masthay on your dorm floor. You know, the guy who was named by ESPN The Magazine as an Academic All American, 1st Team All SEC, Named to the Frank Ham Society of Character by UK Athletics, and a current NFL Punter for the Green Bay Packers. Ok, so maybe Tim Masthay is a one in a million type guy, not like the kid you duct taped to the frat house wall Sophomore year. Tim took time away from his busy schedule to catch up with us today.

Tim, Clint called me last week, but he couldn’t tell me where he was, other than that he was in the desert. I suspect it is Iraq, but who knows, anyway, he wanted me to tell you hi. Where are you right now, and why are you there?

Tim Masthay: Please tell Clint hello from me as well next time you talk to him. Now that’s a guy worth interviewing. I just got back to Green Bay from Kansas City where we were playing the Chiefs in a preseason game. I am in Green Bay, and have been for about 6 months, because I was signed to a contract with the Packers last January and moved here in March. Hopefully I’ll be able to stay longer.

Last week, in your preseason game against the Colts, you hit a booming fifty three yard bomb with a five second hang time. The receiver muffed the catch and the Pack picked up six points courtesy of big #8. What was going through your mind on that play?

Tim Masthay: I was a little hungry and thirsty at that moment and since that play came right before halftime, my mind had drifted to the gatorade, protein bars, and bananas that would be served in the lockerroom. It’s a wonder I even managed to contact the ball with my foot. That aside, in the moment I focused on my fundamentals and the type of punt we needed. I received a good snap and fortunately executed a good punt. Our coverage was great and Corey Hall made a great play jumping on the ball in the endzone. It’s always a good feeling to do your job well, regardless of the job, so I felt good about the play coming off the field. A little sidenote, the returner was a guy named Brandon James who I used to punt and kick to when I played at Kentucky and he at Florida. He is a highly skilled player and returner that I’m sure will do big things for the Colts.

I heard that while you were in school, you bought a brand new, expensive bike to ride to practice and class. What happened to it?

Tim Masthay: I would say expensive is a little excessive of an adjective, but brand new fits the bill. I rode that thing everywhere, since I did not have a car and lived on campus with a bunch of guys who spent all hours studying and were asleep before I got home and gone before I got up. That being the situation I was relegated to my 2 wheeler. She rode smooth until one afternoon I walked out the back door of our house to go to class and that blue beauty was gone. I had left the lock off the bike for about 45 minutes or so and that’s all it took for someone to wander onto our back porch and take it. I cried myself to sleep that night.

Did you ride the other bike around?

Tim Masthay: I had actually completely forgotten that a bike was left in my bike’s place. My distress prevented me from giving the other bike a chance. Though, from the looks of its condition, I’m quite certain I would not have gotten down the block before it fell apart.

I heard you were under some kind of investigation for having such a nice car the end of that year. What was that all about?

Tim Masthay: The NCAA and University officials were always crawling down my back about my ’94 Geo Metro with the stock rims and manual transmission. Frankly, I can’t blame them. I’d be suspicious, too.

Tim, you were an all state athlete in several sports in high school, thus one of the more athletic guys on the team. Do you think that had anything to do with your several fake punts? Which one sticks out as a favorite?

Tim Masthay: I think Coach Brooks and Coach Ortmayer were always confident that I could execute fake punts, and so we often had them in our game plans. They were all fun and some of them painful (i.e. taking the hardest hit of my life from Jerod Mayo of UT). The most meaningful fake has to be the pass I threw to Marcus McClinton (all credit is due Coach Brooks for calling it, the line for blocking, and Marcus for making a great move to get the first down. I had the easy part!) against Clemson in the 2006 Music City Bowl. That play changed the game and that game changed the program. Accordingly, I will always have fond memories of that fake punt.

You played in almost every game of your four year career at UK. What was your favorite thing about going on the road? Tell me one memory that sticks out to you as especially memorable? (I remember hearing you say you enjoyed hearing Louisiana Saturday Night at LSU).

Tim Masthay: I hate to correct you (on second thought, no I don’t) but I actually did play in every game of my four year career. One game I only played a quarter because I got injured, but I did play. Listening to Louisiana Saturday Night on a saturday night inside Tiger Stadium was certainly memorable, though I would like to forget the thrashing that followed. I did always enjoy getting to play in all the different stadiums. One memory is an impossible task, but when the fans rushed the field at Commonwealth following the victories over Georgia in ’06 and LSU in ’07 and when we were greeted outside and inside the stadium by a mass of UK fans at the ’06 Music City Bowl, those were especially special moments. But in the end the grind day in and day out with the guys will always be the most memorable and special to me.

What’s the biggest difference between being on an NFL team and a SEC team?

Tim Masthay: The amount of money teammates wager on card games is greater. Plus an NFL team is something like an SEC all-star team with more experience and no classes to attend.

Do you ever talk to any Cats playing in the League?

Tim Masthay: Not on a regular basis, but a handful of us occasionally wind up in Lexington at the same time and so it is always a treat when that happens. Jacob Tamme and I text each other every now and then and I did also have the good fortune of spending a few months with the Indianapolis Colts and so spent a good deal of time with Tamme there. I enjoyed getting to catch up with him before and after our Indianapolis game. He’s a special guy and player. I’d also like to throw a shout out to my old teammate and roommate Ross Bogue. I was humbled by and appreciated what he said during the interview you conducted with him and I must reciprocate because Ross possesses a rare combination of wit, charisma, and authenticity. He’s the kind of guy you want to be around and someone you can get real with.

Oh and would you rather punt in the cold or in the warm weather?

Tim Masthay: Cold. I only say this because of the team I currently play for, not because I really think it.