While in Indianapolis on the fourth stop of our 2021 Tailgate Tour for the Indy 500, the Garage Guys stopped by the George 4 Foundation & American Cornhole League’s “Cornament of Champions” benefiting GiGi’s Playhouse. Four ACL Pros: Matt Guy, Allison Peters, Christine Papcke, Frank Modlin, paired up with four celebrities: James Hinchcliffe, Alexander Rossi, Kenny Moore II, George Steinbrenner IV, for this charity fundraising event at the Daredevil Brewery in downtown Indianapolis. What a great event that encompassed a fun tailgating vibe and pro athletes’ competitive nature for a good cause.
Check out the full 2-hour stream on the ACL Digital Network or Facebook.
Cornament of Champions benefits GiGi’s Playhouse of Indianapolis, specifically providing a new 12 passenger van to ensure reliable transportation for members of their EPIC Program. GiGi’s Playhouse Indianapolis, Down Syndrome Achievement Center provides the opportunity for individuals with Down syndrome and their families to grow, develop, and network. GiGi’s Playhouse, strives to become a place of sanctuary, belonging, and love. GiGi’s is a place where new parents can see the potential that their child can achieve, and all individuals with Down syndrome can reach new heights. The EPIC program provides opportunities for members to get involved in giving back to the community. Participants work on vocational, communication, and social skills to boost confidence and encourage independence through goal-oriented objectives.
Cornhole and Tailgating
This charity event is the latest of the many events where the American Cornhole League has partnered with celebrities and pro athletes for a good cause. Cornhole remains the most popular tailgating and backyard game and the ACL’s ability to leverage their growing popularity from ESPN broadcasts, which gained even more viewers during the pandemic thanks to their rapid ability to pivot and adapt, offers novice and Pro players alike a chance to play and win money. Garage Guy Dale Tanhardt spoke to top ACL Pro Matt Guy while tailgating in Indianapolis. Check out the video or read the full interview below.
American Cornhole League Pro Matt Guy
Dale:
Dale Tanhardt here, the greatest NASCAR better in the history of the universe, coming to you from Speedway, Indiana, here at the Daredevil Brewing Company on Main Street, just minutes away from the racetrack, Indianapolis Motor Speedway. We’re only three days away from the beautiful, amazing, spectacular Indianapolis 500, the 105th edition. I have the legend himself here. They call him the Tom Brady of cornhole, the winningest cornhole player in the history of the American Cornhole League. I’ve got Matt Guy, here who also just won our celebrity tournament. Quick shout-out to Duke Cannon Supply Company. Inside Tailgating, and of course the American Cornhole League. I’ve got Matt Guy here who just swept the competition in our celebrity tournament, beat the likes of Alexander Rossi, James Hinchcliffe, cornerback of the Indianapolis Colts, Kenny Moore. Matt, how’d you do it today, man?
Matt:
I mean, it was different than what I’m used to. Most of our tournaments are inside, air conditioned, no environment to worry about. Today, we’re outside, kind of hot, wind blowing. So it was different, but you just try to get the right mindset and do the right thing. And George actually came through. George was great. I played with George Steinbrenner IV and he was great.
Dale:
Yeah. Need to mention that. George Steinbrenner IV was his partner. Shout-out to what he’s doing here to raise this event, an exceptional event for GiGi’s Playhouse. Huge charity deal there.
Dale:
So tell me about going against Rossi. Did you play Rossi, right?
Matt:
Yes.
Dale:
Or do you play Hinch? Tell me about going against Rossi. I’m familiar with Rossi as a race car fan. The guy’s a bad-ass. Great race car driver, former Indy 500 champion. How strong or weak was his game out there with the bags?
Matt:
So the game before he played us-
Dale:
Don’t hold up. Don’t hold up.
Matt:
The game before he played us, he was pretty strong. And then when our game was up, the wind picked up, and he didn’t adjust very well to the wind, but he was playing against his boss, George. And I told George before the match, “Sweep the leg.” I told him to sweep the leg and he was like, “We just got to drive Sunday.” I was like, “Yeah, okay, maybe don’t sweep the leg.” But I think the wind was really affecting their shots. It really was.
Dale:
Yeah, I was standing sideline watching the wind just have a big effect on it with bags going over the side, off the side, whatever.
Matt:
Yeah. I mean, you’re throwing a one pound bag into a gust of wind. Sometimes you don’t know where it’s going to go, right?
Dale:
Absolutely. And like I said, you guys swept the competition. So talk about real quick… I mentioned you are the winningest ACL cornhole player of all time. The inception in 2015 and it’s growing and growing exponentially as years pass. It’s really awesome for such a sport that is so fun and anybody can play to grow to the level that it is. Now, tell me about the tailgating side of the ACL, just cornhole in general. The excitement level of the sport is phenomenal, but tell me about the excitement level of the fans that attend these events day in and day out, week in and week out, and their energy.
Matt:
So what’s cool about our sport is we’re pretty popular amongst our fans. I’m Elvis, basically. I’ve heard that many times.
Dale:
You said you’re Elvis?
Matt:
I’ve had many fans tell me, “This is like meeting Elvis.”
Dale:
I love that. That is awesome.
Matt:
It’s that big in our world. And when we travel to these different cities and meet these people, they’re just taken back like, “Holy crap. I can’t believe I’m meeting Matt Guy, shaking his hand, throwing a bag with Matt Guy.” I’m just a normal dude, man. I got a Monday through Friday job. I, This is just a weekend thing, but I take it all in stride. I love meeting new people, making friends, little kids come up with big eyes, like, “Wow, nice.” I just take it all in and love it. Love the energy.
Dale:
What was it like hearing that for the first time? I’ve been hearing all day, “The TB12, Tom Brady, the GOAT of cornhole.” What was it like hearing stuff? And you said Elvis, obviously. What was it like hearing that for like the first few times? Did it just blow your mind?
Matt:
Kind of, but not really, because I’m like-
Dale:
You know you’re the best.
Matt:
No, when they say it, I’m like, “Dude, I’m just a normal dude like you. I can just throw a bag in the hole.” That’s pretty much what I say.
Dale:
It’s incredible. And you say, “Just throw a bag in the hole.” Just looking at everything else, it sounds simple, but there’s so much more to it than that, is what it seems like. It’s crazy what-
Matt:
The consistency factor is the big factor.
Dale:
The consistency, the technique you see. I’ve been trying to have people teach me. I’m a lefty. I’m garbage. I’m awful. I went to an SEC school. We play a lot of cornhole. I have sucked for years. I can’t figure it out, but it’s been interesting to be exposed to guys like you and others who’ve helped me out. And it blows my mind to see what you guys do. We talked amongst ourselves earlier when I was… One of those final rounds, I was just watching, and he was, him and Frank Modlin, just every single bag in the hole.
Matt:
Down the middle, in the hole. Down the middle, in the hole. I mean, that’s the name of the game. Down the middle, in the hole.
Dale:
With the wind, too.
Matt:
With the wind, yeah.
Dale:
Like you said, outside conditions are not what you guys are used to. Unbelievable, man. So shout-out to all the professionals that were here today. These guys are unreal. He’s a normal human being? No, absolutely not. He’s a TB12, Tom Brady of cornhole. Now, you said this is your first time here in Indianapolis for the 500 weekend.
Matt:
It is. Yes.
Dale:
So obviously the event here today was a massive success. It was a lot of fun for everybody. We’ve had a great time. The fans have had a good time. You probably hear the band just jamming down behind us. Tell me about the energy you feel here at this event, just throughout the short time you’ve been here, and what you expect for the weekend.
Matt:
So when I came in, I got off my exit, made a few turns, came down, turned on Main Street and I was like, “Holy crap.” Just what you see and the people, and you can just feel the energy. This is Indianapolis’s thing, right? This is their thing. And you can feel it. As soon as you turn on Main Street, it’s like, “Wow, this is the real deal.”
Dale:
As someone who’s an Indy veteran, I’ve been coming here for a long time, there’s so many options here too. You have the campgrounds, you have the inside of the racetrack, you have Main Street, you have downtown, you have an area called Broad Ripple that is a more college area. All super fun areas of Indianapolis, Indiana. It’s just a great place. Who do you have winning the race on Sunday, if you could think of anybody?
Matt:
I got to go with my buddy George’s guy, Rossi.
Dale:
Alexander Rossi? Hey, I love that, because I’m big on-
Matt:
Got to go with my guy.
Dale:
Alexander Rossi, If you exclude last year’s race, has an average finish in the Indy 500 of 3.5. He’s won here before in 2016. The guy’s an animal. You watch him on the track, he is ruthless. Balls to the wall-
Matt:
And now he’s pissed off because he just lost to his boss in cornhole, right?
Dale:
Man, it’s crazy. I hear that guy is so unbelievably competitive. You would expect him to come out a lot stronger, right?
Matt:
Yeah.
Dale:
Yeah. But no, it’s going to be an awesome weekend. Already a great time. Race Day right here. Daredevil Brewery’s beer, race Day. I’m about to try it again real quick. Hold on.
Matt:
I liked Race Day. I liked it. I did like it.
Dale:
Delicious. I’m not a big craft beer guy, but this is good.
Matt:
I’m not either, but I liked it. It was good.
Dale:
This is good stuff.
Matt:
Yeah. I was just telling Mike, I said, “Of all the craft beers I’ve had, that’s probably the favorite one I’ve ever had.”
Dale:
Yeah, no doubt about that. So like I said, here at the Daredevil Brewery, we’re having an awesome time. Could you, if you had one… You’ve been around plenty of cornhole fans. We spoke about that earlier, the energy that comes to the cornhole events of the ACL. Do you have a number one craziest tailgating experience, or something remarkably insane that you’ve seen from a fan or a group of fans at your event? If you could think of one that just blew your mind or that… If it’s super inappropriate, we’re all about it.
Matt:
Going back a few years where I signed some boobs, that was probably my highlight. I got to autograph some boobs. So I would say that’s probably up there.
Dale:
That’s when you know you’ve hit superstar.
Matt:
That’s when you know you’ve made it, right?
Dale:
Yes. That’s when you know you’ve hit superstar, when you get to sign boobs.
Matt:
Yeah.
Dale:
Oh my God. That’s awesome. And you’ll see a lot of that around here, probably. Just the campgrounds-
Matt:
I’m willing to sign them.
Dale:
You’ll be around here. Hey he’s a willing man. And by the way, what do you think about this? All right. So I got this cut up. Does that look more like a checkered flag, the bricks like the Brickyard, or one of my buddies said grill marks? What does it look the most like to you?
Matt:
I’m going with the bricks.
Dale:
Going with the bricks. The camera’s got plenty of good shots of the bricks right there. That’s I like to hear. I’m going to with bricks. You talked about the signing of the boobs. I like the idea of walking up to… Doing some fan content. Hey, do you want to kiss the bricks? Yeah, absolutely.
Matt:
There you go.
Dale:
Right here. Boom.
Matt:
There you go.
Dale:
Easy content. Easy fun. If they’re willing to do it, obviously. But big shout-out to Matt Guy. Thank you so much for being on the show.
Matt:
Yeah. My pleasure, man.
Dale:
We keep it short and simple around here. Shout-out to Duke Cannon. Shout-out to our Race Day Daredevil Brewing Company beer, Inside Tailgating of course, and obviously the American Cornhole League, which put this event on display here in Speedway, Indiana. Thank you guys so much. Dale Tanhardt here with Garage Guys Fantasy Sports. Be sure to subscribe to our Garage Guys content, as well as Inside Tailgating on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram. Check us out. Once again, much appreciate it. Matt Guy, the Tom Brady of cornhole, baby.
Matt:
Shout-out to Fire Cornhole.
Dale:
Show that to the camera.
Matt:
Shout-out to Fire Cornhole.
Dale:
Cut it, baby. That’s it.
Special thanks to the American Cornhole League and Duke Cannon for their sponsorship of our 2021 NASCAR Tailgate Tour. Share your Dover tailgate experiences with us below and like, follow, tag us on your social tailgating posts for shout-outs. Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel and email newsletter so you stay up to speed on all the tailgating insider info!
