THE BEST OF

On a Wednesday edition of the Best Of the show: Dan and Aaron discuss the nine head coach openings in the NFL and what could be behind this unusual amount of turnover.

On this installment of "The Midway": Dan, Aaron and the crew discuss the most loved and most hated teams of all time.

Dan and Aaron welcome NBA Insider Mark Medina onto the show to discuss all of the major headlines around the NBA.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
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Speaker 2 (00:08):
I just want to make sure Aaron nobody else is
getting fired right Like this is like we are finally done,
whether it be in college football or the National Football League,
Like we're done now, We're done at nine at least
in the NFL.

Speaker 3 (00:20):
Okay, I wasn't planning on opening the show like this,
but I did have this thought. Today Bills get blown
out in Denver.

Speaker 2 (00:28):
I I know, I I know it could be ten
right because I was seriously thinking.

Speaker 3 (00:35):
About it because I have been on if the Bills
do not make the Super Bowl, as Josh Allen's prime
is winding down, do you make the move? The problem is,
do you have to now hold on to Sean McDermott
for one year longer because all of the good candidates
may be gone by the time you're eliminated, even as
early as this coming Saturday.

Speaker 2 (00:55):
I think the teams that have really good situations have
no problem if they need to move on from the
head coach because they think they can get the top candidates.
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(01:18):
It's not who is available, meaning the candidates. It's not
what jobs are available, meaning the teams. It's the number
that is shocking to me, because I feel aarin that
a couple of weeks ago, we're heading into week eighteen.
We knew the Giants job was open in the NFL.
We knew the Titans job was open in the National
Football League. We knew those jobs were going to be filled.

(01:41):
We then assumed that there were rumblings maybe the Falcons
would make a move. The Falcons turned things on at
the end of the year, and all of our shouldn't
say all most of our NFL insiders that we talked
to and bring on say about a handful of openings.
I'm gonna say handful, four to six. Let's give leeway.

(02:01):
Three to seven is not a handful. Let's just say
four to six. And after the first twenty four hour
cycle that we had, we had six. Arizona got rid
of Gannon, Pete Carroll was out with the Raiders. I
mentioned Raheem Morris, Kevin Stefanski was done with the Browns,
and then a few days later it's John Harbaugh, and

(02:24):
then it's Mike McDaniel, and now it's Mike Tomlin stepping aside.
So we've got nine openings, the words of Ed Rooney,
nine nine openings in the National Football League. And again,
what is shocking to me, Aaron, is that now more
than a quarter of the league feels that their leadership

(02:44):
isn't good enough and they need to make a change.
And I am trying to put my finger on why
that is.

Speaker 3 (02:51):
So thinking about this and thinking about the raw numbers
and all the people that are getting interviews, I will
say it does feel like a little bit of an
outlier year, not just because of the sheer number, but
because of how some of these jobs opened right like
the Ravens. It just clearly just came to it like

(03:11):
it every I don't know about everybody, but the people
that mattered agreed that it was time for a change.
And I thought it was noteworthy. The owner and his
press conference yesterday noted they said to him, they said,
if you if the kick goes through, you beat Pittsburgh
to win the divisions. John Harbaugh still the head coach,
he said for one more week, and then the insinuation
was I was ready to move on after this year.

(03:33):
So you have that situation, you have the Miami situation,
which we can't quite put the pieces together of. Mike
McDaniel fired a day after, you know, John Harbaugh becomes available.
So was that a thing that you know, they who
knows there? And then of course with Pittsburgh, how much
of it was a Pittsburgh thing, But ultimately it was

(03:55):
a Mike Tomlin thing, Mike Tomlin deciding that he had
had enough of that job. So I just bring it
up because it's crazy. The number, it's crazy. The jobs available,
It's crazy some of the people that are going to
get head coaching jobs. I hate to like open the
show with a little bit of a wet blanket, but
I feel like this is an outlier year in how

(04:15):
these jobs open, not just in the number of jobs
that are available.

Speaker 2 (04:19):
I thought that on the surface as well. On the surface,
my immediate gut reaction is this is a one off.
It's just it doesn't happen that much. And then when
we start the show and I say that there are
nine openings, and you leave the door open that there
could be one more. Maybe the Bills would make a
move with Sean McDermott, and I consider that as well.

(04:40):
The reason I considered it Aaron because I thought the
Packers could make a move with Matt Lafleur. They haven't
and it doesn't seem like they're going to. In fact,
they're going to commit to him, we think, with a
newer contract. Now that hasn't been finalized, but by all
accounts from the insider reports, it's Green Bay's intention of
keeping Matt Lafleur. That could change. But still the point

(05:01):
is that he was a possibility of not returning. And
so then I thought to myself, well, if there are nine,
possibly ten, maybe even eleven openings like we're getting, we're
getting up there, what is next year going to look like?
And this is what stood out to me was next
year could be just as bad. Maybe it won't be nine.

(05:24):
But if you think that this is a one off,
you're wrong. And the reason I say that is because
Aaron Glenn is on the hot seat. If the Colts
stink again next season, I think there's a reason for
Shane Steichen to be out in Indianapolis. If the Bengals
continue to Bengal Zach Taylor's been on the hot seat
for a while, Andy Reid. There is no guarantee how

(05:47):
long he's going to continue to coach.

Speaker 3 (05:49):
And we think the Chiefs will be bad next year too.

Speaker 2 (05:51):
Yes, So you've got Patrick Mahomes coming back from his injury,
and who knows what his health situation is going to be.
Maybe he needs a fresh start. I just mentioned Matt
Lafleur if he stays yep, maybe if things go bad
for Green Band next year, maybe they regret whatever contract
situation they have with him and make a change. The

(06:11):
point is is I'm adding names. Dan Quinn in Washington,
like you've moved on from Cliff Kingsbury as the offensive coordinator.
If Jayden Daniels doesn't get things done and the defense
isn't good next year, Washington, you could say like, all right,
we're gonna move on from dan Quinn. These are all possibilities.
We thought Todd Bowles could maybe lose his job in Tampa.
So I'm just naming names of situations that could possibly

(06:33):
come up. So, by the way, it's Sirianni absolutely, Dave
Canalis Let's say Bryce Young takes a step back. Now Carolina,
even though they're in you know, win the division at
eight to nine, if they don't show progress, you can
make a re have a reason to move on from
that job. Not saying all these things are going to happen,

(06:53):
but the point is is there could be seven or
eight openings next year. So then in a two year
gap or two year span, you're saying more than half
of the coaches in the National Football League will be
recycled through. That has never happened. It had been about
four or five and now in a time where we
don't even know if we have any good candidates. And
the reason I think that this is happening, the one

(07:16):
reason that I think is for whatever reason, I think
teams think it's now easy to get to conference championship games,
that it's easy to do a quick turnaround, say look
at what we've got here. And I think like Mike
Rabel and the Patriots maybe are an example of that
of you get the right guy in there, the culture
can change, things can change quickly. If you have your quarterback,

(07:39):
other guys gel together, boom, you're back atop the AFC.
So it's the turnaround of the Patriots after one awful
year with Gerd Mayo and a couple of bad years
of Bill Belichick of why a turnaround could happen. We
we just got to find the right guy. And we
know right now that you aren't the right guy. So
you're on your way out, and we're going to go
and look for that right guy. And that's why I

(08:01):
think right now, and when I say easy, I think
you understand what I mean. They're seeing a turnaround and
a quick turnaround to have success in every team in
the NFL that is making moves of their head coaches
want to get to that spot. And I feel that
they almost think it's an easy fix that just take
out the head guy, let's put someone new in, and
let's make the run. And I just I don't think

(08:23):
it's that simple, and that's why I think like NFL
owners are misguided in that thinking.

Speaker 3 (08:26):
By the way, a funner way to look at it is,
you know, and we don't have to do this on air,
but I'm just saying, how many coaches outside of the
nine jobs that are currently open, so that would leave
twenty three jobs? Is that right?

Speaker 2 (08:40):
Twenty three?

Speaker 3 (08:40):
Like, how many guys could just have a train wreck
of a year lat next year and just be one
hundred percent safe. It's like Kyle Shanahan, Ben Johnson, Sean McVay,
that's basically it. Yeah, like McDonald yeaheah, there's a few,
but there are very not many.

Speaker 2 (08:55):
Yeah, not many outside of that five or six that
are completely one safe.

Speaker 3 (09:02):
And so to your point, I do think there is
something there to the notion. And the ironic part, by
the way, is it's you could actually argue that, especially
up until this year when Mahomes got hurt, it was
actually harder to make the conference championship game than it's
ever been, where basically the AFC has come down to
basically three teams the last couple of years that only
had a realistic shot of making it. But no, I

(09:24):
think it's a number of different variables. Is I do
think there is a notion, especially in the NFL, of
why do we have to be terrible year over year?
I mean, I think even the point about Aaron Glenn
of like the conversation of do you bring him back?
He's a defensive coach, he's a former defensive back. We
can't force an interception the entire year I just bring
it up because it just feels like one of those

(09:46):
situations of like, even though he's back, you can talk
yourself into you know what, maybe maybe this isn't the
answer and maybe we need to move on. Pete Carroll
being one and done, Girodmeo being done one and done
a year ago. I do think there is something interesting
here about the shelf life being able to kind of
build it the way you want to build it. And

(10:09):
does a two three year build really exist anymore or
do you have to have success right away? I know
it's something that's a little bit of a cliche talking
point right now, but we're seeing it in the college
space as well of because of Nio in the portal boom.
You can build the thing quick. You don't get four
or five years anymore. And it does feel like increasingly

(10:29):
in the NFL we are headed that direction of Hey,
Pete Carroll, you know you brought in your quarterback, the
team got worse time to go and you can again
use a bunch of examples.

Speaker 2 (10:39):
Just like that. Jason Stewart, do you see any correlation
to the college game or the pro game or why
there's so many vacancies?

Speaker 4 (10:46):
To me, guys. It's like the cliche when you're reading
your procedural novel or watching the show when they say
follow the money. I think it a holds back to this.
You hear about how much money Goodell has made for
the owners and yours, and then you see this, like
to me a watershed moment. A couple of years back,
the Denver Broncos paid Nathaniel Hackett to go away. They

(11:10):
traded assets and gave Sean Payton a ton of money
to come. Soon after that they paid Russell Wilson a
ton of money to go away. I think the owners
have had such a flood of revenue and they are
dealing with so much capital now that I think these
decisions are just much more easy to make. Example, Mark Davis.

(11:32):
The Raiders are supposed to be the mom and pop
shop of the NFL. Mark Davis is a poor They're
paying I think four coaches right now on their payroll.

Speaker 2 (11:42):
Yeah, there is money everywhere, and if you take the
flip side of that, you're talking about the poorest one.
It means the more the ones who are the wealthiest,
excuse me, think even less. Like you know, they're billionaires,
they're a different they're not like the Ruoneys. They're not
like the Davis family. They are it's it doesn't even

(12:05):
doesn't even register, leading to the Broncos and the the
Walmart connection, and just of of all of the enormous
assets that you have that it doesn't even You don't
even blink an eye to pay to move on from
what you have.

Speaker 3 (12:21):
Let me ask a follow up on that point though,
is part of why people are doing it, not just
the money, but because the Broncos had success doing it
number one seed in the AFC. But then the counter
to that is there was also a Super Bowl winning
head coach that was available that clearly wanted to get
back in. So I'd be curious for your guys perspectives,

(12:43):
like dude, does do the Broncos having immediate success? This
guy comes in completely changes the culture, gets rid of
the old quarterback that isn't good anymore, and now has
the number one seed in the AFC. Do you think
other people are looking at that saying why can't that
be us? And maybe that's to your original point. I
think they look more at New England.

Speaker 2 (13:01):
Sure, I think they look at New England and being like, oh,
you get Vrabel and you get a young quarterback. Look
at how that turns around, like immediately, and if we
could just you know, land that or if it's even
a Sean McVay sort of deal, even after all these years,
a decade later, he's he's not one of the longest
tenured head coaches in the National Football League with arbon

(13:22):
Tomlin gone. But I think that you're still trying to
find your next Sean McVay in somebody that could be
there and turn it around. And you're taking risks on
guys that also may not even be qualified for the
position in the first place, so then you have to
move on from them after a shorter period of time.
I think this cycle has had longer guys. A guy

(13:44):
stay longer. But if you're the Browns, if you're the Ravens,
and you're the Steelers, and again I think Tomlin stepped out.
I don't think the Steelers were gonna fire Tomlin. But
you see to a point that Iowa Sam has been
making throughout this season, Why are the New England Patriots
great again? Like I think that's what some of these
teams are thinking. How does New England all of a

(14:05):
sudden just turn it around almost at a drop of
a hat, and I think that they want to experience
that same thing and feel if they get the right combination. Honestly,
Jacksonville struck gold with Liam Cohen, right, I mean, so
if you're Jacksonville, like, yeah, okay, look it works. We
moved on.

Speaker 3 (14:23):
But the key points there, the quarterback at least that
we think is already in place, right, And so I
think it's an interesting conversation of you know, even driving
in You're hearing different people say, you know, Marcus Freeman,
he's got to consider Pittsburgh, And I'm like, why why
does he have to consider Pittsburgh? Like, I it's cool
what they did in nineteen seventy eight with Chuck Nole
and Terry Bradshaw, But like, the only selling point of

(14:47):
the Steelers right now is two is history and one
they won't fire you if you're good right away. And
I'm just sitting there saying, like, if you're Marcus Freeman
and you want to go to the NFL again, to
your point, Andy Reid's not going to be around forever,
Sean McDermott, what happens to that there are better opportunities?
And I think that's an interesting parallel in this as well,

(15:09):
is that I think the actual legitimate coaching candidates that
people actually want can be rather selective in making sure
like Mike Rabil a perfect example last year, Ben Johnson
a perfect example last year of is the situation right
for me? Is it the right ownership specifically the right quarterback?
And frankly, I don't know how many of these jobs
that are currently open outside of Baltimore really have that setup.

Speaker 2 (15:32):
And then they guys will get hired, they don't win.
Guess what they're doing this two three years down the line.

Speaker 3 (15:37):
Again, McDaniel, I thought, last time I spoke with you,
I think it was last time I spoke with you,
he had just gone fired. It was like a done deal.
Oh he's going to be the Lions offensive coordinator. Now,
this guy's interviewing for every job under the sun.

Speaker 2 (15:48):
So let me just wrap up with this because I'm
curious on Jason your thought I'm curious on samon Isaac's thoughts. Quickly,
you mentioned the Steelers job. So the last time it
was opened was nineteen seasons ago, and I feel like
the world has changed. I feel like that generation, if
you were to tell go back to when they hired
Mike Tomlin that said, hey, man, you gonna have this

(16:08):
job for twenty years. My generation says, sign me up.
Do you think taking the Steelers job to Aaron's point
of right now, the cupboard's kind of bear But knowing
that this family likely won't fire you for the next
fifteen years, is that even appealing? Is that appealing to

(16:29):
this generation of coaches where we're seeing thirty year olds
and taking over as taking over as coordinators and a
defensive coordinators offensive coordinators? Is that appealing to someone to
be like, you know what, I always stink now, but
they're gonna give me as much time in the world.
And do I really want to stay at one job
for fifteen years?

Speaker 3 (16:47):
So let me just jump in real quick because I
want to hear the other guy's perspective as well. I
was thinking about this as well. Is all of these
guys are hyper competitive people. I don't know that, Hey,
you can stink for six years and you won't get
fired is a selling point to a hyper competitive person Again,
mar I'll just use Marcus Freeman as the example. He

(17:07):
will have a team good enough to win at the
highest level at the level that he is at. So
if Marcus Freeman wants to leave Notre Dame. He doesn't
want to go somewhere. In my opinion, maybe he's hired
as the Steelers coach by the end of this show.
I don't know. My assumption would be if he's going
to leave for the NFL and he's leaving a place
where he can already win at the highest level, he
wants to go somewhere where he can win immediately. Why

(17:29):
does Marcus Freeman want to go rebuild for five years?

Speaker 2 (17:32):
You know?

Speaker 3 (17:32):
And so again, if the Ravens called, maybe he would
have to consider it. But if you're a hyper competitive
person that already has a good job, I actually don't
think it's appealing to be like, oh, you'll get eight
You could lose for eight straight years, Mike Tomlins. You
know he's been eight You know, he hasn't won a
playoff game in ten years. They would have fired him.
That doesn't sound like a fun existence to me. So

(17:55):
that's my personal opinion, But I like others as well.

Speaker 2 (17:57):
Jason Sam Isaac youwtt Sam.

Speaker 3 (18:00):
I blame Kurt Signetti for all of this guy all right,
because he never loses.

Speaker 5 (18:07):
Yeah, I mean, I mean he just comes in he
turns Indiana from zero to hero. I mean, you see Michigan,
Ohio State and then Indiana as maybe the next national champion.
I mean Kurt Signetti has just changed the timeline completely
for college ampros.

Speaker 4 (18:22):
To answer your question, Dan, I think I think this
generation so gen Z is coaching or Millennials are coaching.
I think they they're not. They're not drawn to stability.
We've seen that in the actual average workplace. People are
moving jobs all the time in that generation. But I
cringe to think that the Steelers are going to still
operate under that business plan. Sure, I hope that they

(18:44):
switch with the times and just go through like three
or four coaches in the next fifteen years.

Speaker 2 (18:49):
They haven't shown us, you know, anything different. We will.

Speaker 6 (18:52):
We will never see anything in sports again the likes
of what the Steelers have had with the stability over
their last three head coaches, including with the Steelers. And
I'll put this into perspective, and Sam, you make a
great point about Kurt Signetti, but I think this philosophy
predated Signetti. John Wooden didn't win his first national championship

(19:13):
until his sixteenth season at UCLA. If you have the
same John Wooden today, he'd be gone after year five.
The coaching world, in the sports world has completely changed.

Speaker 3 (19:22):
Yeah, pater Vine four years later, it has coached for
four hundred people.

Speaker 2 (19:26):
And I think it's changed over the last twenty years.
And to your point, I don't think that. I don't
think that staying in one spot for an extended period
of time is maybe a top of the priority list, Sam, And.

Speaker 5 (19:39):
I think in college football, maybe there's something about wearing
black and yellow Steelers jerseys that looks similar. In college
You're just not gonna see a lot of Kirk Ference's anymore.
I mean, the guy's probably gonna spend thirty years in Iowa.
You're just not going to see that. It's just not
going to happen. And he could have left the program
or been dismissed a number of times over the years
when he's still there.

Speaker 2 (19:57):
Yeah, but then you wouldn't be twenty twenty five Relioquest
Bolt Champion, Yes right.

Speaker 3 (20:01):
Hey, formerly known as the outback Bawl. All right that
diego Pavia.

Speaker 1 (20:05):
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Speaker 2 (20:15):
It feels like it's been forever since we've seen some
college football. I don't know if it was because it
wasn't much of a game between Oregon and Indiana, or
if it's because we're still waiting for the National Championship
game to come up on Monday. But Aaron, there is
something missing.

Speaker 3 (20:30):
Yeah, you know, I'm I guess just last year I
got used to I was thinking about it though. Listen,
you know, our one of our competitors, our competitor, whatever
you want to call it. I understand they have the
whole playoff essentially, and I understand they want, you know,
the symmetry of having a quote unquote Monday night football game.
But when you have the quarter, when you have the

(20:52):
semis on Thursday and Friday, just put the National Championship
on Thursday or Friday. Why wouldn't it be awesome and
awesome start to Visional Round weekend in the NFL to
just have Indiana against Miami on Friday.

Speaker 2 (21:05):
I agree. I actually think that the Monday the game
is almost a letdown. It's more of an obligation instead
of a ramp up to what the NFL is going
to bring.

Speaker 3 (21:12):
And it's a great call. Is if you have casual
NFL fans, casual NFL fans that maybe don't that you know,
have tuned into the college football Playoff because they're looking
for something to watch. It is a great point by
you that after four straight games, you know, two straight
days with two games a piece, and obviously you know,

(21:35):
the schedule gets pushed back where that Sunday night game is.
The Sunday second game is basically an evening game, six
thirty Eastern start Rams versus Bears. You know that game
is gonna end at ten pm, and now you're asking
people to recommit to more football on Monday.

Speaker 2 (21:50):
I'm with you, let's get it done on front. The
network portion of it is for ESPN. It's like, hey,
guess what, we got another Monday night football game. It's
just for the National Championship.

Speaker 3 (21:58):
And it's for the branding. But I just, well, I
think it's a lame way to incorporate the brand.

Speaker 2 (22:02):
I honestly, I was exhausted from watching Texan Steelers on
Monday night from what we had the previous two days
in the games and the tripleheader on Sunday, Like it
was just of the games of that magnitude. I'm like,
all right, now I got Texan Steelers still like, all right,
can't we move on? Can we get to the next weekend?

Speaker 3 (22:20):
Well, and keep this in mind too, you're both someone
who works in sports media and is a college football fan.
Now imagine if you were neither, and how likely it
would be that you would turn on that game on
Monday night?

Speaker 2 (22:32):
Yes? Absolutely. Now there's a reason that we're talking about
college football and the National Championship Game is our friends
over at bet online have used geo tagged data from
x in trying to find out who is rooting for
who in the National Championship Game. And I want to
bring in Iowa, Sam, because it's going to start our

(22:55):
midway segment. But Sam, if I were to tell you
of the fifty states, how many do you think are
cheering for Indiana, the favorite in the National Championship Game
on Monday, the number one seed, the top seed in
the game, in the in the bracket, the college football bracket,
how many of the fifty states, according to the data

(23:19):
accumulator by bet online, are cheering for Indiana over Miami.

Speaker 3 (23:23):
Forty eight?

Speaker 2 (23:24):
Forty eight? All right, thanks for playing the game. It
was only forty five. I was hoping you would say
I don't know twenty five and I say, no, Sam.

Speaker 3 (23:32):
You want to believe this, I know better than that.

Speaker 2 (23:34):
Well no, actually, because you're supposed to play along again
your low number.

Speaker 3 (23:37):
Right, Jason, that was really legitimately guessing.

Speaker 2 (23:39):
Let's try it. Let's try Jason. How many states do
you think Indiana has cheering for them? Of the fifty it.

Speaker 4 (23:45):
Seems like it's like twenty five is probably split right
down the middle of Mexican.

Speaker 2 (23:48):
Forty five's That was the reaction. I was looking for
forty five of the fifty states cheering for the unbeaten team,
the number one team in the country, the team that
is favored by eight and a half. America apparently is
loving Indiana or for some reason they've loved the winner.
But it's the Hoosiers who get all the love.

Speaker 3 (24:10):
I'll say this. I'll give credit to one of our colleagues,
Rob Parker Odd Couple. I was a guest on the show.
I think it was before the Miami game. So, but
he made the argument to me, why is Indiana a Cinderella?
And I don't I'm paraphrasing here, So Rob, if you're listening,
I don't know the exact quote. But why are they
a Cinderella or why are they like a feel good story?

(24:34):
They have a highly compensated quarterback, both their coordinators are
highly compensated, and in the vacuum of in the nil era,
a lot of teams can be competitive financially. I thought
it was an interesting point, but it doesn't seem as though,
and I'm not criticizing rob in any way, shape or form,
it doesn't seem as though it's a point that most
of America seems to agree with because they do still

(24:57):
see it as a feel good story. Iowa, Sam is
so fired up in I'm So fired Up.

Speaker 5 (25:01):
I think people, your average casual sports fan, college fella
fan has no idea about the compensation, about any of
that stuff. They just see the brand, They see the
logo on the helmet, and they know that Indiana has
been a basketball school for decades and has not never
been a football school.

Speaker 3 (25:18):
Really quick two thoughts on that as well. I also
think the push pull of Signetti and Mendoza also makes
them more likable. We're like Yang, yes, yeah, like your
angry uncle that you love, but like you know, like
you don't try to have a conversation with him at
Thanksgiving and there's only like four topn He's pessimistic.

Speaker 5 (25:39):
He's just like, no, I don't care. I think he's quirky, quirky.
He's idiosyncratic for sure. Yes, And then Mendoz is the
exact opposite. He's just I love smiling. Smiling is my
favorite minute, cheerful, always putting a positive spin on things.

Speaker 3 (25:52):
He's a leader, so signetti.

Speaker 2 (25:54):
But think about this. America loves an underdog. Since when
do they love a favorite? And it leads us.

Speaker 3 (26:02):
He's not getting mad with you.

Speaker 2 (26:05):
It's time for.

Speaker 1 (26:09):
The Midway.

Speaker 2 (26:10):
Jason Stewart, this is your baby. What are we discussing today?

Speaker 4 (26:17):
I think that we just kind of roll with what
you guys are talking about now that I've just decided
in the moment, I think we can roll with what
you guys that were just talking about it. And also
I want to throw out, like what is what are
the teams that America has embraced the most? And also
the other side too, what are teams that of America

(26:39):
has hated the most?

Speaker 3 (26:41):
And why?

Speaker 2 (26:42):
And and on the on the heels of this Indiana
Miami argument, it was when Miami beat Ohio State, what
was so shocking to me as an Ohio State fan
was how many people were cheering for Miami. But it
wasn't shocking because I know people don't like the Buckeyes.
I get it. They were the defending national champs. There's

(27:04):
a lot to not like about them if you're a
fan of another school. Thought but I thought to myself,
I didn't think it would be as one sided as
it was, considering they were playing the you, they were
playing Miami, they were playing the Hurricanes. But as an
underdog story, like during that Cotton Bowl on that New
Year's Eve night, it sure seemed like a lot of
people were taking joy in Miami knocking off Ohio State.

(27:26):
So then I wondered to myself, all right, Ohio State
just really isn't like what are people coming around on Miami?
Maybe Miami isn't isn't the team that other fans didn't
like anymore? And then we see this Indiana graphic. Now
I'm wondering, is it more about Indiana? So I think
that they're all like connected in that way of who
do fans love and who do fans hate?

Speaker 3 (27:47):
Well, if I can go first, well should I go first?
Because I actually have the counter to what you're saying.
I can think of a crazy beloved team that also
wasn't an underdog. It was actually an overwhelming favorite. And
I'm kind of curious.

Speaker 2 (28:03):
Let's hear it.

Speaker 3 (28:04):
When you talk beloved teams, this was before my time.
But the first team I think of the nineteen eighty
five Chicago Bears, like, and they were an overwhelming super
Bowl favorite. And I'm gonna ask you, guys, I was too.
I was born but actually I wasn't born, but I
was born a couple months later. I'm too young to
remember why they were so beloved.

Speaker 4 (28:24):
Is it?

Speaker 3 (28:24):
Is it solely because of the Super Bowl shuffle? Because
people still talk about the Chicago Bear nineteen eighty five
Chicago Bears, like they won the Super Bowl three years ago.

Speaker 2 (28:34):
Yeah, I think that had I think that had a
portion of it. I think the character of the Fridge
was a portion of it as well. Also with the Bears.
In going back at that time, if you lead up
to eighty five, there was still a there was a
Washington won super Bowls, the Niners won super Bowls. What's
like the Bears were in and out, like it was

(28:54):
just all of a sudden, here the Bears are here.
They're absolutely dominant, full of personalities, which i've I think
you could say, you know, maybe a team like the
forty nine ers, And this was before Jerry Rice was
with San Francisco. But you knew Joe Montana, you know,
you know, you knew the quarterbacks, you knew Joe Feisman
from Washington, you knew John Riggans late in his career.
But there were, yeah, there were. I think there were

(29:18):
just more personality. Raiders won the Super Bowl a couple
of years prior, and I think the Raiders were more
of like a villainous team, you know, a team that
nobody liked because of the silver and black. But I
think it was all of the personalities, whether it be
Jim McMahon, whether it be the Fridge, whether it be
Walter Payton. Why everybody liked that.

Speaker 6 (29:35):
Dan You hit on it perfectly because other personalities on
the team, Ditka, their head coach. Even the atmosphere of
Soldier Field back then had a certain mystique to it.
And you mentioned Jim McMahon. He was one of the
top personalities in all of sports back then. With his headbands.

(29:55):
He would get fined by Pete Roselle for wearing the
headbands with messages on the side. So the next week
he wrote high Pete on his headband. He mooned a
helicopter at the Super Bowl, flying over Bear's practice. And
to this day, I mean they they inspired a whole culture,

(30:15):
Like the super Fans skit on Saturday Night Live, it
has lasted over the years.

Speaker 2 (30:20):
Yeah. Yeah, the Roselle headband, yep, yep. That was very
in your face, but people loved it. They ate it up.
We had a we had a refrigerator Perry poster on
our fridge, like it was meant for the fridge and
that's what we had on it. And we weren't Bears
fans by any means. I think that's a I think
that's a really good call.

Speaker 4 (30:43):
It's ironic. You say that because I had a Vinnie
Johnson picture on my microphone in the eighties. I don't
know about you, guys.

Speaker 5 (30:50):
If you want to eat up, you have to keep,
you know, something in your fridge, and it might be sausage.

Speaker 3 (30:58):
Sausage.

Speaker 2 (31:00):
I think that there is.

Speaker 3 (31:03):
I had a mailman poster on my mail box back
in the day.

Speaker 2 (31:06):
By the way, good good job. The Duke Blue Devils
I think were the hated, hated team, and I grew up,
you talked about eighty five Bears, Like I remember Duke
always going to final fours and losing, and so then
them actually beating UNLV was an upset that people loved.

(31:27):
But I think ultimately it then even it turns, and
it may have even turned next year. Now I was
not a fan of the Fab Five by any means,
but like in a way, because Ohio State being a
rival of Michigan, there was no way I was gonna
like the Michigan squad. But because Michigan had these five
freshmen that were going on this unbelievable run and here

(31:49):
comes Duke going for back to back national championships, I
think that turned Duke immediately into a villain. And so
they were at one championship in and they were then
the bad guy, and I think they've been the bad
guy ever since.

Speaker 3 (32:05):
Yeah, you know, it's funny. Actually, the other day we
had in one of the TV studios I do the
late night show on Saturday that I hate, Christian Laitner
documentary was on, and I only bring it up because
in watching it, I wasn't watching it live here in studio.
I was doing a show. But I think even the
players on the ninety two team were shocked at how

(32:27):
quickly everything flipped for them from nobody believed you could
beat UNLV to oh, we hate you, now we're rooting
against you everywhere we go.

Speaker 2 (32:37):
Yeah, in that Kentucky game, like there was The reason
I bring up the Fab five is because they had
played in the regular season and so there was familiarity,
and then they ultimately played in the National championship game
in that ninety two year. But Kentucky, for as great
as the Kentucky story is now and their comeback, then,
I felt it was a different feel back then, where

(33:01):
because Duke still was kind of like Duke, Like you
look at that game, it was an amazing game, and
it's just continued to build and build and build, and
it meant so much to the Kentucky fans that that
is also spread outward. But that was the part of
the quick turn right Regional final. Then a week later
you're playing in a national championship game. Duke's going from
back to back. I think that, like Duke is the

(33:22):
ultimate team to hate place, everyone be quiet. Jason Stewart, Iowa, Sam.

Speaker 4 (33:29):
I'm going to offer up the the counter to Aaron's counter,
and I just wish there was an athlete named the
counter that I could say I put a picture of
him on my counter. So Aaron said that the Bears
were dominant, why were they so popular? And I think
it's because it lasted one year. Not only were they

(33:50):
popular in that one year. And I think that I
think your last statement is true. I think it speaks
to the power spoke to the power of MTV at
the time. But I think the Patriots are the counter
example of that. The Patriots winning for so many years
I think created this hatred, this national hatred for them,

(34:11):
so much so that I think the great example of
that is how much to do to flake Gate? Got
I think if Tom Brady were the quarterback of an
eight and eight team at the time, I don't think
the flake Gate rises to the level of him getting
even suspended and all that stuff. I think that there
was just so much hatred by the public and even

(34:33):
the media about that team that something like that rose
to the level of how do we knock these guys down?
So I think the Patriots are like the counter example.
If the Bears had run off three or four championships,
there would be this like fatigue, this fatigue that we
get with winners.

Speaker 2 (34:49):
You know, yeah, I wholeheartedly agree with that, and I
think that you're right about the Brady point. And I
still think that there is Patriots fatigue now because while
everybody is different there, I don't think any of us
want to see the Patriots ever as great of a story.

Speaker 3 (35:04):
I haven't suffered enough. That's I was saying, you didn't
suffer long enough.

Speaker 2 (35:08):
I don't want to see Patriots in the end zone
of a Super Bowl again, like I need, I need
five more years of not seeing that. I'll take a
Broncos logo. I'll take a Texans end zone. I'll take
a Bills one. That would be great. But I don't
want to see New England. And I still think that's
left over from that.

Speaker 5 (35:25):
And deflate gate was further amplified by Spygate. It was like, oh,
another thing that they're cheating. Like the people they're kind
of conspiracy minded out there. I don't know what happened
with deflake Gate.

Speaker 3 (35:36):
I don't.

Speaker 5 (35:37):
I mean we know, but we you know, we don't
know everything, and people think they know everything. But like
Spygate leading into deflake Gate, you know years later you're like, oh, same,
up to their same old cheating tricks, the cheating Patriots.
So it's like, okay, people deflate the football based on
their comfort level with their you know, how to grip
it and all that stuff. Other teams do that too,
but we looked at it, especially under a lens of
other cheaters.

Speaker 2 (35:58):
Yeah. I think you're spot on with that. Is I have.

Speaker 6 (36:02):
Two teams to suggest to the group. One Nobody circus
the Wagons, like the Buffalo Bill. Yeah, it's part of it.
It's so sentimental. It's the four straight Super Bowl losses.
It's thankfully Marv Levy's still alive and going strong at

(36:25):
one hundred years old this year. And it's Bill's mafia.
It's the jumping through tables, it's the tailgating, it's the
national way that they travel to road games. So that
was one team that I was going to suggest. The
other team, and it's kind of a different curve here
is the Golden State Warriors. I thought they went from

(36:46):
a universally loved feel good story when they first started
their dynasty, but then when they acquired Kevin Durant, they
kind of turned into the evil Empire and they won
a championship post Vin Durant, and now it's kind of
the Draymond Green deal. But for a while there on
their ascent, I think, up until they acquired Kevin Durant,

(37:07):
they were a really good feel good story.

Speaker 3 (37:09):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (37:10):
Can I piggyback on something?

Speaker 3 (37:11):
Yeah, I was watching one of our TVs had Lebron
James on how about Lebron James going from the ultimate
villain super team in Miami to the feel good brought
his hometown the first championship in however many years?

Speaker 2 (37:25):
Yeah, beating the Warriors, and it was in the Warriors.
I it was not a Bulls fan growing up. Set
it mind the Bulls seventy two one season going down,
but I changed quickly on the Warriors. I think even
before Isaac's pointed about Kevin Durant. But I think the
Kevin Durant switch was the game changer. And then it
allowed Lebron and the Cavs actually some grace because they
won a title. And whether you if you didn't like Lebron,

(37:47):
you probably weren't gonna like the Caves no matter what
he did. But I do agree with Aaron that it
put him in more of a friendlier light, and then
if Golden State's the one that acquires Durant, then the
Calves aren't the villain with Lebron anymore. And yeah, I
think I think Calv's got some mileage out of Isaac's
point about the Warriors.

Speaker 3 (38:03):
It also allowed Lebron to leave Cleveland without being the
villain of Well, you're not gonna beat the Warriors. So
I mean, you came here, you want us a title.
It's clearly not gonna happen going forward.

Speaker 2 (38:14):
So it's interesting. I'm gonna I'm gonna make a statement here,
and I'm really curious about Jason's thoughts on this. I
think sho Hey Otani is preventing the Dodgers from becoming
that hated team. I think that they're the now back
to back titles right now. But I think what Otani
does is so amazing and everybody is so captivated by
it that it puts a little bit of a buffer

(38:36):
of what I think most baseball fans would look at
and say, all right, well they want it again, spent
all this money, everybody signs with them, and this I
think that Otani's greatness in a way prevents people from
maybe being anti Dodgers or start to become anti Dodgers.

Speaker 3 (38:52):
Food for thought before Jay stut jumpson, if they had
the best turn in baseball named sho Hey Otani and
a different person who was essentially the best pitcher in
baseball from Japan named Uh. I don't want to yeah, yeah, yeah,
I don't want to start stereotyping Japanese nation.

Speaker 2 (39:10):
Let's say say that.

Speaker 3 (39:12):
Let's say they were two equivalent players of show Hay
at the bat, but they were different people. I do
think that's an interesting point of people. Well, they're just
buying all the best players from Japan. Here we go,
even though Yamamoto basically turned into that in the playoffs
this year.

Speaker 2 (39:26):
I get what you're saying that if Otani wasn't the
two way star and it was two different people, would
we feel the same way? No, I think that we would.
They then would be unlikable.

Speaker 4 (39:35):
Maybe I come at this from a much different perspective
because I am a Dodgers fan and I have seen
the hate that I get on Twitter for the Dodgers.

Speaker 3 (39:45):
That's for you.

Speaker 4 (39:47):
I think I think they are hated now. I think
there could be a U There could be somewhere in between.
Which is always uninteresting. And I know, but I don't
think they're beloved. I really don't. I don't think they're
love anyone outside of LA and I don't think they're hated.

Speaker 2 (40:04):
Not yet.

Speaker 4 (40:04):
Maybe another championship and maybe show Hayes the reason they're
in the middle.

Speaker 6 (40:08):
How would you compare their perception to the early two
thousand Yankees.

Speaker 3 (40:13):
So I've had this this conversation on my show with
Jason Martin, who's a Braves fan, and I said to him,
I said, I don't feel like people hate the Dodgers
like they hated the nineties two thousands Yankees, and he agreed.
I was gonna say too, I wonder if the way
this World Series played out, where first of all, you

(40:35):
follow the team on a day to day basis, but
nobody was talking about them as this unstoppable force. During
the regular season. All I heard was how terrible the
bullpen was, was gonna catch up with them? But also
Toronto was up three to two in that World Series.
Clearly you know what I was on air during Game seven.
I don't remember all the lead changes, but Toronto had
two or three chances to seal that game. And I

(40:57):
think if like the Dodgers had swem this World Series
is that different than a gain than a World Series
where the Blue Jays were not only their equals, but
there were times where you felt like they were actually
probably will and should win.

Speaker 2 (41:12):
The World Series. That may have been a factor, But
I don't think that we've had enough time like to
look at it because we've been removed from baseball, like
in this upcoming baseball season is maybe more of a
look at it. But I would say during the season
you said that there were things with the Dodgers that
were red flags, So maybe we weren't talking about it,

(41:34):
but I think throughout the playoffs, and maybe I'm coming
from this as a Brewers fan who got swept by
the Dodgers and to your point, but it does seem
when we were talking about the Dodgers, the phrase that
I heard was, I know they're good, but they're just likable.
But I'm like, okay, Freddy freeman'sige, Oh so is Aaron Judge,
Like Aaron Judge is a likable player for the Yankees,

(41:56):
Like there are very few unlikable players in Major League
Baseball that our stars are superstars. So I think it's
Otani's greatness and just how rare he is that, as
they said, provides the buffer from a true hate for
the Dodgers that spend a lot of money and have
advantages that people think more advantages over their team or

(42:19):
other teams in baseball. There, and that's Iowa.

Speaker 3 (42:23):
Sam very good.

Speaker 5 (42:25):
I think also they had broken a long pennant drought
in twenty seventeen, and then they went up against the Astros,
who we all know cheated, so maybe that bought them
a little bit of like they're the aggrieved Dodgers, and
they would have went on to lose another World Series
after that point.

Speaker 2 (42:44):
But I also think that people will rush to say
that their twenty twenty title was a joke.

Speaker 5 (42:49):
I think people also look at it is like, go
ahead and keep that twenty twenty because it was weird.
And then like when they finally won like one without COVID,
without a cheating scandal, it was back to back, and
now maybe they win a third one back to back
to back. It might they might start to wear out people.

Speaker 2 (43:05):
We shall see in twenty twenty six. And that's the Midway.
The Midwell, by the way, the five states that, according
to the guests, ask you am met online that are
cheering for Miami Florida obviously ore agaon maybe because of
the loss, and maybe who knows, Crystal Ball ties North Carolina,
South Carolina and Kentucky. Otherwise, everybody else apparently is pro

(43:28):
Indiana for that National championship games.

Speaker 3 (43:31):
In Kentucky, the Indiana border state that is a rival
in Indiana in some ways.

Speaker 2 (43:35):
He's erin Torres. I'm Dan Byer.

Speaker 1 (43:38):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio
dot Com and within the iHeartRadio app.

Speaker 2 (43:48):
Truer words were never spoken. He's Erintorres. I'm Dan Byer, Iowa, Sam,
Jason Stewart, Isaac Low and Cron hanging out. Isaac's gonna
be with us in about ten minutes or so to
give us an update of what's happening on this Wednesday.
A big happening when it comes to the NFL drafting
college football, but we switch our attention to the NBA
joining us now, Good buddy, our Fox Sports Radio NBA

(44:13):
insider Mark Medina joins us here on Fox Sports Radio
for the first time in twenty twenty six. Mark, Happy
New Year.

Speaker 7 (44:20):
How are you happy? New year, Dan, we'll break the
Larry David rule. All good and happy for you. You're
killing all the shows.

Speaker 2 (44:28):
No, well, I appreciate that Aaron and I are having
a good time, and yeah we're two weeks in. But
it's the first time I've spoken with Mark. Question. Everyone
wants to know, are you in on crypto or was
your exacked? That's what people want to know.

Speaker 7 (44:41):
What's the it has been the ladder. I did not
cash out some crazy investment or bought some amazing car.
So yeah, for anyone else who can help me out,
I'm still trying to get the sort out so I
can tweet about basketball and not fake post.

Speaker 2 (44:57):
I thought that was quite the quite the flex, you know,
first and escalate and then a look at your financial portfolio.
But it was very Unmadina like considering all the NBA
posts that were.

Speaker 7 (45:09):
Made, so mart Mann, that's why I have strong instincts.

Speaker 2 (45:13):
No, well, let's talk about what happened last night in
the Association, because Oklahoma City finally got the monkey off
their back, if you will, in beating the San Antonio Spurs.
Was it just another game? Was it more for Oklahoma
City last night? What were your thoughts on the Thunder win.

Speaker 7 (45:30):
No, not just another game. I think that this is
It's not going to be Lakers Celtics, but I think
that this is the next rivalry of the NBA. You
can tell that both teams don't like each other, especially
the Victor Wambanyama chet Hongering dynamic. But what does it
mean for the NBA playoffs? That is where I'm on shore,
because even though the Spurs, with exceptional last night, have

(45:51):
had their number in head to head matchups, I still
favored a Thunder in a playoff series, barring major injuries,
just because of the old adage of the been there before,
the continuity. There's not much of any hangover from the
championship last season. But the Spurs have shown they're the
real deal. Not only are they making the playoffs, it's

(46:13):
not just oh they're a young team on the rise.
They are here. It's Victor webber Yama. They got the
Spurs culture, they got this great dynamic backcourt, and the
Aaron Fox and Stefan Castle and so and then they
know how to coexist pretty well. So they are well
a machine. But if I had to predict seven game series,

(46:35):
it would go to the Thunderbut That's why it's going
to be compelling, assuming they match up.

Speaker 3 (46:41):
So, Mark, I don't know if you were, you know,
been around the Lakers. I know you you are always
around the Lakers, I should say, so this story about
Lebron having to address something that Rich Paul said, I'll
just be honest. So I'm sure you have a relationship
with Rich Paul. I'm not trying to back you into
a corner. I don't really understand what the upside to

(47:05):
Rich Paul having a podcast is always going to do
is make people mad or not say anything. It doesn't
help his clients, it doesn't help him. I don't know
if you have anything to really add to that situation,
but it feels weird that Lebron now has to address
things that his agent is saying publicly on a podcast.

Speaker 7 (47:25):
Yeah, and it's a fair question. And Aaron, I'm not
backed into a corner. I have relationships in the NBA,
but I have a job to do. And I don't
think that, even with the caveat, that every adult has
the right to pursue whatever business venture through the NBA. Lane,
I don't think that this is a good look for
Rich because perceived or real or a mix of both.

(47:46):
What he says is always going to be looked at.
This is a reflection of what Lebron James wants, even
though Lebron was very clear in the interview with ESPN
that that's not what he thinks. I think the other
thing is just it reeks of being Monday morning quarterback
and trying to be very influential on what teams should do.
And this isn't you know, someone like you and me

(48:08):
talking about what teams should do. We don't have any
roll or direct stake. This is an agent that can
have some sort of leverage. So yeah, it doesn't sit
well with people in the Lakers organization, and certainly shouldn't
sit well with you know, Austin Reeves's agent or anyone
else because you're just thinking the quiet parts out loud.
I mean, it's almost the equivalent of when you know,

(48:32):
in laws insert themselves into private conversations or things with
your partner that shouldn't involve them. They have every right
to do it, but it's something they shouldn't do. So
that's my analysis on it.

Speaker 2 (48:45):
Mark Medina joining us here on Fox Sports Radio. Another
story that caught a lot of people's eye was kind
of the I guess back and forth maybe the way
to put about it on what was happening with Anthony
Davis in his hand situation. You know, the report that
came out that said he was likely done for the season,
Davis refutes it. Then there's a second opinion. There's also

(49:06):
a trade deadline coming up in less than a month.
So where are we on Anthony Davis in what is
happening with the Mavericks? Big Man?

Speaker 7 (49:16):
Yeah, well, I think what Ad was saying is technically
true by the letter of the law, that he's not
ruled out necessarily for the rest of this season technically,
But guys, let's just be real. You read it the
right of the wall, Anthony Davis's injury history. Where the
Mavericks are, you know, in this current standings uncertainty if

(49:36):
or when Kyrie Irving is even back. I don't think
that they formally decided that, nor have you know they've
made a medical diagnosis with doctors, but you connect the dots,
it seems like that's going to be the foregone conclusion.
But you know, until we get to that point, it's
not official. But I wouldn't be surprised. I would be
surprised if we see a d play in another basketball

(49:59):
game this season because of the injury history as well.
It's just the fact that it seems like this is
a lost season for Dallas outside of just seeing Cooper
flag contained a blossom of a great rookie.

Speaker 3 (50:09):
So, Mark, I was on air on my Saturday show
the night that the Knicks were eliminated last year by
the Indiana Pacers, and you know, we were one of
the first just shows to have and we might have
had you on that night, I can't remember, but the
conversation about at the time Tom Thibodeau and I just
bring it up because Nick's obviously sitting in second place
in the East. Do you believe that Mike Brown can

(50:29):
elevate them to that level that Tom Thibodeau couldn't or
is this just kind of a veteran team that's having
success very similarly to the way that they have in
previous regular seasons the last couple of years.

Speaker 7 (50:40):
Yeah, really good question, Aaron. I think that both things
can be true, but I think proportionally it's more of
the fact that the Knicks have a really good roster
and they've retained that and obviously starts with Jalen Brunson,
but it also extends to Karl Anthony Towns being a
more complete player, eliminating a little bit some of his fouls.

(51:00):
But they also have just really great role players o
Giananobia Mikal Bridges is more consistent. Josh Hart, I do
think that Mike Brown's coaching has made a difference, specifically
with the amount of pace that they play at. That's
a lot more than Tom Thibodeau did with the same
personnel last season. But I think both are great head coaches,

(51:22):
are very well prepared, They know how to motivate players,
They had their respect. You know. They're both defensive gurus,
but where I think Mike Brown has the edge over
Thibodeau is on the offensive end. Ironically, at the beginning
of Mike Brown's career, he wasn't known as an offensive guru,
but he's innovated. He's been with the Golden State Warriors

(51:43):
as a key assistant under Steve Kerr. When he was
with the Kings, he got them moving at a very
fast paced and I think that's carried over to the Knicks.
But it always starts with talent. I think with the Knicks, specifically,
the fact that they have the same core has made
a big difference that has allowed them to be a
real true contender.

Speaker 2 (52:01):
In these all right, last one for me, Mark Mediina
joining us here on Fox Sports Radio, and I just
want to ask Jason Stewart. Jason, you have called, I
believe the Washington Wizards the most irrelevant franchise in sports.
He's nodding his head, yes. All right, So, for the
first time in about four years of sports talk radio,
I have a Washington Wizards question. How high could Trey

(52:25):
Young take the Washington Wizards?

Speaker 7 (52:28):
You know what, don't roll your eyes, but I can't
think they can take them to the playoffs next season.
And I'm I'm with Jason one hundred percent. Like they're
known as irrelevant. There's always been a running joke that
me and some other media members have that the Washington
Wizards historically have only existed solely so that every NBA
team can have an eighty two game schedule. But here,

(52:50):
shut me out, guys, Trey Young's on low risk here.
They got him, you know, for a pretty good deal,
only not only giving up CJ. McCollum and a first
round pick and a role player because the market was depressed.
They are aren't good right now, but they're going to
protect their number eight pick. Trey Young might come back,
but it's not going to be enough to affect the

(53:11):
winning record. And when you look at this young core,
Alex Sar, Trey Johnson, b lal Cole Bally, Keyshawn George,
they're all pretty good individual pieces that if you combine
them with someone like Trey Young, they could be a
playoff team. And I think that they will. Also keep
in mind, this isn't a functional front office anymore. Travis

(53:34):
Schlank he used to be with the Hawks. He's the
one that tore them down and built around Trey Young.
He has a pedigree. He used to be at the
Warriors front office. Michael Winger, he used to be with
the Clippers with assembly in their roster. Now, you know,
that's a whole other convo about Kawhi and Paul George.
But from a talent acquisition standpoint, did a good job.
He has background in OKC. So what I'm getting at, guys,

(53:57):
both things can be true current president time. The Wizards
are relevant. They're a bad team, but I think that
they truly are hey in the right direction because of
all the things I outline.

Speaker 2 (54:07):
They have not been above five hundred since the twenty
seventeen to twenty eighteen season. They have not been above
four hundred since the twenty twenty two twenty three season.
So that's why we can hang a banner the first
time we've asked the Wizards question in four years on
Fox Sports Radio. Hey, good luck with the escalade, Mark,
you know and the crypto. H No, we're kidding again.

(54:28):
Mark Medina's X account has been hacked. If you can
help him out by any way, please do so. Mark.
We appreciate the time.

Speaker 7 (54:35):
Appreciate you in all seriousness report it on X. I'm
sure the more the merrier will get this all results
though it right, bastball Gun, I'm.

Speaker 3 (54:43):
Gonna do it right now.

Speaker 2 (54:44):
R G underscore Medina. Everybody was wondering, Wow, Mark Medina
pretty pretty brashed with the crypto obviously hacked. Thanks Mark,
we'll talk to you against you man.

Speaker 7 (54:56):
Thank you, guys your best.

Speaker 2 (54:57):
All right, let's get the Isay glowing crown at the
news desk for the least of what's happening on this Wednesday?
What's going on, Isaac?

Speaker 6 (55:02):
There's a guy out there named David Kavucci, who puts
out a newsletter reporting on interesting information from college sports
that he gets from making Freedom of Information Act requests.
While today he reported on various travel expenses that Big
Ten universities spent for Big Ten Football Media Day in
Las Vegas this past summer, including this, the Nebraska contingent

(55:28):
had six hundred dollars worth of smash Burgers door dashed
directly to their private jet on their way out.

Speaker 3 (55:37):
Of town for the flight home back to you guys.

Speaker 2 (55:40):
Ahh, that's one rule I'd like to follow.

Speaker 3 (55:44):
There you go.

Speaker 2 (55:45):
How about that little matt rule allowing the smash burgers
within the budget on the private jet. Weren't there some
schools like was it with basketball that didn't even bring
players or no, it was it was media members. Some
schools didn't even have media members go to Media Day
because of the travel. I think Penn State was one
of the schools. And you're like, at the time, we

(56:07):
think of Penn State national championship contender, but I don't
think they sent some guys to Las Vegas because of
the cost.

Speaker 3 (56:14):
There was complaint about the how far away it is.
Except Vegas, you could probably get the cheapest hotel room
anywhere in the country of a major city, neither here
nor there, go ahead.

Speaker 5 (56:23):
All I was Sam, I was just gonna bring up recently,
Isaac talked about Texas Longhorns balloon budget and you know
some places can't even send an assistant coach to media
days and the balloon budget.

Speaker 3 (56:34):
What was it again, Isaac? It was right now, but
it was unbelievably it was like budget.

Speaker 6 (56:39):
It was like over one hundred thousand dollars for the
athletic department for the whole year, just for.

Speaker 3 (56:44):
The balloons and helium.

Speaker 2 (56:45):
Yeah. Yeah, but those numbers could be inflated.