Pardon My Take – Episode Summary

Date: October 8, 2025
Episode: Miami HC Mario Cristobal, CFB With Tom Fornelli, Jerry From Meow Mix + Playoff Baseball, Jaguars Big Win and FAQ's
Hosts: Big Cat & PFT Commenter (Barstool Sports)
Special Guests:

• Mario Cristobal (Miami Hurricanes HC)
• Tom Fornelli (CBS Sports CFB Analyst)
• Jerry from Meow Mix (Carolina Panthers podcast)

Episode Overview

This episode delivers quintessential PMT chaos, featuring playoff baseball reactions, hot seat/cool throne, college football breakdowns, NFL talk (with a Jaguars-centric focus), a revealing interview with Miami HC Mario Cristobal, genuine perspective from a retired Panthers podcaster, and a batch of listener-submitted FAQs.

Key Segments & Insights

1. Baseball Playoff Reactions

Timestamp: 02:53–41:03

• Aaron Judge’s Heroics:
  The show opens with Big Cat and PFT reliving Aaron Judge’s season-saving home run, marveling at the gravity of the moment for the Yankees and baseball at large.

  • “It was an insane, insane moment...if the Yankees somehow go on and win this series, it will be because of that moment.” (Big Cat, 04:25)
  • Even as known Judge/Yankees haters, the hosts admit it was a “cool-ass home run” (PFT, 03:23).

• Cynicism & Conspiracy:
  The crew debates whether MLB would "rig" series to keep big-market teams alive, spinning wild fan logic and jokes about juiced baseballs.

• Memorable Fan Moment:

  • Reference to the Mariners’ “Dump It Here” guy who caught Cal Raleigh’s home run, wore layered shirts, and became a cult hero.
  • “The guy was wearing two shirts, and now he’s ready. And then Big Cat and I looked...I think he might have been wearing a third shirt.” (PFT, 15:33)

• Personal Torture:
  Max and Big Cat vent about the downward spirals for their Phillies and Cubs, struggling with failed bats and manager decisions.

• Philly & Cubs Meltdown:

  • “The Cubs have struck out 19 times in the first two games of the series. Balls in play!” (Big Cat, 40:39)
  • “Our top three hitters...have a combined .143 batting average and .544 OPS.” (Memes/Max, 37:27)

• Pascal’s Wager for Overalls:
  With superstitions running rampant, Max contemplates donning overalls for Phillies luck, while Big Cat refuses to accept a “big check” at Wrigley on elimination day, citing destiny and sports-jinx logic.

2. NFL Talk: Jaguars, Chiefs, and Division Politics

Timestamp: 46:18–54:49

• Jaguars Defeat Chiefs:
  Discussion centers on Jacksonville finally overcoming their “always lose this game” curse, while Kansas City’s “black magic” fades (PFT, 47:47).

  • “Jaguars win a game the Jaguars never win...something shifting.” (Big Cat, 47:03)
  • “The losses the Chiefs are experiencing...they look like all of us now.” (PFT, 47:47)

• Chiefs Regression:

  • “Maybe their regression back to being just a normal good football team” (PFT, 47:47)

• Creative Tangent – NFL Division Commissioners:

  • Team proposes fake “division commissioners” to hype up the AFC South.
  • “Wouldn’t it be cool if there was a commissioner for each division? Hey, here at the AFC South, we actually play winning football now.” (Big Cat, 51:53)

3. Hot Seat, Cool Throne

Timestamp: 57:13–65:28

Key Hot Seats:

• NCAA Tournament / March Madness
  • Expansion is coming, bubble-watch drama may be lost.
  • “A lot of the fun...is the lead-up and the bubble watch.” (Big Cat, 57:41)
• Jerry Jones (for ‘flipping off’ fans), Drake (passed on streaming by Travis Scott), Human Brain (can supposedly hold 150 relationships)

Key Cool Thrones:

• Amazon Prime Day, Connor McDavid,
  • “Team-friendly deal...very easily tradable.” (Big Cat, 63:27)
• Jaylen Hurts
  • Viral Hail Mary: “He literally threw the Hail Mary and then sprinted to the end zone to try to get it.” (Big Cat, 67:59)

4. NCAA/College Football Deep Dive ft. Tom Fornelli

Timestamp: 75:30–114:39

• Penn State’s Future / James Franklin’s Seat:

  • “These games against UCLA are just games Penn State always won...no excuse for what happened.” (Fornelli, 75:30)
  • Comparison to Bo Pelini/Nebraska “grass is greener” syndrome.

• SEC Surprises:

  • “Texas A&M...are legitimately good. Back end of defense looked like ass, but figured it out. Suddenly a team exceeding expectations.” (Fornelli, 80:28)

• Texas & Arch Manning:

  • “Offensive line can’t block anybody...Arch has been a huge problem, but not the only problem.” (Fornelli, 82:09)

• Michigan/Ohio State Analysis:

  • “Ohio State this year is better than last year.” (Big Cat, 87:42)
  • “Defense is very, very, very good. The offense is not quite to where last year's was.” (Fornelli, 89:51)

• Miami's Path & PIT trap game:

  • “Miami’s biggest speed bump is always Miami.” (Fornelli, 94:28)

• SEC Outlook & Alabama:

  • “I do think it’s Alabama...Ty Simpson might be the best QB in the country.” (Fornelli, 96:21)

• UNC Dumpster Fire:
  “Awful...it’s a dumpster fire, players look like they’re completely unprepared.” (Fornelli, 104:01)

  • Mike Lombardi process letter “Sam Hinkie for college football” jokes.

5. Mario Cristobal Interview (Miami Hurricanes HC)

Timestamp: 115:27–143:10

• Culture Change/Program Building:
  “It’s almost like real estate...when you see a place that’s got a ton of potential but just hasn’t been taken care of...it starts with just changing the DNA.” (Cristobal, 116:16)

• Relentless Work Ethic:
  “We work at a level, an intensity that’s pretty insane.” (Cristobal, 121:54)

  • Key influences: Jimmy Johnson, Dennis Erickson, Butch Davis, Nick Saban

• Recruiting Philosophy:

  • “I learned the value of recruiting very quickly and how the magic is in the players.” (Cristobal, 118:15)

• Handling Success:

  • “We have massive improvement to be made to accomplish what we want to.” (Cristobal, 121:50)
  • “Busting your ass. This is a vocation, not a part time job.” (Cristobal, 125:46)

• Secret Service Almost-Career:

  • “I was gone. That was what I wanted to do...and then I woke up in the middle of the night and said, hell, no, I want to coach football.” (Cristobal, 119:56)
  • [Funny Q] “When Super Mario comes out, how does 15-year-old Mario Cristobal feel?”
    “I didn’t play it much. I’m a Pittsburgh Steelers die-hard fan.” (Cristobal, 141:31)

• Program mentality:

  • “We’ve thrown that ‘Miami's back’ thing out...Everything we are doing is going straight ahead, not back.” (Cristobal, 134:53)

6. Retiring from Team Podcasting: Jerry from Meow Mix

Timestamp: 145:08–156:08

• Burnout and Heartbreak:

  • “I turned the game off. First time in 10 years I actually stopped mid-game… I can’t do this.” (Jerry, 145:46)
  • “It’s becoming more of a chore than a fun hobby.” (Jerry, 146:00)

• Advice from PMT:
  “We appreciate the ecosystem of sports podcasters...it’s important to the sports community.” (PFT, 147:17)

• Possible Return:

  • “Is there any chance we get the boys back together?”
    “Maybe, just because I don’t know where his headspace is at with coming back.” (Jerry, 152:04)

7. Listener FAQs & Show Wrap-up

Timestamp: 156:50–end

• Handling Team Rebuilds as a Fan:

  • “If your team says, ‘we’re gonna try to rebuild’, and you have the right people in charge, rebuilds can be fun.” (Big Cat, 158:30)

• Grit Week Roadtrip Memories:

  • Recounted adventures: receiving beer from fans, playing darts on mushrooms in Boulder, Atlanta’s Northside Tavern blues night, storm chasing.
  • “Grit Week, Colorado—climbing Everest, doing mushrooms, one of my favorite dive bars…that was sick.” (Big Cat, 162:04)

• Fastest 2 Minutes:

  • “We do it after the games...around six o’ clock every Sunday, just being like, oh, we got to do this.” (Big Cat, 164:25)

• Booth Smell:

  • “Individually, they’re not bad smelling guys. Put them together…different story.” (Big Cat, 164:47)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Playoff Baseball:
  “I'm happy for Aaron Judge...You can't deny that sports are cool when you watch a home run like that that could potentially save the Yankee season.” — Big Cat [04:25]

• On Coaching Mentality:
  “I refuse to allow any...‘relax mode’...to creep into myself. It's my job and our staff's job—the adults set the tone.” — Mario Cristobal [124:17]

• On Fan Suffering:
  “There’s only so many times I could say, ‘Hey, Dave Canales, you got a big O-line, run the ball with 2000 yard backs.’ And they don’t do it.” — Jerry (Meow Mix) [150:14]

• On Team Rebuilds:
  “If your team actually says, ‘Hey, we’re going to try to rebuild because...’ The worst place to be is a team that cannot win a championship, but the owners keep running it back.” – Big Cat [158:30]

Episode Structure & Flow

1. Opening / Playoff Baseball Recap & Banter
2. NFL Recap (Jaguars/Chiefs, divisional commissioner jokes)
3. Hot Seat / Cool Throne
4. Tom Fornelli on CFB – Penn State, Texas, SEC, ACC, Michigan, Miami
5. Mario Cristobal Interview – Building Miami, recruiting, discipline, legacy
6. Retiring from Meow Mix — Podcasting Pain & Panthers Futility
7. Listener FAQs—Fandom, roadtrip nostalgia, and show inside-baseball
8. Show Closer—Banter, lottery ball, outro track (“Peaked in High School”)

Overall: Rich in original tone, whip-smart sports analysis, doses of dumb joy, and unique glimpses into the professional and emotional lives of athletes, fans, coaches and content-makers. A must-listen for PMT fans and anyone seeking the intersection of sports obsession, culture, and self-deprecation.