Midwest Legends

This week on the Midwest Legends Podcast, Russell interviews Kirby Puckett Jr., son of the legendary Twins baseball star Kirby Puckett! Tune in to hear Kirby Jr.’s experience growing up with a dad who would get recognized at the store and have over house guests like Cal Ripken and Kenny Lofton, but who was also just dad to him. Kirby Jr. fondly remembers Saturday mornings when he would watch fishi...

This week on Midwest Legend’s Podcast the baseball legends continue with Jack Morris! Jack takes Russell through the highlights of his hall of fame worthy baseball career, including when he learned his famous split ball, coming home to the Twins, and memorable stories with manager Tom Kelly. Jack talks fondly of his teammates and their historic wins. 

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Welcome back to the Midwest Legends Podcast for Tom Kelly Pt. 2! This week, Tom takes Russell through his journey of becoming a renowned baseball manager. Although Tom claims he was just thinking about how “not to get fired,” throughout his first managing stint with the Twins in ’87, it’s clear there’s much more genius in his management style then he lets on. Enough genius ...

This week on the Midwest Legends Podcast, Russell welcomes the legendary Tom Kelly to the pod! Tom Kelly may have had just a short stint in Graceville, Minnesota before moving to New Jersey, but little did he know he would be a Midwesterner again, becoming a legendary manager for the Minnesota Twins. Growing up with a father who was also a pitcher, Tom learned to always keep his spikes clean regardless ...

This week on the Midwest Legends Podcast, Russell sits down with Minnesota native and legendary musician Charlie Parr! Charlie takes Russell back to his childhood in Austin, Minnesota where he begrudgingly did farm work, drew dinosaurs all over his father’s record collection, and eventually became obsessed with learning to play the guitar. After moving to the Twin Cities, Charlie became immersed i...

This week on the Midwest Legends Podcast Russell sits down to talk with the Minnesota and Twins baseball legend Kent Hrbek! Kent grew up just about a mile from the old Twins stadium and fondly remembers watching the lights from his childhood bedroom… fast forward a couple years and he’s a real deal Twins player! Kent discusses his baseball legacy including his two World Series wins and open...

This week on the Midwest Legends Podcast, musician, producer, and Doomtree crew member Aaron Mader (AKA Lazerbeak) joins Russell to dive into his experience coming up in the vibrant Minneapolis music scene. From growing up in Hopkins, Minnesota with a day job as a pizza delivery driver to working with big names in the music industry like Lizzo, Trampled By Turtles, POS, Doja Cat, and many more, Lazerbeak knows that the Midwest musi...

MVP and All-Star baseball legend Christian Yelich joins Russell this week on the Midwest Legends Podcast! Christian Yelich’s legendary status goes without saying. From being the first member of his family to play baseball to becoming the face of MKE baseball, Christian has already made history and he’s just getting started.

Don’t miss Christian’s take on Giannis ...

Former NHL Player, Olympian, and Minnesota legend, Lou Nanne joins Russell on this week’s Midwest Legends episode! Lou has years of impressive accomplishments under his belt. Known as “the Godfather of Hockey,” although he would argue that title actually belongs to John Mariucci, Lou has undoubtedly made an impact on the hockey world. Coming from a small Canadian town, playing at the U of M,...

The legendary Packers player Leroy Butler is back again for part two! This week, Leroy goes behind the scenes of his anxiety inducing draft experience when his dream of becoming an NFL player finally came true at the same time he realized he has no idea where Green Bay is. Leroy talks Russell through his accidental creation of the now iconic Lambeau Leap and his disbelief that a US President didn’t know...

This episode was so good, it had to be a two-parter! You may know him as the inventor of the Lambeau Leap or for his run in the iconic Puntrooskie play, but in this week’s Midwest Legends episode Leroy takes Russell back in time to his life before the Packers. Leroy grew up with everything stacked against him. He grew up in the projects in Duval County, Florida, was raised by a hardworking single mother...

Midwest Legend? More like international legend! This week, star hockey player Laila Edwards gives Russell the inside scoop on her amazing journey from growing up in Ohio playing on the boy’s hockey team to winning gold at the 2026 Olympics in Milan. Laila takes us behind the scenes of the Olympics, sharing how she overcame the nerves to clinch the win over the iconic Canadian rivals in the game that had...

Former Minnesota Vikings linebacker and current sideline analyst Ben Leber joins Russell to discuss his journey from a multicultural childhood in Iowa to a professional NFL football player.

Ben talks about his supportive family, including two older brothers who inspired him to try football and how coaches along the way shaped the player he later became. After a trying rookie season in college, Ben reached a turning point where he c...

Noah Bakken, a motocross expert who is no stranger to performing impressive feats on two wheels, sat down with Russell to talk all things speed and spectacle.

Noah Bakken remembers his childhood growing up in a family of motorcycle lovers fondly. Despite his first ride on a PW50 when he was just three ending with him hitting a swing set, he fell in love with all thing’s motocross. Noah tells Russell all the behind the scenes ...

CJ Ham recently retired from the NFL after 10 seasons playing for the Vikings, and he sat down with Russell to talk about where his love for football started and where it’s taken him.

CJ Ham remembers dropping out of Augustana’s fall training camp for three days. He was one of many freshman players who quit, but he can’t remember the head coach telling anyone else to come back if they changed their mind. This wasn...

For Promise, the road to landing a morning show on Hot 105.7 FM wasn’t easy, but it was a labor of love. He sat down with Russell to talk about how his passion carried him through the long hours and late nights.

From hosting a college radio show to becoming the voice Milwaukee woke up to, Promise spent years honing his craft. Hosting gigs are scarce, and while that scarcity helped fuel his hunger to learn, it also brought ple...

Ryan Ruebl’s entrepreneurial spirit collided with his love for Wisconsin and 'Meanwhile In Wisconsin' was born. He stopped by the Midwest Legends studio to talk with Russell about America’s Dairyland.

Ruebl knows his way around a fish fry, and he’s got tips and recommendations, but his lips are sealed on the best fishing spots. He and Russell bond over their love for the Packers, and joke about sitting next to foo...

Mason Crosby's sixteen-year run with the Green Bay Packers was fueled by his commitment to be present and available to his teammates. Newly retired, he sat down with Russell Nicolet to reflect on the memories that defined his history-making NFL career.

As a kicker, Crosby became adept at balancing “hurry up and wait” with the intense, barely-over-a-second window most kickers have to launch the ball. His first year as a ...

Call 866-MW-LEGND for a chance to have your story played on a future dial-in episode!

On the second Midwest Legends dial-in episode, Russell Nicolet and Jared Schutz are back, reacting to three more handpicked stories live on the mic. We set up 866-MW-LEGND so that our listeners could tell their stories, and boy have we had fun listening to them. Enjoy stories about someone chewing on a rattlesnake rattler (the full story is someho...