Podcast Episodes

Lulu Kesin: Greenville News' South Carolina women's basketball and football beat writer

Season 20 Episode 432

On the similarities and differences between covering women's basketball and football at a major university. On life with Dawn Staley, and whether she would make a good NBA coach. On coming up in the …

Published on 13 hours ago

Tony Mandarich: Former NFL offensive lineman and TikTok superstar

Season 20 Episode 431

On how he made the transition from football to social media. On why he likes Donald Trump way, way, way more than I do. On whether it's OK to own past mistakes—and how to do so. On decency with those…

Published on 1 week ago

Elizabeth Merrill: ESPN senior writer

Season 20 Episode 430

On the details and doggedness of a lengthy look at the aftermath of the 1988 New Orleans Saints. On interviewing people after a tragedy. On life on the mid-2000s Kansas City Chiefs beat.

Published on 2 weeks ago

Emily Adams: Hartford Courant beat writer, Connecticut Sun and UConn women's basketball

Season 20 Episode 429

On the challenges and joys of covering the WNBA in 2025. On what it's like to cover a painfully bad team after always covering great ones. On the differences between Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma

Published on 3 weeks ago

Dick Friedman: Former Sports Illustrated senior editor

Season 20 Episode 428

On the daunting task of line editing some of the all-time great sports writers. On how to improve a piece and how to back off. On the glory days of magazines. On covering Harvard football as an alum.

Published on 4 weeks ago

Lizzy Wright: Co-Author, "Marinovich: Outside the Lines in Football, Art, and Addiction"

On what prompted her to write a book with. former football phenom Todd Marinovich. On how to capture the voice of another person. On what she's learned about the intricacies of the game from being ma…

Published on 1 month ago

Joseph Bien-Kahn: Senior editor, Esses Magazine

Season 20 Episode 425

On throwing himself into the world of motor sports without having a PhD in motor sports. On whether media can be saved—and how. On chatting up Laurence Fishburne when Laurence Fishburne has been chat…

Published on 1 month, 1 week ago

Julia Poe: Chicago Tribune Bulls and Sky beat writer

Season 20 Episode 425

On covering an NBA team vs. a WNBA team. On the phenomenon of Angel Reese and the joy of DeMar DeRozan. On whether she knew what she was talking about back in college. On whether writing can be taugh…

Published on 1 month, 2 weeks ago

Chris Hine: Minneapolis Star Tribune Wolves beat writer and Ant Edwards biographer

Season 20 Episode 424

On how one writes a biography on a young superstar entering his prime. On the wild boredom of Las Vegas summer league. On Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns. On working as an openly gay journalist i…

Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago

Shehan Jeyarajah: CBS Sports College Football Wrtiter

Season 20 Episode 423

On his spectacular 5,000-word deep dive into Texas Tech football and the power (and limitations) of NIL dough. On creating content in a confusing time for content creators. On whether the writing dre…

Published on 2 months ago