Son of a Boy Dad #318: "Omnivore"
Podcast by Barstool Sports
Original Air Date: July 17, 2025
Episode Overview
In this episode, "Omnivore," the crew—Rowan (Rone), Harry (Lil Sasquatch/Sass), and recurring guest Francis—riff on everything from the anxieties of adulthood to absurd culture clashes, listener scrutiny, and the endlessly humorous pitfalls of modern manhood. As Lil Sasquatch navigates life post-college, the guys swap stories, jab at each other’s quirks, and wax philosophical about empathy, hearing loss, and the joys and perils of peak masculinity. The tone is irreverent, self-deprecating, and fast-paced, with asides into metal music, North Korean propaganda, wilderness trips, and deep-dive tangents on sports, masculinity, and personal neuroses.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. College Dropping Out, Empathy, and Faking It
- Harry recounts pretending to be gay to pick up a prescription for a friend, only to receive a frosty reaction from the pharmacy staff:
- “I get why gay people need rights. Because the black lady behind the counter was like disgusted at me. ‘Another one of you filthy gays in Brooklyn…’” (01:10)
- Francis weighs in on how “experiencing someone else’s plight” is nearly impossible unless you go through the motions:
- “You can’t experience anybody else’s plight except for pretending to be gay, for example. I couldn't walk in and be like, yeah, I'm picking up my Chinese prescription.” (03:08)
- The group riffs on needing to “trash your own apartment for empathy,” using Sass as the archetype.
2. The Mysteries (and Hygiene) of Apartment Life
- Rowan describes “unlocking a window” in his Brooklyn apartment after years of it being painted shut:
- “It felt like that episode of Always Sunny where they realize Charlie had a spare bedroom the whole time.” (05:17)
- They joke about mistaking pest repellents for air fresheners, and the perennial challenge of New York City living.
3. Metal Bands, System of a Down & Mosh Pit Culture
- Francis describes his confusion between Slipknot and System of a Down, then shares his new fascination with heavy metal culture:
- “Apparently System of a Down people consider to be the best metal band ahead of Slipknot, you know?” (09:24)
- The group imagines attending a South American festival show:
- “They pan out, and it looks like a city is on fire… one gigantic 80,000 people with humongous infernos.” (09:49)
- Harry and Rowan crack up over metalhead stereotypes and music culture.
4. Escaping the City: Upstate, Aging, and Hearing Loss
- Francis, now living upstate, details treating NYC as his “medical clinic”—coming in for doctor appointments and groceries:
- “I now treat New York City like I’m a farmer that lives 130 miles away from the nearest city… last two times I’ve come into the city, I’ve scheduled doctor’s appointments.” (12:04)
- He laments his worsening hearing, considering hearing aids and revealing the embarrassment in social situations:
- “When I go to a restaurant with one person, I insist that we sit at the bar, because... they're speaking directly into my ear as opposed to across the table.” (15:41)
- Jokes about “bone conductor” hearing aid technology—“Bone Conductor is also my favorite song from System of a Down.” (13:39)
5. Trip Planning, Regional Snobbery & the East vs. West Outdoors Debate
- The gang debates where to take a fishing trip: Wyoming, upstate NY, Maine, or Pennsylvania.
- “Plan A is go fishing in Yellowstone, Wyoming, and plan B is go stay in [Francis’s] place as you should.” (19:00)
- Francis affirms his “mi casa es su casa” hospitality, clowning Rowan for overthinking friend etiquette.
6. Sports, Memory, Clothing Scrutiny
- Hilarious and petty debate over how recently Rowan wore a certain “stand-up shirt”—with fans fact-checking appearances:
- Francis: “The last time I saw it was April 30th of 2024.”
- Rowan: “I promise you it wasn’t.” (06:57)
7. New York, New Jersey, and the Great Migration
- Francis narrates his family’s move from NJ to Maine, dismissing Jersey’s appeal:
- “I said to my parents, look, I don’t want to raise my kids here. ...We uprooted.” (22:42)
- Sprinkled in: disputes over state beauty and regional stereotypes.
8. Words, Orientals, and Occidentals
- The etymology of “Occidental”:
- Harry: “If we’re accidental, Asian person’s Oriental, then we’re an occidental.” (24:23)
- Rowan flexes his knowledge of Latin roots, to everyone else’s mock amazement.
9. North Korean Propaganda Tangent
- Spirited, irreverent talk about North Korea’s embassies and the possibility their propaganda is accurate:
- “What if they’re not lying?...maybe it’s our propaganda.” (25:49)
- Explores the Otto Warmbier case and the danger (and idiocy) of “rolling up propaganda posters as souvenirs”:
- “I did a deep Wikipedia dive about that kid from Virginia who went over there on that tour and stole the propaganda poster…” (27:14)
10. Cliff Diving, Death Dives, and Squirrel Suits
- The crew analyzes extreme sports, drawing lines between cliff diving, death diving, solo climbing, and wingsuit flying:
- “I wonder if being a YouTuber cliff diver is more dangerous than being a wing suit base jumper.” (35:00)
- Francis: “That is a perky penis. Not hard, but not droopy at all.” (38:34) (on the anatomy of divers)
- They debate: What’s the most “doable” of these sports with a dark edge.
11. Workout Failures, Injury, and Gender Anxiety
- Francis recounts “girl math” justification for blowing money on new workout gear after forgetting his clothes:
- “Now I need to make up for it by working out so hard. This has to be a $200 workout that I earn.” (50:34)
- Suffers a mild injury, then they riff on the myth of “getting lopsided” after one-arm injuries.
12. Masturbation, Tennis Stars, and 'Jacked' Anatomy
- A riff on Rafael Nadal’s famously muscular left arm:
- Harry: “I think there’s a chance that Rafael Nadal only plays tennis to cover up for his furious masturbation habits.” (53:08)
- Rowan: “Jack Sock is my favorite because reminds me of how I like to finish.” (53:53)
13. Football Strength and Humble Lifts
- Watching videos of NFL linemen carrying 700+ pounds:
- Francis: “This is why none of these guys can walk when they’re 48 years old.” (57:15)
- Both Rowan and Harry admit to humble personal records, putting pro feats in comic perspective.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On Pharmacy Valor:
“I pretended to be gay... Now I get why gay people need rights. The black lady behind the counter was like disgusted at me. ‘Another one of you filthy gays in Brooklyn...’”
— Harry, (01:45) -
On Medical Check-ins:
“I now treat New York City like I'm a farmer that lives 130 miles away from the nearest city... the last two times I've come into the city, I've scheduled doctor's appointments.”
— Francis, (12:04) -
On Aging & Hearing Loss:
“My hearing has gone to shit... I'm losing my hearing from all of the System of a Down I've been cranking.”
— Francis, (12:45) -
On “Empathy” via Apartment Filthiness:
“It’s actually necessary for empathy that you trash your apartment.”
— Harry, (03:32) -
On Death Dives:
“That is a perky penis... Not hard, but not droopy at all.”
— Francis, (38:34) -
On Rafael Nadal:
“I think that there’s a chance Nadal only plays tennis to cover up for his furious masturbation habits.”
— Harry, (53:08)
Important Timestamps
- 01:15 — Main show intro (real conversation begins)
- 03:00 — Empathy and faking identity for social experiments
- 05:00 — Apartment window “unlocked,” Always Sunny reference
- 09:24 — Metal band discourse: System of a Down vs Slipknot
- 12:04 — Francis discusses turning NYC into his “healthcare center”
- 13:39 — “Bone Conductor”: hearing technology and metal puns
- 19:00–21:00 — Fishing trip debate; East vs. West outdoors
- 22:42 — Francis on moving from New Jersey to Maine
- 27:14 — North Korea, Otto Warmbier story, Vice documentaries
- 35:00–40:00 — Cliff diving, death dives, free solo, wingsuit debate
- 50:34 — Francis justifies $200 workout “girl math”/injury
- 53:08 — Masturbation, Nadal, and “jacked” arms
- 54:41–57:00 — NFL linemen workouts, football strength humility
Final Takeaways
This episode brims with classic Son of a Boy Dad energy: rambling but sharp, self-aware, irreverent, and slyly insightful amid all the bro banter. The balance of self-deprecation and one-upmanship, odd trivia, cultural hot takes, and unexpectedly real moments (especially regarding health or “adulthood stuff”) is classic for fans—but the show is accessible even for new listeners. Highlights include the sheer silliness of the System of a Down obsession, the relatable anxiety about health and city life, and the group’s gift for finding absurdity in the everyday.
For New Listeners:
This is a quintessential episode blending running jokes with surprisingly thoughtful riffs on manhood, city vs. country, aging, and the weird things we do for— and against—ourselves.
End of Summary