CSC Interview: Chase Daniel talks about his newest partnership, the Saints, LSU and more
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Last week, I had the opportunity to interview Super Bowl champion and former New Orleans Saints quarterback Chase Daniel to discuss his partnership with Cheez-It and the upcoming Cheez-It Couch Committee as well as his thoughts on college football, LSU and of course, the Saints.
CD: What’s up, Anthony?
AP: Hey, Chase, what’s going on, man? I am absolutely thrilled to meet you. I’m a diehard Who Dat and I’ve been a fan of yours since you were in Missouri cutting it up, bro.
CD: Let’s go.
AP: I’m all here for it. So, you got something going on now with the Cheez-It Couch Committee. Tell me a little bit about that partnership.
CD: Yeah, so Cheez-It has been showing up at bowl games in the college football playoff for over a decade. So, we said, hey, what’s better than getting the Cheez-It Couch Committee together? Cheez-It literally has this massive orange square couch that looks like cheese. I mean, it is like bright orange, like a Cheez-It. It’s gonna be in November. I’m gonna be sitting on that couch. We’re gonna have a tailgate, and we got fans that can enter a contest at cheezit.com/couchcommittee. And pretty much, we’re gonna talk ball. We’re gonna debate. I was a backup my whole career. I love armchair quarterbacking. I have quarterback breakdowns on YouTube. We’re on TV talking about this and that.
But why not do it in person? So, it’s gonna be a massive orange couch, and we’re gonna be kicking it, eating some Cheez-Its. It’s gonna be awesome.
AP: Man, that sounds amazing. So, first of all, who came up with the concept for a giant Cheez-It couch?
CD: Dude, the Cheez-It team is unbelievable. And it is like the sickest couch you’ve ever heard.
AP: I can’t wait to see it.
AP: So, this is a rentable couch?
CD: Dude, they made it. Yeah, it’s crazy.
AP: So, you were literally a star quarterback at Missouri. Clearly, you understand the importance of college football, the culture, game day traditions. Why does all of that matter so much for college football? Describe it from your, from a player’s perspective.
CD: You know, I spent so long in the NFL where fans are crazy, fans are fun, and games sometimes can be like a wine and cheese crowd, where they’re just going to show up, they’re just like here to be seen and to see people. College football fans are crazy in all the good ways. Like, they are diehard.
Ready to go, the pomp and circumstance, the pageantry, the band, the cheerleaders, like all that stuff. In the bill doesn’t have that stuff. So as a diehard fan, dude, like getting back into college football the last two years, it’s been really cool. I’ve, like, literally become a fan all over again. And so to have this out of tailgate with Cheez-It, like, to me, it’s awesome.
AP: That’s amazing. So, with that being said, the Cheez-It, the couch, college football fans… blending all these things together. Why is this such a unique situation with the couch itself being such, like, the ultimate seat centered around college football?
CD: Yeah, that’s a good call, because I think if you can’t make it to the game, what do most fans that don’t go to games, what do most fans do on Saturday? They sit on a couch, and they’re always have these hot takes of I could do that. Or I could do this, and what’s this guy doing? This ref sucks, like all this stuff. And so why not bring it live and in person outside of a stadium? And you’re literally sitting on the couch, and we’re talking face to face. You’re not talking to screens like we’re doing right now.
AP: Awesome. So, we’re going into Week 3 of the college football season. What has been some of the things that have stood out to you the most and what’s your biggest prediction for the rest of the season?
CD: Wow, that’s tough. I think one of the things, the SEC has the deepest quarterback class in the country of any college conference. And quite honestly, it’s not even close. I’m not just talking about the top three, I’m talking about from, in general. The other thing is Sark in Texas, they’re for real. Huge win, program-defining win for Sark over Ohio State, program-or career-sort of-defining win for Arch Manning. Look, I know it’s early. But to be able to get past your demons that you had last year with Ohio State and how bad you played and how much stuff you got in the media, all this stuff, it was just, you could tell, like, it was weight lifted off of shoulders. And I would say the biggest thing at the end of the year, I’m gonna say the SEC does not go four years in a row and gets the national championship.
AP: All right, since we’re on the SEC, let’s talk about the marquee matchup of the weekend that’s coming up. You’ve got Lane Kiffin, LSU. What are your thoughts on him being an LSU, and how do you think everything unfolds in Oxford this Saturday night?
CD: Yeah, it’s a good call. I don’t know if Ole Miss’s secondary can handle the passing game of Sam Leavitt and Charlie Weiss Jr. and Lane Kiffin. That’s what I’m gonna be focusing on the most, because when you watch it, Sam Leavitt has not been an efficient passer this year whatsoever. Can you get the pass game going? Can the Rebels defense actually hold LSU to less than 40 points? I think Trinidad Chambliss on the other side. That’s the most intriguing matchup to me. Trinidad versus that LSU Blake Baker defense, which is blitzing left and right, has been fantastic through the first couple weeks. I, I think those are the two matchups to do. I wouldn’t be surprised if LSU wins. However, I think it’s gonna be a lot closer than you think.
AP: I want to get your thoughts on Tyler Shough and the Saints. You literally were brought up under Drew Brees. You were led by a Hall of Famer. So, you have a really good perspective on this. How do you see Tyler Shough’s career going? How do you see him now entering into his second year as really the guy in New Orleans, knowing how much the Saints mean to the city?
CD: They found their guy. They found their second coming. I’m not going to say of Drew Brees. No one can do that. But it’s been a hard road for Saints fans since Brees has left and retired and I think that they have found their franchise guy, without a doubt. Love how he played against the Lions, like played really bad… but there’s, you know, some stuff that goes on in the first half of the game, but then in the second half, third quarter, fourth quarter, overtime, bringing them back, driving them down the field, throwing for over 400 yards. That game, even though they didn’t win, I love the fact that they went for two. Even though they didn’t win, I think that they ended up with a feeling in that sort of team that, hey, this is our guy, we have our guy.
We’re gonna be better, the Saints are gonna be better than a lot of people think. NFC South, the whole gamut’s 0-1. They’re gonna be better than people think. And so, how do we continue to build on that performance?
AP: And finally, Missou, Eli Drinkwitz, got a stacked running backfield. What are your expectations for your alma mater this season?
CD: Man, they gotta win some games. They gotta win games that they’re not supposed to win, but they gotta win games that they’re SUPPOSED TO win. There’s a big difference in that. That’s how you end up at the season with eight, nine, ten wins. When you pull some out that you’re really not supposed to, but then you win all the ones that you’re supposed to. A lot of, you know, questions about the offensive line, defensive line. We’re gonna get that sorted out going into, to SEC play, but I’m super excited about seeing what’s happening.
AP: Chase, what else do you have to say about Cheez-Its, your partnership with them, and the rest of college football?
CD: Yeah, remember cheezit.com/couchcommittee. If you’re a college football fan with friends who love to debate, just enter the contest at cheezit.com/couchcommittee. It’s gonna be awesome.
AP: Awesome, man. Thank you so much for your time, Chase. I look forward to seeing everything you and the Cheez-It brand have coming forward and hope to get to work with you again in the future.
CD: Thank you so much, Anthony. Appreciate you, man.
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