Pardon My Take Podcast Summary

Episode: John Fanta, MSU Coach Tom Izzo, PMT Spring Break, Hot Seat/Cool Throne & Listener Submitted Mad Online

Date: March 25, 2026
Hosts: Big Cat, PFT Commenter (Barstool Sports)
Special Guests: John Fanta (College Basketball Analyst), Tom Izzo (Michigan State Head Coach)

Episode Overview

This episode of Pardon My Take sees the PMT crew broadcasting from Arizona for "PMT Spring Break," blending irreverent sports talk with vacation vibes and sunburned banter. The show features a deep dive into March Madness, including interviews with college basketball insider John Fanta and Michigan State legend Tom Izzo. The hosts also make time for their beloved segments: "Hot Seat/Cool Throne," a spring training baseball preview, some time zone confusion hijinks, and the listener-driven "Mad Online."

Key Segments & Highlights

1. Spring Break in Arizona & Opening Banter

• Spring Break Vibes: The hosts joke about "tit week," military service age limits, and embrace a lighthearted, chaotic spring break energy in Arizona.

  • Memorable Quote (02:31, Hank): "It's tit week."
  • Big Cat (03:14): "That's just the horniness that happens on spring break."

• Diet & Recovery Post-March Madness: Sharing their routines and hangover cures after the opening rounds of the NCAA tournament.

• Restaurant Chat: Debating the militaristic efficiency of the Houston’s restaurant chain and its army-like staff.

2. March Madness Rundown & Speculation (05:17-10:00)

• UNC Coach Search: With UNC’s head coach fired, the hosts riff on possible replacements (Brad Stevens, Billy Donovan, Kelvin Sampson, Tony Bennett, Nate Oats).

  • Big Cat (06:29): "It's just very funny—the reality is Brad Stevens for Carolina fans."
  • Hank (07:57): "It feels like [Nate Oats] has been incepting people into anticipating him being the next UNC coach for a while."

• Falling for Ben McCollum:

  • Big Cat (08:13): “I have fallen hard for Ben McCollum...This guy fucking rocks. He just wins everywhere."
  • Discussion of McCollum’s Cinderella Iowa squad of D2 and transfer players.

• Early Sweet 16 Takes:

  • Hank picks Purdue, Arizona, Houston; Big Cat bullish on Illinois; the team's "most kick-ass guys" of the tournament are debated.

3. NCAA Tournament "Kick-ass Guys" Draft (10:46-13:35)

A running PMT bit, the guys pick the most “badass” players remaining in March Madness:

• Cohen Carr, Acuff, JoJo Tugler, LeBaron Phylon, Sam Hoiberg, Zuby Ejiofor, with honorable mentions.
  • Big Cat (11:59): "...that's our starting five—well, six names."

4. Baseball Season Preview & Fan Purgatory (18:33-27:59)

• Spring Training Begins Early: Discussion of the Netflix-opening Yankees-Giants game and general excitement about baseball's return.

• Team Previews:

  • Nats fans commiserate over a 7-year rebuild ("tank master"), low expectations.
  • Max expects the Phillies to regress but still make the wild card.
  • Red Sox fans tepid, Mets fans hope for a turnaround.
  • Big Cat is bullish on the Cubs: "I think they're the second-best team in the NL."

• Depressing Outlooks: Most teams mired in mediocrity, with few looking forward to the season—except for Big Cat's Cubs optimism.

5. Time Zone Confusion Extravaganza (31:10-39:35)

One of the episode’s most memorable bits:
The crew gets hilariously lost in a thick discussion about Arizona’s refusal to observe daylight savings, bouncing from mountain to Pacific time, and how this ruins Zach’s perception of flight duration.

• Max (35:28): "This is—the deodorant all over again."
• PFT & Big Cat repeatedly: “We’re in Pacific time! No, Mountain time! No, Arizona time is…”
• John Fanta (38:45): "We're in a Mountain standard time. Currently we align with Pacific time. But then we don't change. And we have to compensate for all of you that change."
• Big Cat attempts to summarize the answer: “We're Mountain time dressed up as Pacific time.”

6. Hot Seat / Cool Throne (41:52-56:07)

• Max’s Hot Seat: Philadelphia 76ers’ bizarre tribute video to a rookie traded away after a year.
  • Max (42:32): "That's crazy to have a fair comeback video for that."
• Max’s Cool Throne: Cannolis and potential tiramisu crawl.
• Hank’s Hot Seat: “Short Kings”—baseball’s new ABS system reveals players have been lying about height.
  • Hank (52:58): "Bo Naylor, who I'm a Bo Naylor fan, was listed at 6 feet...He's 5’9.”
• Hank’s Cool Throne: Luis Suarez loses "biting in sports" crown to Puka Nacua, amid new biting allegations.

7. Interview: John Fanta on March Madness (74:49-111:41)

Timestamped separately—see below for detailed summary.

8. Interview: Tom Izzo (Michigan State Head Coach) (113:59-142:33)

Timestamped separately—see below for detailed summary.

9. Mad Online: Listener Rants & Hot Takes (145:09-150:33)

• Debates about the lasting impact of college coaching transitions (Coach K vs. Jim Boeheim), Shaka Smart at Marquette, and frustrations at bad endgame plays in college basketball.
• Big Cat: "Shaka Smart is the cautionary tale: don’t succeed too much, too early, or everyone expects you to Kemba again."
• Hank: "Don’t be bald by choice, dude...My culture is not your costume!"

10. End-of-Episode Chaos

• Predictions for the Sweet 16, lottery ball picks, and some PMT-internal inside jokes ("Love you guys," "bring a new friend in July").

Detailed Guest Highlights

John Fanta Interview: March Madness Madness (74:49–111:41)

Key Points and Best Moments:

• Big Ten Love:
  • “To have [the Big Ten] not won a championship since 2000, but have six Sweet 16s is a headliner." (75:52)
• Regional Highlights:
  • Waxing poetic about the East region’s coaching matchups: Izzo, Pitino, Hurley, Shire.
  • Illinois-Houston a “bar fight...so tough,” Iowa/Nebraska “the Cinderella no one had."
  • “Nebraska, Iowa are both in the Sweet 16 and both playing each other? That's incredible!" (80:44)
• Darius Acuff, Jr. Hype:
  • “The best player in the tournament right now is Darius Acuff Jr...he is ridiculously gifted.”
• Cinderella Watch:
  • “When Cinderella finally comes out of her casket, we’ll appreciate it even more." (77:55)
• Coach Rumorama:
  • Fanta discusses UNC and Kansas job rumors, recites the classic “make him say no” for Brad Stevens, Billy Donovan.
• Funny Moment:
  • Fanta rails on over-reactions to Kevin Willard jokes and college basketball Twitter: “Can people learn to take a joke?” (92:30)

Notable Quotes:

• Big Cat (84:10): “It’s crazy how this sport works.”
• John Fanta (108:51): “Are you feeling sweet, America? Because you should be. It’s here…This is March! This is why we love the sport..."

Tom Izzo Interview: Old School in a New Era (113:59–142:33)

Key Points and Highlights:

• On "Being a Steward of the Game":
  • “The game really doesn't change and that we have a responsibility to the game more than to ourselves or our schools.”
• Adapting to NIL & Transfer Portal:
  • “It's difficult…There's a reason a lot of football and basketball coaches have left. Is it right for the players in the next 70 years?"
• Old School, Right School:
  • "It's not 'old school.' It's 'right school.' It's the way it’s supposed to be." (115:31)
• Coaching with Love and Accountability:
  • “Our job is to hold people accountable to accomplish the goals and dreams they have, not just what I have.”
  • “Great players want to be coached and pushed because great players want to be the best players." (125:03)
• Cohen Carr's Leaping Ability:
  • “He’s the world’s best kid…one of the more powerful dunkers I’ve ever had.” (128:32)
• On NCAA Tournament Bracket Luck:
  • "It’s happened more than its share of times...Duke and Michigan State always drawn together." (130:40)

Fun/Quotable Moments:

• On Dan Hurley’s coaching magic:
  • Big Cat: “Do not let him drink his rage piss before the game. That’s his secret sauce.” (119:20)
• On yelling at players as an Italian:
  • “No matter what I say to you, take it for what I’m saying, not how I’m saying it. Because I love you all."
• On stats:
  • “People throw stats at me, but the only ones I care about are the banners hanging."
  • Big Cat (141:08): "You're 26–9 on two-day turnaround games...That’s a hell of a stat and it speaks to your coaching."
• Promise for another National Title:
  • “If we win another national championship, I just might do something crazy. I’ll bring back [the musical] ‘Izzo Goes to Broadway’—and you guys can be part of it, if you wear white suits!” (141:49)

Other Notable Quotes & Banter

• Big Cat: "This episode might have to be submitted to the Podcast Hall of Fame for stupidity." (69:33)
• On recruiting:
  • Big Cat about Providence coach’s joke—“If you question my recruiting, just look at my wife”—“Let’s just say, he can back it up.” (63:17)

Memorable Moments & Quotes with Timestamps

• 02:31/Hank: "It's tit week."
• 31:10-39:35: The entire time zone debate—pinnacle of PMT chaos.
• 63:17/Big Cat: "If you ever want to question my recruiting abilities, just look at my wife."
• 115:31/Izzo: "It's not old school. It's right school...The right way has been done for not 20, not 40, 100 years."
• 128:32/Izzo on Cohen Carr: "He's the world's best kid...the most powerful dunker I've ever had."
• 141:08/Big Cat: "You're 26–9 on two-day turnaround games in the NCAA tournament...That's a hell of a stat and it speaks to your coaching."

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:00–13:35: Arizona spring break banter, March Madness early discussion, “kick-ass guys” draft
• 18:33–27:59: Baseball preview (Nats, Cubs, Red Sox, Phillies, Mets)
• 31:10–39:35: Time zone confusion bit
• 41:52–56:07: Hot Seat/Cool Throne
• 74:49–111:41: John Fanta Interview
• 113:59–142:33: Tom Izzo Interview
• 145:09–150:33: Mad Online
• End: Predictions, wrap-up

Summary Tone & Language

The PMT tone is comedic, irreverent, high-energy, bro-ish, and sports-mad, with lots of digs, bits, and banter. Quotes are presented in the hosts’ original informal, quick-witted language.

Listeners’ Takeaways

• Unfiltered sports fandom: The episode is rich in inside jokes, creative segments, and personal fan anguish mixed with celebration.
• College hoops insight: Deep-dive analysis of coaching moves, March Madness storylines, and player spotlights.
• Baseball and banter: Realistic (sometimes bleak) takes on MLB teams, with the exception of Big Cat’s Cubs optimism.
• True-to-life PMT chaos: From time zone debates to weird bets and “tiramisu crawl” ideas, you get the full spring break madness experience.

If you missed this episode, expect all the PMT trademarks: wild energy, off-topic tangents, top-shelf college hoops insight, and plenty of laughs.