Foxworthy riffs on drivers, raising daughters and HOF

It doesn't matter if you're a redneck or not, you know Jeff Foxworthy -- from the Blue Collar Comedy shtick with Bill Engvall, Ron White and Larry the Cable Guy, or the ABC sitcom The Jeff Foxworthy Show, or any other glorious absence of sophistication associated with the Georgia native.

Foxworthy hosts the syndicated TV show Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? and five Sprint Cup Series drivers have played the fast-paced game for charity. Earlier this month David Ragan and Michael Waltrip participated, and "NASCAR Week" is under way with Carl Edwards, Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin among the contestants.

NASCAR.COM spoke with Foxworthy from the cab of his pickup truck, where he talked before going bow hunting on his farm south of Atlanta:

What was the most memorable moment from taping the show with the NASCAR drivers?

Denny Hamlin fared better at Martinsville than he did in Hollywood.

Foxworthy: Michael Waltrip may be one of the funniest people who have ever done the show. ... I could not think of more ways to give him the answers. He's just so naturally funny. Good thing for Michael is that what he lacks in brain power, he makes up in horse power. And Carl Edwards is just goofy.

Did anyone have an embarrassing moment on the show?

Foxworthy: It may not have been the happiest moment of Denny Hamlin's day, let's just say that. I think he spun out on Lap 1 and spent the rest of the race with a lot of tape on the car. It was like he was 63 laps down.

Which of your Blue Collar guys would you most prefer to be stuck with on a deserted island?

Foxworthy: You can eliminate Ron; if he couldn't find the Scotch, he'd be crabby the first afternoon. Bill is Bill. I guess Larry is the best dressed for an island, right off the bat.

What do you do in your free time, away from taping the show and touring?

Foxworthy: I like to be on the farm, hunting, or spending time with my wife and kids. I also work with Camp Sunshine and with the Duke Children's Hospital and with Compassion International. My oldest daughter [Jordan] spoke at the White House on behalf of Compassion International.

Jeff and his wife, Pamela, have two daughters, Jordan and Juliane. He's now going through the trials of raising a teenage daughter.

I used to be a guy. When I was a teenage boy, the girls' mothers liked me. The dads looked at me like I just peed in their coffee cup. Now, I've got cute girls. I know what the boys are thinking. I think cute girls are God's way of getting even. He just sits there and laughs.

Do you see yourself going back to Hollywood for a sitcom?

Foxworthy: Not in a million years. I just don't blend in in L.A. I've been back [in Georgia] for 12 years. I've turned down a lot of sitcoms and movies just to stay here with my family.

A lot of people don't remember The Jeff Foxworthy Show (1995-1997), but that was a stellar cast.

Foxworthy: Haley Joel Osment played one of my sons. He used to walk around the set saying, "I see bad actors!" Jonathan Lipnicki, the kid with glasses from Jerry Maguire, was one of my sons. Jay Mohr played my brother. G.W. Bailey, from the Police Academy movies, played Big Jim, my dad.

The thing was they wouldn't let me be Southern. They set the show in Indiana. I was like, "Have you heard me talk?"

How did you get involved with Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?

Foxworthy: Mark Burnett called me. They were looking to a something like a game show meets Kids Say the Darndest Things. He asked whether I'd do it or not. It's great in its simplicity. We shoot five episodes a day.

When did you know you'd made it as an entertainer?

Foxworthy: My first time with Carson [The Tonight Show on March 6, 1990]. I have this picture -- it's a black and white photo -- and Johnny is laughing. As a comedian, that's all you wanted to do, is to make him laugh.

I mean, I worked in the deli at Kroger! Even after I left IBM [and became a successful stand-up comedian] my mother always wanted me to go back and get my last year of college at Georgia Tech.

Who would have been your first five choices for the NASCAR Hall of Fame?

Foxworthy: Richard Petty has to be there. And Cale Yarborough. Dale Earnhardt was the man. I think Lee Petty should be there. David Pearson, too.

I have a new 'You might be a redneck if ...' if your son's name is Dale Jr. and your name is not Dale.

Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader? airs at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday on MyNetworkTV. Episodes also now air five days a week in syndication.