ESPN's "Pardon the Interruption" Interview with Jimmy Johnson

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(9.1.10)

Hosts:  Mike Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser

Host: You have a great life on a boat in Florida and you left to do Survivor Nicaragua where you're hungry, you're exhausted, you have no clothing, you're half naked.  Why did you do that?

JJ:  When I was a little kid I had thoughts about going to the Amazon and the animals and nature and just going back to nature.  Obviously football kept me from doing that.  Once I got out of football I said, I'm financially taken care of now.  I can do whatever I want to do, whenever I want to do it, so I want to go to Survivor.  I applied for it three different times, got turned down once, second time because of medical I couldn't do it and then finally got accepted the third time. 

Host:  Okay, so you go and you're excited and you get there and at one point do you say, "Ut oh, be careful what you asked for." 

JJ:  Uh, the first night.  The most miserable night I have ever had in my entire life.  No food, no sleep, bugs biting you all the time, trying to sleep in a pouring down rain on bamboo.  I did spoon with a couple of the gals there, I didn't spoon with the fireman.  I'm trying to stay warm at night.  It was MISERABLE. I mean, I'm glad I did it, it was a great adventure, it's a memory I'll always have but it was MISERABLE. 

Host:  Did any of your coaching techniques, any of your motivational techniques, did they come in handy or were you just trying to live through the night? 

JJ:  I was just trying to survive.  You've got no energy.  We were getting less than a hundred calories a day.  I'm trying to get firewood, I'm trying to catch fish, I'm trying to get some food.  I'm eating little baby crabs...shell and everything.  We had no fruit.  I'm saying, hey, I just got to make it through. They were saying, "Hey coach, you've got to be our leader."  I said, Leader, I just want to survive, I can't be a leader."  I did try to work with them back and forth and I was at my age, kind of their counselor.  I enjoyed being there, I'm glad I did it but it was hard. It was so much more difficult than I ever thought it would be. 

Host:  What would we need to get through one day of this?

JJ: I was taking a palm frond and scraping the tartar off my teeth after about 5 or 6 days.  People ask me about my hair.  I didn't have a mirror, I didn't have a comb or hair spray so I have no idea what I looked like. 

Host:  No toothbrush?  You can't even have that?

JJ: I had a shirt, a pair of shorts, a pair of underwear and a pair of shoes.  They were wet and dirty the entire time I was there. 

Host:  What did you miss most about civilization?  I'm going to guess toilet paper is high on the list.

JJ:  No, because you never went to the toilet.  I went to the toilet the 8th day.  The thing I wanted more anything else when I got off, I wanted a cold light beer and that's what I got.

Host:  We heard about spooning and people running around half-naked.  Is any of it titillating on any level?

JJ:  No, I mean really, everybody smells so bad.  There's no showers, no soap.  You just really want to make it through and you've got no energy especially at my age.  It was tough.  Again, I'm glad I did it but it was miserable.