 It's Friday night in the A, and you know what that means. Kelly Price and Tori McElhaney coming at you on Rise Up Tonight, presented by AT&T. What is going on, Atlanta? Tori McElhaney, Kelly Price here with you on a rare Friday night game day Eve. How are we feeling as we kind of round third base towards home in the preseason here? I don't know about everybody else, but I would like to get through the preseason. Let's get some real games that matter. We're so close that we can taste it. So close, yet still a little too far. All right, well, let's huddle up, you guys. We're going to talk about some Falcons football from Monday night. It was a mixed bag. First half with the first and second team. Things were going pretty good. Falcons pitching a shutout. We saw more of Marcus Mariota, more Desmond Ritter, more on him in a minute, though. Then in the second half with the third string, not as good. So how should Falcons fans feel? Should they be optimistic about this team because of the first half or discouraged with how the ending seemed a little too familiar? Here's the thing Arthur Smith said earlier in the week that the preseason should be taken with a grain of salt, and I will say the same goes for what we saw in that game. Let's be honest, the second half wasn't good, but you're looking more individual evaluations, and so I think you can just honestly just take the second half and throw it away. We can handle having that first half as your evaluation point. Yeah, for sure. Well, either way, I think most of us knew how Arthur Smith felt. Coach may not always like narratives and hot takes and whatnot, but he himself was becoming a little bit of a meme with, shall we call it, his passionate expression on the sideline. And you know what, I love to see it because this is something you want to see from your coach, your team in the preseason. Who says it doesn't have to matter? Getting this team ready to play at the standard that Arthur Smith wants it to be does matter, and you can tell how much he cared with how he coached on Monday night. Yeah, I think you just saw it. You think about that one penalty on the one-yard line. Jalen Mayfield false start. Arthur Smith gets after Desmond Ritter, Matt Hennessy, the entire offense as they make their way to the sideline. If you are setting an expectation that these type of procedural penalties are unacceptable now, that helps you out in the future. You don't have to do it in week five. Yeah, better to learn it now, absolutely. Well, Tori and I have talked about this amongst ourselves before. Arthur Smith is not exactly the most quotable guy when it comes to press conferences, and that is totally fine for the record. We love his no-nonsense approach, but that's why when he says something like what he did about Desmond Ritter on Monday night, our antennas really go up as journalists. Take a listen. A lot of lessons learned and I got high expectations for Desmond. So we're gonna be hard on Desmond and because he's a good player and he can take that kind of coaching, he understands that we're not waiting on him as a rookie. We're trying to speed him up. So he made some good throws. There's some things he's gotta clean up, especially in the operation. All right, before you guys get all excited that this means the Falcons are considering starting Ritter, chill. How I interpret this is the Falcons have high expectations for him. They're putting more on his plate than most rookies because they believe in him and that he can handle it. What would you make of the commentary? For Arthur Smith to say that they wanna push Desmond Ritter because he can handle it, that to me says that they really believe in who Desmond Ritter is. Of course, we are not saying here that he's gonna be the starter week one. That should be Marcus Mariota, but push him like he is. After all, Desmond Ritter, he wants to be coached hard. So do it. Yeah, absolutely. And that competition's only gonna make both of those guys better. Well, in Tori's post game piece about what stood out to her in the Jets game, she talked a little bit about the interior defensive line. No Grady Jarrett because wrap that man in bubble wrap, but you wrote, you know, that's a good thing because the Falcons really need to figure out what they've got around number 97. What have you seen from that group and how likely is it? Do you think that they dip into someone else's 53 man cut casualties on the free market this week? Here's the thing, more than any other position, this group has been bitten by the injury bugs this preseason. They are actively having to figure out if they have the depth that they need on the roster already. I like to quangram. I like Anthony Rush, but we really don't know what the depth looks like after that. You're absolutely right. It would not surprise me at all if we see them go after some guys who were cut elsewhere across the league. Well, the Falcons were in the big apple for a New York minute, but they did pack that drip. Let's see what they wore in this week's Falcons Fits. Starting with QB1, Marcus Marrota, who I think repeated last week's fit. Not sure if it is too soon to mention, but that is a total Matt Ryan move right there. My man wore the same pull over every week last season. Is this like a quarterback thing? Cause honestly, Marrota seems like a very simple guy. So it makes sense. Like he's got one business trip look. You know, here's the thing about quarterbacks. Sometimes they're the most superstitious person on the field. This may be a quarterback thing. We're not sure. We're going to have to wait and see. Worked out for Matt Ryan most of the time. All right. Well, we know he did not play in the game, but this man does not play when it comes to his fashion. Grady Jarrett flexing on all of us at all times. This time with Gucci literally head to toe, Tori. Shoes, shorts, jacket, all of it. We love a matching set. It's very in right now. You know, Grady never misses. No, he really does not. Next up, Adé Ogendayji with the brave swag. There is nothing that warms my heart more than to see the cross city, cross team love, even before the playoffs hit. We love to see that. Reyes has been on its air trying to chase that fifth straight division crowd. I think crowd, I think Adé needs to keep wearing this jersey. I may not be super superstitious, but I may be a little stitious. Okay, if you didn't get that reference, we can't be friends to all of our views out there. Something else about this jersey, it's a Ronald Acuna jersey. Someone now needs to get Acuna and Adé jersey. I would love to see that. All right, finally, Leroy Watson. I'm not mad. I just want to talk. W shirt objectively, but why on God's green earth? Did you not save this green jungle fit for Jaguar's week, man? Here's the thing. We talked about repeating outfits. Maybe he is going to wear this for Jags. Okay, we'll give him the benefit of the doubt. All right, from a loud animal prince to something a little more subtle. This week, we wanted to find someone with a hidden talent on the team. We found some harmonizing rookies who used to hone their crafts together on and off the field as roommates back at Penn State. Take a listen in our question of the week. We had a studio in one of our roommates' rooms, and we always used to be there, just messing around, making songs, but AK always wanted to go on there, make his own song, my bad. Make his own song. He never wanted to be on the beat with anybody else. So, you know, AK got a lot of hidden talents. I'm ready. I'm ready. Oh, no, he can't put me on the spot like that. Too late, too late. No wonder I do the tombstone. Tombstone. Tombstone and buried me by the river that would carry me finally I'll rest in peace finally, finally I'll get to fly away somewhere, someday The crazy thing is, like, you'll be sleep. You know what I'm saying? You don't have no class that day. You know what I'm saying? AK, just come back from class. He come in your room. Tombstone and buried me. It was trade five, and it was a movement just being in there, and we have so many, so much fun moment in there, and it was just the best part being in college together and having fun. It was amazing. Yeah, I just always say, like, you know, you just wake up and you never know what you're gonna get. You know what I'm saying? Living in that house, you know, it was five of us, you know, me, AK, and two others. I mean, three others. So, you know, it was just everything was just so spontaneous. So we really just had fun with everything. So that's what I miss the most. Shout out trade five for life, man. Trade five for life. Trade five for life. The man killing it as a roommate, as a teammate, he comes in there with the harmonizing, just totally supporting his guy. Rarely am I left speechless with that. I have no words for that. Gosh, that was fantastic. I kid you not. Best moment of camp. Best moment of the preseason. I was standing there and it was just as funny as you were watching in that moment. I love that he actually did it too. I know, I was shocked. Sometimes they get shy in the moment when you ask him to do something like that and he went for it. Shout out to all of our college roommates. You know who you are. That's the biggest thing I miss about college. All those kind of fun memories you get back in college. That's the thing they don't tell you about graduating. You don't have that anymore. I mean Penn State football, the house, whatever house that was, that sounds like a riot, man. I mean, hey, if they kept up that same energy, shoot, I'd love to be a fly on the wall there. I need the whole album. I need the whole thing. All right, well, here as we roll ahead here on Rise Up Tonight, you'll see some delicious concoctions from our in-the-nest guests in Mercedes-Benz Stadium this season. Don't miss that interview just ahead. Plus, AJ Turrell continues to get back to kids who want to be just like him one day from Westlake Lions, the Atlanta Falcons. That's coming up next on Rise Up Tonight. Rise Up Tonight is presented by AT&T and brought to you by Georgia Lottery. Today could be the day. By Home Depot, how doers get more done? By Mercedes-Benz, the best of nothing and by Truist, committed to a better future. When the Falcons drafted AJ Turrell at 21 years old, they knew they were getting a potential top corner in the league. They knew they were getting a homegrown kid from Westlake High School. What they may not have known then about Turrell is how much he's blossomed into a positive figure in the community, giving back every chance he gets. This is Rise Up for Atlanta, brought to you by Truist. During one of those brutal heat waves this summer, more than 250 kids pulled up to Lakewood Stadium for Turrell's youth football camp. And let me tell you, an NFL star like him getting in there and being as hands-on as he gets with these kids is a rarity at these types of events. It's because Turrell really cares about making an impact on the very community that raised him. I do this for the love of the game, you know? Just like I said, giving back and I just feel like it's my duty to give back to the youth and just make sure everybody's on the right path and understand that they have a chance to reach their goal. We've been in everybody's shoes here and whether it be the good or the bad, everybody has the same equal amount of opportunity, especially at a young age and just making sure they're on the right path to do so. Well, with the 53-man cut down looming next week, the Falcons are gonna have some tough decisions to make. Torrell and I have some takes of our own on a few bubble players. Stay tuned for that. Plus, we talk entrepreneurship, philanthropy, and more with one of Atlanta's rising stars in the restaurant bid. Next on Rise Up Tonight. Rise Up Tonight is presented by AT&T and brought to you by Georgia Lottery. Today could be the day. By Home Depot, how doers get more done? By Mercedes-Benz, the best of nothing and by Truis, committed to a better future. Welcome back to Rise Up Tonight. Let's head in the nest with Kelly Tory and this week's special guest. He's brought to you by Mercedes-Benz. Welcome back to Rise Up Tonight. We are really excited to welcome someone in the nest, who is an entrepreneur, a philanthropist. He is the CEO and founder of Big Dave's Cheese Stakes. Derek Hayes with us here. As a West Philly guy now in Atlanta, I mean, why make Atlanta the home of a Philly Cheese Stake company? For one, Atlanta opened me with open arms when I came here. I lost my father in 2009. He was battling cancer at Emory University. And I lived in Athens, Georgia prior, you know, going to school at Clark Central. I played basketball for them. So, you know, my father passed away. I wanted to start my life over. And I felt like, you know, Atlanta was the place to do it. And now what I've done over the last few years, you know, it was a good decision. I mean, to that end, can you kind of just explain to everybody your philosophy on really building your passions around community and food and business and what that means for you? Well, I call myself like a trailblazer in certain things because I wanted not only to build my restaurant and, you know, build the brand stronger, I wanted to uplift communities. I wanted the people that looked just like me. I got 47 tattoos on my body. And the stereotype that comes with that, I want people to, you know, feel good about themselves that they can do it too. So when I was building this brand, I wasn't only doing it for me. I was doing it for everybody else that was watching and wasn't watching because if they see somebody that looked like them, they're gonna start watching. So it gave me all my hope and ability to keep this dream going and it's been amazing so far. I want to go back to the beginning. How did you get your start in the culinary world and why was that something that you wanted to do? His name was Troy P. Hayes. It was my grandfather. All right. So on Sundays, if I ain't go to church, I had to finish his dinner. So he was like, you know, that was a stipulation. If you ain't gonna come to church with me, then you're gonna finish the dinner. But that man gave me so many principles and morals in my life that helped me out because not only did it help me learn how to cook, helped me learn how to be respectful and know how to stand on my own 10 toes. And I got a real good gift at making seasons before it touched the food. So I can literally make seasoning raw from stretch and I know how I was gonna taste before it hit the food. So that's my gift he helped me with. And I thank him for that. God rest his soul. And everyone at Mercedes-Benz Stadium is gonna get a taste of Big Dave's as well this season and a really exciting announcement that you guys are gonna be in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. How excited are you, how proud are you of that? I'm still living in this because it happened the day I signed today. I'm still living in this surreal dream because I drive past there all the time and Mercedes-Benz Stadium is the best stadium in the world. And I got two locations in there. And where I come from from West Philadelphia all the way to here and I'm pitting on for my city in a lot of different ways. It's just a feeling that's unreal. I'm literally living in the moment right now as I talk to y'all. I've been thinking about it like I'm really in the stadium, I'm really in the stadium. It's like more is coming. I know God got a lot of things for me because I wanna pit on for a lot of people and bring other people up. When I'm building my brand, I'm not just building me. I'm uplifting the people that work for me. I'm giving them careers. I gave a few people in my company equity that started with me to help me get there because I know I couldn't do it by myself. So now when we rejoice in them, we all gonna celebrate together. I'm pretty sure my team can't wait to see me. Man, congrats about that. But it is really fun because this is a falcon show of Falcons playing Mercedes Benz Stadium. You've been around Atlanta for a while. Do you have maybe a favorite memory or even a favorite player from the Falcons organization? My favorite player, honestly, well I got two favorite players from the Falcons. It was Michael Vick, because of course he came from Philly. You know what I mean? He came from Philly. We gave him a second chance coming to Philly now, but Michael Vick, he's a good guy, humble. And Julio Jones. Julio used to kill us some years and I was like, but I remember my downtown location before COVID hit. I had probably 150, 200 people in there. We all watching the game and you know, the Eagles took it out that day. But what I realized is Atlanta has embraced me as like I'm from here. So I tell people all the time, Philly raised me, but Atlanta made me a man. So both of these are my home now. So whoever going to the Super Bowl, I'm rooting for them. I love that you said that because I've also felt that being here in Atlanta, even just three years, I know you're from Georgia, but I felt that as well. So that's what you said that. Yeah, they embraced me. They definitely embraced me and like a lot of people asked me like, you know, how does it feel to start in a never city and for people to, you know, clap for you. And once you hear it, I came here with my heart and pure intentions to win and change communities that I knew I can do. You know, so sometimes you got to change the environment to be able for people to see who you really are. It's not you running from your city or you couldn't have done it in your city. But when you end something that everything looked the same, it's hard to point it out. So what I did was when I came to Atlanta, I brung my Philly swag, I brung all my hard work, my grind, my passion, and they seen that. And all that stuff is here in Atlanta as well. Like grind all that passion. Oh man, listen, there's so much motivation in here. Like I don't know how people, you know, for me when I came here in 2014, I met the light one day and I had a, I actually had a bad injury where I was battling for five years. I had a few back operations, but I seen people that looked like me that was doing so well, the cars they was driving, the business they was owning. And I'm like, hold up, we getting tricked out. I spot up north. But that's how, you know, but that's what I've been trying to, you know, let people know, like, there's so much more out here in the world. We just have to take our chance and jump off the cliff and go get it. Nothing is going to get given to you and nothing special is going to happen in life without you taking the risk. Well, thanks so much for the time, Derek. We really appreciate it. Anyone who wants to catch the full conversation head to Fox5Atlanta.com and you'll see it there. We'll be right back on Rise Up Tonight. Hey, Atlanta, this is Ed Crack talking and you're watching Rise Up Tonight presented by AT&T. It's like I don't get caught up in whatever narrative is after four weeks of the daily narratives. You can almost write some of these narratives and live and die every week by narratives because it sets up bad, you know, narratives. You can frame the narrative, you can write narratives. Those are easy narratives. All right, coach, we get it. This was more of a freezing cold take segment in hindsight from last week. We saw a lot of Felipe Franks, but maybe not how we want it to. They listened to me. I just don't know how well they listened because I said I wanted to see Felipe Franks that tight end. We saw him at quarterback. I want to see him at tight end. The game at telephone. It didn't quite get there to them. We also didn't see a Falcons sack. I mean, we can always dream on that one. We'll get there. Hopefully we can get there. Well, Tori and I are going to be a little more realistic this week. The NFL's 53 man cut down is on Tuesday. This week, our hot takes will be on the bubble players that we think will still be in Falcons uniform after that cut down. Mine is Dee Allford, the Spalding High School grad and former Canadian football leader. He's been a major standout in camp practices. And then we saw that translate into preseason games. He led the team in the exhibition opener with eight tackles and not an interception against the Lions, a game in which he played more than on Monday night. But I think he's a great example of someone they want to keep around this defense. Assignment sound. He's doing everything they ask of him, which now includes working at Nickel, which I think gives him a really good shot at making this roster. I'm going to say it. If Dee Allford doesn't make this roster, I will be shocked. But for my hot take, I'm going to move to the other side of the ball and I'm going to break down the wide receiver position a little bit. I think they're going to carry five on the 53 man roster. But who am I choosing? Drake London, Alameda Zaccheus, Brian Edwards, Kaderrill Hodge, and Jared Bernhardt. Ooh, spicy. Spicy. I think Jared Bernhardt has, as far as competition goes, he's really been turning up the heat. He's had a really, really good training camp, a really good preseason. And I actually talked to Arthur Smith this week and I was like, what do you need to see from these receivers in order to make that decision about who you keep around? And he said, we need to see consistency. We want to see guys who we can trust. And that's what we're seeing Jared Bernhardt do. Absolutely. He's made a really hard decision for him after the preseason that he has had. Another position group that is going to be really interesting to see how that one shakes out is the running back room. Who is going to make the 53 man roster from the running back group? Let's see, you've got to talk about CP, Kaderrill Patterson. You've got to talk about Damian Williams, Tyler Algier. But then you think about it, this, you have to also put in there Avery Williams, who has been trying a lot of running back. Do you have enough space on your 53 man roster to carry someone like Quadrae Olson? That's the question that we are going to have to answer soon. Tough decisions to be made. Thanks for staying up late with us here on Rise Up Tonight for Tori McElhaney. I'm Kelly Price. We'll see you right back here next Friday night. And if you're interested in some season tickets for the Falcons, check out this QR code that's popped up on the screen right there. Good night, guys. My point is still on the side.