Q+A Jeff Foxworthy
The man who gave us the phrase "you might be a redneck" returns
to the spotlight next month with Blue Collar Comedy Tour: the
Movie, which includes musings on motor sports. "If you think the
last four words of the national anthem are 'Gentlemen, start your
engines,'" he says, "you might be a redneck."
SI: Before starting in comedy you fixed computers at IBM. Could
you fix the BCS computer?
JF: (laughs) No way. A lot of smart people have been working on
it, and it's still messed up.
SI: You played against Heisman-winning running back George Rogers
as a free safety at Hapeville (Ga.) High. How did that work out?
JF: George still bears the scar of the shoestring tackle I made
on him in 11th grade. I failed to tackle him in the 9th, 10th and
12th grades.
SI: But you were captain of the football team, right?
JF: Yeah. I was a 123-pound safety. They sent me out there to
intimidate the other team.
SI: You and John Smoltz often go bowling, play video games and
have putt-putt competitions. Who wins?
JF: Smoltzie wins putt-putt, I dominate the video games. It was
more fun to bowl with Smoltzie when he had elbow surgery in 2000,
because he would bowl lefthanded and I had a chance.
SI: Do you still practice bow hunting off your back porch?
JF: Yes, I do. I have targets for a deer, a coyote, a wild hog
and a life-sized elk. I've found it's real good at keeping people
out of your yard.
SI: Can you explain why old-school NASCAR fans have a beef with
Jeff Gordon?
JF: He enunciates, and they don't like that. He's too clean-cut,
and you can't really imagine him driving home from the track in a
truck.
SI: You were president of your class in high school. As a former
leader, evaluate Bud Selig as a commissioner.
JF: Bud is to baseball what the Exxon Valdez was to scallops.
SI: What's more nerve-racking: facing a heckler onstage or
throwing out the first pitch at a Braves game?
JF: First pitch. You've got no time to warm up, you're wearing
cowboy boots, and your friends call you and leave messages
saying, 'You're gonna bounce it.'
SI: Finally, is it possible that I might be a redneck?
JF: Everybody is to some degree. --Pete McEntegart
For more from Jeff Foxworthy, go to cnnsi.com/scorecard.
COLOR PHOTO: PAT GODDARD/DAILY PRESS/AP "I was a 123-pound safety"