The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Rex Linn: Cooking up a show
07.11.2009 | Football
July 11, 2009
What is the new show you're working on?
My partner Kevin Meyer and I, we've been cooking and having college football parties for about 20 years, and we've never been paid for it. We came up with the idea that maybe we could do a college football cooking show since there isn't one right now. What we came up is that we'd feature one big game every Saturday. Since I'm a big Longhorn and he's a big Sooner, we decided to feature the Texas-OU game for the pilot. This is what we'll use to try to sell it to the network.
We've got a lot of recipes over the years. We're going to start off with pecan smoked beer can chicken tacos and stuffed jalapeno peppers. We're going to have someone with a board of the top 10 games of the day with the point spreads. We have a disclaimer that we're not promoting gambling at all, but it's going to be different than just cooking. We're very excited about it. There's nothing really on TV like this. There is one show with a guy who goes tailgating at NFL games, but there's not a cooking show. We're hoping the network picks it up.
How did your cooking develop and how will you decide what you'll cook?
Our other partner is a fantastic cook. When we run out of recipes we've been cooking for 20 years, she has a whole list. We're going to try to make the food as good as possible, but we're going to try to keep it simple so that people can tailgate and cook our recipes or they can do it at home. We're going to try to keep them also like that.
You're representing Texas in the show, how did you become a fan of the Longhorns?
I grew up in a little town called Spearman, Texas. My dad turned me into a Longhorn when I was about two years old. That's as simple as it gets. I've been a Longhorn ever since. Kevin played for Oklahoma. Every Saturday, we're always the ones cooking and everybody else comes over. It's been an ongoing joke for 20 years. We always say when we're down at the smoker and it's hot, and everybody else gets to have the cold beverages and eat and watch football, we're always so busy because we have people over. Every Saturday we think, "We should be getting paid for this," never meaning it, but as a joke. Now we're hoping that comes to fruition and we can get paid for it.
Have there been any defining moments, maybe when you were young, that locked you in to being a Texas fan?
Yeah, when I was 12, I got to see what was then called the Game of the Century between Texas and Arkansas. I was there. My dad flew a single engine plane and we flew to the game. That was definitely a defining moment. That was one of the greatest games ever, and I was there, so that was great.
Then recently there is a candidate for the greatest game, possibly ever?
Oh yeah, let me tell you, I didn't really think it could get any better than the Michigan game (2005 Rose Bowl), and we found out the following year it got better. Then look at the Fiesta Bowl, what a great game that was. As the Longhorn nation, we've been on a roll and watched really, really great games. I walked off the field after the Michigan game thinking, "There's no way it's ever going to get better than that. That was amazing." With Dusty Mangum kicking that field goal, but then what I consider, not just because I'm a Longhorn, I consider the National Championship game the greatest game that's ever been played in college.
Along those lines there has been a resurgence since Mack Brown took over the program, what have you seen from him as a Texas fan and personally?
First of all, we all know Mack is a great guy. He's turned out to be a really close friend of mine. He's let me talk to the football team and lets me in the locker room. I get to experience games with (Texas senior associate AD) Butch Worley, one of my closest friends on the planet. Mack has obviously done great things for the program, but I really like him, first of all, because he never forgets a name, which blows me away. I don't know how he does that, but he's turned this program around to the top program in the country. Another thing that makes him really great as a football coach is that he's surrounded himself with a lot of great people. You can't ask for much more than that. Since Mack's been here, the Texas Longhorns have been a force to be reckoned with, and will continue to be.
Since you've been around the program a lot and now shooting this show, you've seen the facilities here evolve, what are your thoughts on those?
I don't know how many times I've been. As you know, I've been here a lot, but I'm impressed every time I come. I really am. I love the new turf and the field. It looks great. The facilities are the best. I just did it a little while ago, but I always stop and look at the weight room. It impresses me every time I see it. I think these are the best facilities in the United States. I haven't been all over, but I think you'd be hard pressed to beat these facilities.
What do you think of Austin on your visits?
I've always said that Austin, Texas is the best place in North America. I mean that, and not because I'm a Longhorn. It's the hippest town on the planet. Everyone I've told that too who hadn't been here later calls me and says, "We just got back from Austin, Texas, and you're right." The only thing I don't like sometimes is the summer, as I sit here and sweat (laughing). I don't know how any other city can be as diverse. You have right wing, left wing, great music scene, great food scene, and the people are the best in the country. Eventually my goal is to get to a point in my career where I can move here. That's one of my goals - to be able to move here and work at the same time.
What else is going on in your career now?
Well, we're getting ready to start our eighth season of CSI: Miami. We're still the number one watched show in the world. We're all getting along and I couldn't be in a better place. I absolutely love what I do, and I don't take it for granted. Every day that I go to work I thank God. It's the best job that anybody could have and I love the people I work with, so I'm blessed.
