Minnesota Vikings Love Boat Captain Hired by Barstool Sports
Here it is… our first weekend without Minnesota Vikings football for the next six months. It won’t be easy, but we’ll make it through the offseason together. The NFL offseason is almost as exciting as the regular season, because of how well the league has free agency, the draft and other offseason activities organized to remain in the headlines.
Speaking of headlines, I ran across an unexpected one on Friday, while scrolling through Twitter. How many of you reading this are old enough to remember the Vikings 2005 Love Boat scandal?
Fred Smoot and the Minnesota Vikings Love Boat Scandal
What about the young Minnesota Vikings cornerback who organized the Love Boat party? The one and only Fred Smoot. The same Fred Smoot who played here for two seasons (2005-2006)… and the same Fred Smoot who organized the most iconic Minnesota Vikings off-field “incident” of it’s not-so-innocent history…
Not familiar with Smoot or the scandal? Of course you are… but just in case, here is a clip from the Barstool Sports Love Boat documentary. **Make sure to put your headphones in, it’s not safe for work.
Fred Smoot played 25 games as a member of the Minnesota Vikings. After a huge start to his career in Washington — 16 INTs in four seasons — the former 2nd round pick signed with the Vikings, as one of the top young free agent CBs in the league.
Unfortunately, his time in Minnesota pushed that career in the opposite direction. In two seasons wearing purple, Smoot totalled 104 tackles, 3 interceptions and 14 passes defended. Smoot ended up starting 19 of the 25 games he played with the Vikings.
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He was benched by head coach Brad Childress right before he broke his jaw in a December 2006 car accident. The Vikings cut him that offseason, before he landed back in Washington DC, for the final three seasons of his NFL career, before being forced into retirement at age 30.
Fred Smoot hired by Barstool Sports
What does Fred Smoot do now? Well, he just got a new job… with the same company that did the Vikings Love Boat documentary over five years ago, Barstool Sports. Barstool’s president and founder Dave Portnoy announced the hire on Friday.
Very happy to announce new addition to the team starting next season. All locked and loaded. We don’t rebuild. We reload @Fsmoot21SeanT pic.twitter.com/2mBnS6s4ot
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) January 17, 2025
For those who pay attention to Barstool, this signing won’t surprise you because he’s been seen on some of their more popular shows a lot, over the past few months. If you have ever watched Fred Smoot speak, it’s clear he has a talent for the microphone.
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Fred Smoot played nine years in The League and totalled 21 interceptions, but he’ll always be remembered more around these parts for the Love Boat scandal. But who knows, maybe he’ll be best known for his media career, when it’s all said and done…
Fred Smoot is an absolute quote machine @Fsmoot21SeanT @PFFShow pic.twitter.com/P1Vv1rRT27
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) November 23, 2024
Jon Gruden didn’t draft Fred Smoot because of his combine interview
— Barstool Gambling (@stoolgambling) December 21, 2024
Presented by @ChevyTrucks #Ad #Chevy #Silverado pic.twitter.com/XAhIYsX2aq
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