J.R.'s Family Bar-B-Q

Whether or not I agree with all your emails or not is irrelevant but one thing I can say is that fans of this business have PASSION! You’ve got to love it! I have never implied that I am going to always be on the right side of your argument but I can assure that I will always be honest with my opinions, for better or for worse. I hope that we can all engage in respectful dialog even when we disagree and not take the low rode with distasteful language. Plus, I hope that you amateur psychologists out there would refrain from telling me what my responses “really” mean. That is unless I can analyze you and I’m not qualified. Finally this is NOT a WWE site. This is my personal site that has been established through the efforts of some very talented people (not me) and has been established to help us promote our BBQ business of which I am very involved with at this time. Let’s get back to the business of answering some of your emails. I will respond to as many as time will allow but because of travel, my day job, the BBQ business we are building, my family, including my two granddaughters, and OU football my time is not as abundant as I would like. But I am alive and one year ago at this time it was thought that I had colon cancer so what is there really to be upset about? On my side of the fence…..nothing. Koby…The Big 12 North looks like it may run thru Lincoln again but that could be addressed this weekend to some degree. I love Mark Mangino and hope the KU team does great. The Saints played on guts week and seem to have a nice offense. I like Coach Payton, too. Darius…Tulsa University was omitted due to my lack of mental faculties. My youngest daughter graduated from TU with honors and I have followed the Golden Hurricane all my life via the Tulsa World including when their coach was Glenn Dobbs who actually sent me a recruiting letter when I was in high school. I, too, miss Ft. Gibson’s Teddy Lehman with the Lions but don’t count Teddy out. He will hopefully be back in 2007. Jason…thanks for the nice words from a Husker fan. Tazz is a Husker fan too. I agree it doesn’t feel right that OU doesn’t play Nebraska every year. Coach John Blake is a great recruiter but seeing the Huskers not in the “I” doesn’t seem right. Steve…How can you not love West Virginia football? The Mountaineers are tough and well coached. Keeping Coach Rodriquez might be a chore. Grant in Glascow…A Sooner is a person who did not wait for the Oklahoma land run to officially start in the late 1880s and left before the cannons sounded. Those that left “legally” are called Boomers. Hence, Boomer Sooner!! Jarrod…I don’t know the Australian issues as to why you can’t see UFC and TNA. I would doubt that the WWE would have the clout to keep a company from doing business in an entire country. Travis…The Brand Extension, for better or worse, in your opinion, looks to be here to stay. Quality depth is definitely an issue. Ben… The Macho Man certainly deserves to be in the WWE Hall of Fame. Savage was one of the greats of a dynamic era. I can’t nor won’t speak for Vince McMahon but I don’t think McMahon hates Savage as someone suggested on another email. Ryan in the UK….There is a great deal more about this business than making money. After being in it for over 30 years and earning MANY $25-40 payoffs back in the day, the love of the business has driven many of us to persevere. Unfortunately there are not as many people who are in wrestling today simply because they love it nor am I sure they should be. They should love it but they have to earn a living for the abuse they put their bodies through. The bottom line is you have to be able to pay your bills and provide for your family no matter your vocation and that includes wrestling. Bob…I will check out some ROH DVDs. I was merely being honest when I said I did not watch enough of the ROH product to judge it. It isn’t that I don’t like it but there are only so many hours in a day plus old guys like me, as has been pointed out by some emailing us, need our naps. I have heard nothing but great things about the in ring product at ROH events. Mike..Bryan Danielson is a great in ring performer. I have been familiar with him since he broke in the business. I was keenly aware of his training. His lack of size has adversely affected his professional progression and that is not fair. Bryan is a passionate wrestler who has perfected his skills but I am sure Bryan would tell you that he can’t do this stuff for free. I hope Bryan gets his “break” some day soon IF he aspires to go beyond ROH. Personally I don’t know that Bryan isn’t perfectly content to stay right where he is. Will D…I love your passion and your strong feelings toward things but the profanity isn’t necessary. Chris…Do I ever think we will see Austin vs. Hogan? Honestly, no. Paul…What do I think of Joey Styles announcing? I think Joey does a great job…is a student of the game…has natural passion…and is the perfect choice to anchor the ECW brand. Plus, Joey likes BBQ! Grant in the UK…I would love to see the WWE do a big time PPV in the United Kingdom and I think it will be a reality sooner than most expect. I love coming to the UK as it feels like home in that the fans are so respectful and friendly. The UK definitely deserves a major PPV. If I had a vote, you know how I would cast it. Tony…C.M. Punk has “it”. Plain and simple. Punk is a future building block in the new ECW. I love his originality. Jason…I agree the fans should have a “vote” of some sort in the WWE Hall of Fame. We are all fans which is why we are communicating here on this site. Bjorn from Germany…thanks for reading our site. I am positive your English is MUCH better than my German! I do appreciate your kind remarks. Hog Dog…..Considering you have no idea of my relationship with Kurt Angle it makes you come off as less than informed when you indicate that I “hate” Kurt Angle. The next time you talk to Kurt why don’t you ask him? Kurt did not come cheap to work a less than full time schedule with TNA I can assure you. Nor should he have. Kurt deserves every dollar he earns and I wish him nothing but success and many healthy years no matter where he works. Walter…I love the “Big Easy” and have worked many events in the Super Dome. I can’t get back to New Orleans soon enough because, again as has been pointed out, I enjoy good groceries and one can load up in your town. The Commander’s Palace may be the best restaurant I have ever experienced. I wish I knew when we were headed your way but I would hope in 2007. Good luck with the Saints. Plus, OKC has only “borrowed” the Hornets. The Hornets still belong to New Orleans. Brad T….Sorry it pained you to watch this old man on ECW Tuesday Night. I’ll try not to make that a habit. I do like the brand a great deal though and was just trying to help out. Evil Art Director…Why have I angered you so profusely? I am not a TNA hater. Jim Cornette, Mike Tenay, and many others there are people I admire and respect and consider great friends. There are several talents in TNA that I worked with at the WWE. I wish no ill will on any of them. Why would I? What would I personally gain if TNA went belly up? Nothing. I love this business and the wrestlers who make the true sacrifices to keep it running and the more places they can earn a living the better. If I did not like or want TNA and any other wrestling organization to survive we wouldn’t be talking about them here. If some of the WWE guys eventually go to TNA then good for them. If my friends are happy doing what they are doing then I am happy for them. It’s really that simple. Plus, I never said Vince McMahon was going to buy TNA but I never thought McMahon would own WCW either. I learned a long time ago in this business to never say never. Many have asked about how to get our Merchandise, BBQ and other sauces and I am happy to say the STORE IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS!!! Please check it out with my thanks. Lots of Vince Russo emails….firstly Vince and I buried the hatchet long ago and not in each others skull. People who live angrily in the past eventually die there. That’s not for me or him. I wish Vince well. He is a bright, creative guy. I even bought his book, paid retail for it and liked it! Gabriel…Indeed the Chicago Bears defense is deadly. I only wish my boy Dusty Dvorachek was playing along side #91 Tommie Harris. That is two bad ex-Sooners to deal with for any offensive line. The Bears have 4 Sooners on their squad and I check them out on satellite every week, along with the Baltimore Ravens who have their fair share (5) former Sooners on their team. Bears Coach Lovie Smith was a great DB at Tulsa University so the Monsters of the Midway have a distinct Oklahoma flavor. David in Saskatoon…I agree David that some fans get a little carried away. I know I can’t make everyone happy but I can be respectful and honest to all that visit us. We are taking steps to attempt to filter out foul language that some feel compelled to use. I would have loved to have seen the Hitman-Flair match in your city when Bret won the title. Bret is one of the very best of any generation….a marvelous, ring general. Finally, let’s make it clear that I am not involved with any aspect of the WWE except handling my duties on Monday Night RAW and on the pay per views I am assigned to work as a broadcaster. I am very happy with that arrangement and hope it continues for many years. I have paid my dues in the corporate world and now I want to do other things along with the WWE such as this…building my BBQ business for my family and me. I like spending time and spoiling my granddaughters. You can lash out at me for perceived WWE sins if you choose and I will read them but they can’t be addressed officially in this forum. Nonetheless, whether I agree with you or not I appreciate you checking out our site and for those of you that choose to do business with us I sincerely thank you. If you ever purchase anything here that is not up to your standards or you are disappointed with please let me know. Thanks and let’s all count our blessings that we are able to communicate as we are. J.R.