Hour 1: Thank You, Tony Reali

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Episode: Hour 1: Thank You, Tony Reali
Release Date: March 5, 2025

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Introduction

In this heartfelt episode of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, hosts Dan Le Batard and Stugotz, along with their co-hosts Kristen, Mike Ryan, and guests, bid a poignant farewell to Tony Reali as he concludes his 23-year tenure on ESPN’s Around the Horn. The episode, recorded at the Elser Hotel in Downtown Miami, navigates the emotional landscape of Tony’s departure, celebrating his immense contributions to sports broadcasting and the tight-knit community they've built over the years.

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Celebrating Tony Reali’s Legacy

Kristen opens the discussion by extolling Tony Reali's remarkable career:

"[...] Tony Reali did something damn near impossible. From doing sports trivia in sports bars, on campuses. He parlayed a community at ESPN that is heartbroken today because a generation grew up on this show." [02:21]

Tony Reali is lauded for his journey from interning roles to becoming a beloved sports television personality. Kristen emphasizes his ability to create a warm, familial atmosphere on the show, contrasting it with the often competitive nature of sports argument television.

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Dan Le Batard’s Reflections

Dan Le Batard shares a personal narrative about taking over Around the Horn under unexpected circumstances:

"I got a phone call saying, 'Can you fill in tomorrow?' So that's when I took over the show the day after the Patriots beat the Panthers in the Super Bowl." [12:20]

He reflects on his growth over the 23 years, emphasizing his commitment to authenticity and fostering meaningful connections with both panelists and the audience. Dan highlights the importance of diversity and regional representation on the show, striving to move beyond the initial format to include a broader spectrum of voices:

"I wanted to be relatable and unpredictable on TV. That was the goal as I became aware and intentional of how I want to host." [06:29]

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Emotional and Professional Impact

The hosts delve into the emotional ramifications of Tony’s departure. Kristen expresses hope that the community remains strong despite the end of an era:

"There’s an outpouring around. The horn is finished after 23 years. I hope it does not feel like a sad day in some ways. But I wish to celebrate you because I can’t believe the run, Tony." [02:59]

Dan echoes these sentiments, sharing his overwhelming feelings and commitment to engaging with the audience during this transition:

"I am overwhelmed. My goal is to respond to everybody. That’s why I’m in the business." [02:04]

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The Show’s Evolution and Panelists

Discussion shifts to the evolution of Around the Horn and the integral role of its panelists. Dan praises long-standing contributors like Woody Page, Bob Bryan, Bill Plaschke, and others, acknowledging their hard work and the changes the show has undergone over the years:

"We have to talk about Woody Page and Bob Bryan and Bill Plaschke... And we introduced Mina Kimes, Monica McNutt, Pablo Tori, ours." [16:35]

Izzy Gutierrez shares personal anecdotes about growing up watching the show and the lasting impact Tony had on fans and contributors alike:

"I grew up on the show, and thank you for doing that. It just made me realize that I just grew up on the show." [27:44]

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Personal Anecdotes and Memories

The episode is rich with personal stories and memorable moments shared by the hosts and guests. Mike Ryan reflects on his admiration for Tony and his influence on his career:

"I grew up on the show and have been a huge fan. It’s one of the reasons why I wanted to work in sports was because I watched this on PTI." [31:23]

Tony Reali reminisces about his early days and the camaraderie within the show's team, highlighting special moments like creating personalized videos for interns:

"One of my favorite things. We always did. It was a way to buy and sell on every intern." [38:38]

Dan fondly recalls the transitional period when he took over the show, emphasizing the spontaneous and challenging nature of his initial days:

"I was sweating through it and I don’t know how to host a TV show. It was a dream of mine to host a show like this." [12:20]

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Legacy and Future Outlook

As the conversation draws to a close, Dan and Kristen discuss the enduring legacy of Tony Reali and the path forward for the show. Dan speaks about the importance of growth and moving forward while cherishing past achievements:

"Things end because they have to end, but they end because you have to grow elsewhere." [28:13]

Izzy underscores the universal impact Tony had, noting how fans across generations were touched by his work:

"There's a lot of people that... still watch the show religiously and are going to miss what you sort of created." [27:44]

Kristen and Jeremy add light-hearted moments, blending humor with heartfelt goodbyes, ensuring that the episode honors Tony’s contributions while maintaining the show's signature camaraderie.

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Conclusion

Hour 1: Thank You, Tony Reali serves as a fitting tribute to a beloved figure in sports broadcasting. Through heartfelt discussions, personal anecdotes, and a celebration of Tony Reali’s enduring legacy, Dan Le Batard and the team encapsulate the essence of what made Around the Horn a staple for sports fans. The episode not only honors Tony’s 23 years of dedication but also paves the way for the show’s future endeavors, promising to uphold the community and authenticity that Tony helped cultivate.

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Notable Quotes

• Kristen:

  "Tony Reali did something damn near impossible. From doing sports trivia in sports bars, on campuses." [02:21]

• Dan Le Batard:

  "I felt connection to the audience every day for the 23 years." [02:04]

• Izzy Gutierrez:

  "I grew up on the show, and thank you for doing that." [27:44]

• Mike Ryan:

  "I grew up on the show and have been a huge fan." [31:23]

• Tony Reali:

  "It was one of the most special moments I'll ever experience." [39:43]

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This episode is a testament to the profound impact Tony Reali has had on both his colleagues and the audience, ensuring his legacy will continue to inspire future generations in sports media.

Transcript

[Mike Ryan]

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[Dan Le Batard]

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[Kristen]

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[Mike Ryan]

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[Dan Le Batard]

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[Mike Ryan]

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[Dan Le Batard]

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[Kristen]

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[Dan Le Batard]

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[Mike Ryan]

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[Dan Le Batard]

This is the Dan Levator show with the Stugats podcast. What a run. What? All right. Yes.

[Kristen]

Oh, my God.

[Dan Le Batard]

Oh.

[Kristen]

One of the great stories in the history of ESPN 23 years.

[Tony Reali]

That's a good point, Dan.

[Dan Le Batard]

Thank you. You know, I don't do interviews often, though. I love talking. But when family calls, you pick up the phone. On a day like today, Dan, you've done. This has happened before. This has happened to all of you guys before. But there's a day when you open up Google and your face is on there and you're the top of the news story, Dan, you like, you like things that get you in trouble. And that happens from time to time. I'm not somebody that's courting that poor set, per se. So there was my face. Look at me.

[Kristen]

Oh, but, but I hope, I hope you are absorbing today, okay? Because there's an outpouring around. The horn is finished after 23 years. And Tony Reali did something damn near impossible. From doing sports trivia in sports bars, on campuses. He parlayed, he parlayed a community at ESPN that is heartbroken today because a gener grew up on this show. And so it might feel like a sad day in some ways. I hope it does not. But I wish to celebrate you because I can't believe the run, Tony. 23 years. 23 years climbing from basically intern to a legitimate sports television personality that could have. Could have had his choice of jobs at God Bless America or, I'm sorry, Good Morning America. No, and, and, and have arrived, you know, have arrived at 23 years doing this. It's crazy.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah. I mean, I felt every. Every minute of. Of it the last 23 years. I. I'm a present person, Dan. You know this about me, and I'm an intentional person. You know that about me as well. So I felt it throughout every show. Never felt like work. Still doesn't feel like work. The next two months won't feel like work. I enjoy doing it. I enjoy performing. I felt connection to the audience every day for the 23 years. So to see what happened yesterday in the. In the release or the comments, I mean to say. And I, I am overwhelmed. Of course, my, My goal is to respond to everybody. That's a goal of mine. I'm. I'll take the next two months and respond to. Because that's how I feel. You know, that, that's. That's why I'm in the business. Dan, I know why you got into the business. You're brilliant, and you're a drummer much like myself. You know, this is. You take these meetings. I march the beat to my own drummer, and I am my own drummer because I played the drums and I thought of Dan doing that. But the whole. The whole point is, you know, I got into the business to. To be with people, to perform. You got. Because you're an amazing writer and an intellectual, and you're going to get to the bottom of stories. I want to feel, you know, and that's what I tried to do on horn, especially after. By my first hundred episodes where I was just hanging on for de. Now, Tony, I know you are a very humble person in real life, right? But none of this can be shocking to you, right? You. You have to know that people love this show, right? Yeah, I mean, I do. Like I said, I felt every bit of that. I'm not somebody who, you know, doing a daily TV show, I mean, and watching every game or covering, you know, every bit of the research. Every day you go, it's like storming Normandy beach, you know, I mean, every day I've done four that. I mean, we're at 4, 905 right now, I think, today. And I've done whatever, 4700 of them. And then I did PTI every day, and I was doing double duty every day. I didn't come up for air, and I don't. I don't need to come up for air. I mean, my energy is just the same as it was the day I took over the show. And my love for that sort of thing, what I evolved in is How I see my role, maybe as host. I was a sports brainiac, know it all that wanted to demonstrate that and also score the debate, like judge, jury and all that to somebody who wanted to actually pull at the strings of what's behind the story. I mean, you know, and have the most real moment on tv. If I can say that, you know, in the. It's got my name written right in it. Right. Trying to be relatable and unpredictable on tv. That was the goal as I became aware and intentional of how I want to host. But no, of course, I always knew that. I mean, I have shared the deepest moments with, with our viewers both. Both myself, but they have come right back at me with that. And I'm talking about. I've been in church in Accra, Ghana, and I've had people come up with me. And we're not just talking about LeBron. We're talking about a moment, you know, where I talked about my family or talking about loss of Kobe Bryant or we're talking about a FaceTime Woody page had where he talked about suicide. I mean, that. I mean, that's what the show means to me. The fulfilling part of the show isn't just who you got debates. It's also some of the other stuff we were able to do.

[Mike Ryan]

How important was that part of the show to you? Showing reporters from around the country giving a point of view that might not be found on the other ESPN shows?

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, yeah, I mean, that was. I did take over the show a year in. Max was of course terrific at the way he wanted to host the show and I wanted to do it slightly different. You play up the regions first. Right. I mean, that was something we weren't doing on TV in 2002 at the time, you know, we were having so. So, so let's lean into the regions. But then at some point, and maybe it's not in vogue to say now I know we had a great, stable people. It was four old white guys for a little while and that wasn't the type of show I wanted. Again, you want to be diverse in regions. You want to be diverse in all the different type of people you had on the show. That was important to me. That was so that motivated me and fulfilled me through the. And then the types of stories we were going to talk about. It wasn't just going to be, you know, the Cowboys every day. Even though that would be enjoyable for me in some parts of my personality. So pushing that. Oh, there we go. I just realied it.

[Kristen]

Reality. This is not very Professional. Everything that's happening here. Can you just leave the camera someplace and be good with it or.

[Dan Le Batard]

He's holding his phone. Honestly, Dan, are you serious? I mean, let me see if I can get a tripod.

[Kristen]

No, I'm just. I'm just saying we just saw your. We saw your. Your crotch, and I'm like, I don't think that's what you wanted.

[Dan Le Batard]

Everybody's got that. You know, Dan, let's. That's what you. Everyone has a crotch. It's true. Thank you very. You have to say that's your poll quote.

[Kristen]

Put it on the poll. Does everyone have a crotch at Levitard show?

[Dan Le Batard]

Also, this is a great. Because Tony is always very high energy ever since. Since the first day I met him to now. So it shaking like this is like, that's how he is. That's what it's like to be in Tony's presence. Yeah. I mean, this is what you're getting right now. I wanted to make time for you guys because like I said, Dan, you've been there for me and throughout many different things. We've been there. We've been through a lot. And your family. And this is the first. I mean, the New York Times wrote an article about me four years ago, and I said, I don't need to talk again publicly. It was so gushing that I don't need to talk again publicly for a long time, but here I am today.

[Kristen]

Well, I thank you for that. And I. I really do want people to appreciate this as a story and as a human being, because what Reali is saying there, I will tell you, he's as fundamentally decent as anyone in this business. Everyone who comes on his show, the people, the reporters who are scared and nervous, the way that he welcomes them is the way that a family member would welcome you. It's not the way television is. He built something purposely warm. Okay. Even though that's not the reputation it might have had because it's sports argument television and they were keeping score. But he did build a community, and it's really hard to do do there. Like there. There aren't many shows there that have a community the way that we have a community where you know your fans and it's because they've lived through some stuff with you. It's not just because of the sports stuff. The part I'm confused by, though, Tony, and I don't know what happened here as a business decision. I looked at the ratings, so you were number one in so 18 to 34, key demo number one.

[Dan Le Batard]

All.

[Kristen]

All of television. All of television. 5pm you're regularly outrating. First take. Regularly outrating. NFL Live Reg. Totally outrating. Get up. Like, why was the. Why is the show not continuing?

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, I'd be stat boy. I mean, I think first takes ratings are good in the last couple of years and they may have. They may beat us on the majority of days. I mean, I don't, I don't look at ratings. I'm a guy who's like, if you build it, they will come. I feel very confident. I know that. That this wasn't that decision. I mean, so. So this is. This is. We're all hired to say goodbye to a show at some point. And I recognize what that is. This is not about that for me. This is about me knowing that. Well, me feeling the audience in the last 24 hours, that's part of it for me. And I mean, I'll say this. We did a story last week. I love Diana Taurasi. I love everything about her. When she's not dressed for game, she's wearing black leather like me. I love that about her, too. And she had this incredible line. I thought it was so great. Dan. When she retired, she said, I'm full and happy. Well, I can still eat. I'm hungry and I'm happy. And I know, I know everybody who I work with, they can still eat. Everybody can still eat. And there's a lot of food to go around. And that's, you know. But I feel hungry. And I know I'm happy. I'm gonna be happy. But I also want to, you know, this is why we talked this morning. Yeah. Okay, I'll come on and talk to you because it's important for me to show people that that next day when you get the news that ever you get, you still come up and you. And you still approach the day however you want to approach it. I was sad yesterday, and I can be full in that feeling of sadness and happiness. And I'm still sad today. And I can still be happy in other parts of me. And I could still enjoy talking about the story we're doing today. And the Dodgers, when they said Sasaki was dirty and electric and nasty and loud or whatever the quotes were, and I'm like, that's Black sabbath, baby, in 1968 when they came out. I'm going to enjoy, you know, giving a Black Sabbath reference today on the show.

[Kristen]

Can you explain to the people, though, how unlikely this story is, Tony? Because.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yes, absolutely.

[Kristen]

I don't know if my recollection will be a romantic one or not. But Max Kellerman was having a dispute over what was his show that would then become imax. And there wasn't a plan for replacing him. And so they went and got, was interning at Pardon the Interruption. Down, down the hallway. Tell me what I've got wrong here.

[Dan Le Batard]

Okay, yeah. And the sad boy again, not the sat boy again. So, I mean, how I got PTI is absurd. I was a researcher, which is a fundamental part of the show. I say for all researchers and I love researchers because, you know, we're doing, we're doing lifting. And I got hired to do stat boy on PTI or, you know, moved into that position that they just created a week before PTI launched because of, of the way I was operating with Tony and Mike and Eric and Matt and that type of energy. But the horn hosting. To be a host of an international television Show at age 25, I may have filled in at 24. I got a phone call on a Sunday night. It was the super bowl between the Patriots and the Panthers. It was the halftime of, of Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake. And I got a call saying, tomorrow we don't have a host. Max is in contract negotiation. It might not go this way, it might go that way. You know, can you fill in tomorrow? So that's really when I took over the show was the day after Patriots beating the Panthers in the super bowl and wardrobe malfunction. One of the biggest stories we did, you know, for weeks after that, that's my first show, you know, at that point, I'm young, I'm very green, I'm wearing the only suit I have and I'm sweating through it and I don't know how to host a TV show. I had done sports calling in college and I had done game calling. I love play by play, you know, for Fordham University. This was a dream of mine to host a show like this. This was a dream of mine to work in this capacity. But it came overnight and I filled in one day and I filled in the second day and I had to put on my second tie. And by, by Wednesday I was out of clothes and I host the show as best as I could on a, on a day to day contract. I think if I remember correctly, for months, I know espn, you know, maybe considered other hosts. I know they brought in a dream job contestant Zachariah Selwyn for a while. I know maybe I never understood why they weren't bringing in Stu Scott, Rich Eisen at the time, or Linda Cohen or somebody. Because I believed in the show, but. But that's how I got the job. I got a phone call the night before my first real day hosting. The day of the Super Bowl.

[Kristen]

Was there any plan? There wasn't really a plan. Right. You just had to keep your head down. As I recall, you weren't being paid. There wasn't negotiations.

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, no, I'm sure I was being paid. I was definitely being paid a day rate and I think I was sure as happy and I knew I wanted to stay on pti, but Eric's right home, said the best advice I heard at that moment was was keep your head down and just focus on horn. So I think I took, took a couple weeks off PTI and I just did horn for a while and I learned how to kind of host the show in the way the show was written and constructed at that moment. But my next year or two, while I was, you know, working to try to get a long term contract and it took probably a year, I would say respectfully for everybody, I was, I was slowly trying to evolve what the role of the host was because I didn't want to host a show that I was judged during Executioner in the maybe the way it was initially. You know, I think the host was supposed to have the final opinion and I didn't want to really do that. So I wanted to kind of put the panelists in position to prove why their opinions are right and, and then have some fun with the, with the play of the show. And then of course, we, we, we, we evolved in any number of ways over 22 years with both our crew of people. And I mean, I know you're talking to me right now, but we have to talk about, you know, Woody Page and Bob Bryan and Bill Plaschke and Kevin Blackenstone and Tim Calischer who did so heavy lifting Jay Adande all those years and do all the heavy lifting every day. And of course what we become, which I'm most proud of, you know, I'm most proud of the heart this show had, but that we introduced to the entire community in some ways. Mina Kimes, who, who I met many times saying there's a place for you on TV and, and we got to a place where she was comfortable. We did mina and Monica McNutt and Pablo Tori was ours.

[Jeremy]

Pa. At what point does Mina get to claim her?

[Dan Le Batard]

I mean, I had real moments where I was tracking video of Bomani doing radio out of. Maybe it was Toronto the score while he was doing that of North Carolina or Sarah Spain. I mean, I. She's ours too. The first time I saw Sarah, I mean, it was her third show and I was thinking, I need to get her on a big ticket debate show we were doing on live because she was such a force of nature and it goes on and on.

[Jeremy]

I keep Sarah, by the way.

[Dan Le Batard]

You can tell me. You can tell me anything you want. I know we had. And our panelists have been incredibly gracious. I'm talking about specifically Woody and Bob and Bill and Jackie and Tim and Bill. As we expanded, that meant one fewer show a week, two fewer shows a week for those incredible hall of Famers. So not only is that 25, now 30, now 35 year old kid muting them on, on international TV, but also a new generation is coming in and taking a show away from them, two shows away from them. And the show evolved to a place where it became not the same people every day. You know, Tony, you named a bunch of amazing journalists. Amazing people. Amazing. And it'd be unfair for me to ask you who was the best panelist, so I'm gonna do the opposite and ask you who was the worst panelist and why was this forgotten? You know, I, I would certainly not answer that question in any way.

[Kristen]

Look at him.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yes, of course I will give Stu God's credit that he walked into a show that wanted to score him minus 500 and I couldn't. He just made me laugh so much that he had to get some ding, ding, dings. But I will also say only one person has played a mononucleosis spleen on Halloween, and that was Stug when he was, when he went. When he was Sam Darnold Spleen, I believe, or Zach, who had the injured spleen for the, for the New York quarterback. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, sure thing.

[Mike Ryan]

Hey, you sold that car yet?

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, sold it to Carvana.

[Mike Ryan]

Oh, I thought you were selling to that guy.

[Dan Le Batard]

The guy who wanted to pay me in foreign currency, no interest over 36 months. Yeah, no. Carvana gave me an offer in minutes, picked it up and paid me on the spot. It was so convenient. Just like that. Yeah.

[Mike Ryan]

No hassle.

[Dan Le Batard]

None. That is super convenient.

[Mike Ryan]

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[Kristen]

Don LeBatard there's sunglasses in boxes today. Ending our lives all the same stugats.

[Dan Le Batard]

It'S the final night gown. This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stugach.

[Kristen]

Can you tell people? Because I don't know how you're going to be comfortable discussing this part given that you like you know, you're a decent person and you're really happy with the success you have. So I haven't seen vanity. I've seen from you ego, not stuff that would be ugly. But you're responsible with a handful of people for not only changing ESPN but changing Sports television discourse really in the center of that. So how do you. How do you regard your legacy there?

[Dan Le Batard]

Oh, Dan. I mean, we're going to have to. What are we doing? I'll. Well, I'll come down for. For a week and hang out with you guys, and we'll. We'll. We'll do. We'll do.

[Kristen]

Yes, please.

[Dan Le Batard]

We'll do a full session. How do I. I mean, what are you.

[Kristen]

Well, but, Tony, you should be proud of yourself.

[Dan Le Batard]

You.

[Kristen]

Today. You should be. Today you should be proud of yourself. You at ESPN were somebody who changed the way we were doing things.

[Dan Le Batard]

I. Yes, I feel that, too. I absolutely feel that. And I know our viewers feel that, too. And I could talk about that. I can tell you how I processed it yesterday. I think I was listening to on the Wings of Love radio when I walked out of the meeting. I went to because I wanted to listen to some of that. Or maybe I heard the Sabrina Carpenter song. You know, Hardik is one thing. My ego is another. I mean, I. I'm going through. Like I told you, you know, I'm gonna come on with you today because you're family, and I'm gonna open up to you. However, I mean, when I come. Let's do this. I'll come for a week. I want Jeremy to get out some. Some. Some keys or some drums. I want. I want Cody's voice ready. We'll make some music. All right. I want to do that. You got me on that. You got it. All right. You know, of course. I mean, me and Pablo, we gotta chop it up, too.

[Kristen]

Well, we have somebody here who wants to talk to you, and Jeremy does as well. We'll get to Jeremy in a second. But let's go to the set of around the Horn right now, where Izzy Gutierrez joins us now with whatever Izzy's thoughts are on around the Horn actually being announced.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, I was waiting over.

[Kristen]

After 23 years. Good job video.

[Izzy Gutierrez]

It's almost as if, you know, you didn't know you had somebody who was on the show over the course of.

[Dan Le Batard]

Wow.

[Izzy Gutierrez]

What just happened over the course of 16 years. But no, I'm not talking to Tony. I can talk to Tony whenever I want to. Tony asked me for permission to come on the show today. Okay, I'm talking to Amin here because Amin asked who the worst panelists of all time were. I'm gonna go back and tell you who the best panelists of all time was. Only one panelist took a Halloween Obama impression and decided to use it throughout the show, setting the Tone for episodes forever, only one panelist spent. Where am I? Spent seven hours doing fake tattoos on my body, becoming Conor McGregor and doing an Irish accent that I'd only practiced on the drive over there.

[Tony Reali]

Okay.

[Izzy Gutierrez]

All of this was accomplished because I did it, and I was on that show. And outside of the old heads, outside of the cowlishaws, the plaschkes, the Woody pages wins leader, this guy over here more than Pablo Torres.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, it's all true. And I was waiting for Israel to pop in because I didn't mention his name specifically.

[Kristen]

Imani Jones would like a word on who's the best panelist in the history of the show.

[Dan Le Batard]

Where was he? Israel, you asked me, you know, who my favorite panelist is. And I do this bit where, you know, I say it's whoever I'm talking to at the moment or what was my favorite mute? The next mute. This was my favorite mute. You know, Israel's very important to me. You know, I believe you said that.

[Kristen]

It's Jackie McMullen. I believe.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, I said that last week because I was with her. Yeah. You know, me and Israel grew up. See, now I'm getting emotional, and I'm 100% happy with this. And again, I wanted to show people, you know, we're riding waves here. We're all every day in TV and the jobs you have at home that aren't in this industry. And just in life, you're riding waves, you're surfing, you're going to get knocked over by waves, and you get up, of course, and I'm going to be on TV today, and I'll be smiling, and you'll know how I feel happy. And I also feel sad. But, I mean, I think of Israel as somebody. We opened each other up in a lot of ways as the humans that we became and the adults and the men that we became because we were on TV at very young ages, you know, and, you know, Israel, you sent me an email once 10 years ago, and it changed your life, but it changed my life, too. And you need to know that, you know, and it changed how I thought about how I wanted to be publicly out in the world, you know, because there was yet another reminder how what we do. I don't need reminders, but I got one there. We have a chance to be public in showing people how to treat other people, how to feel, how to emote. Who watches ESPN around the horn? What's our slogan? To meet people anywhere but who watch young people watch. What? What is a safe space for young people? To emote sports. You're not. Maybe some young men or young women didn't feel like they're allowed to show emotion in their younger lives. Oh, don't cry. Don't scream. I cried about the Yankees until I was 20, probably, if I was being honest. You know, it's a safe space to show emotion. And then now you could apply that safe space that sports gives you. Well, let's, let's, let's extend it. Now you can show emotion and you show your full self in more, more real ways. And that became, you know, something that I wanted to do.

[Izzy Gutierrez]

I'll just say this real quick, Tony. I was just in Colorado recently and somebody said, hey, you recognize me? And said, hey, I grew up on that. I grew up on that show, and thank you for doing that. And it just made me realize that I just, I grew up on the show. I grew up because of you and because of everybody.

[Dan Le Batard]

Know that.

[Izzy Gutierrez]

And we're, you know, we're gonna miss out on that. There's a lot of people that, you know, even at our age who still watch the show religiously and are going to miss what you sort of created and sort of bonding everybody together there. So we're definitely.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, but the word grow, the grow works another way too, Israel. Right? I mean, things end because they have to end, but they end because you have to grow elsewhere. Right? I mean, you have, you have to. In order to grow. You have to move from that space. You know, I believe that. I mean, that that's, you know, I, I will tell you this. I've told you this, Israel. Dan. I've told everybody, you know, I love doing the show. It didn't feel like work. I could have said goodbye, but I, you know, years ago, they could have said goodbye to the show whenever they wanted. You know, I understood that. I kept on doing it because I value, you know, what I was doing. And I could have, I was discerning, you know, I could have added the podcast and, or the game show that I dreamt about, or the Anthony Bourdain style show for sports that I dream about, or American Ninja Warrior or the Red Zone, or all these amazing shows that I watch when I'm not watching PTI or, you guys, you know, the shows that I watch with my kids. I want to do those things. But I also committed to doing this show and I was happy. I don't have any regrets about that. I didn't add the second or third or fourth show on. I liked hosting the show, but I liked writing the show. And I like putting together the show with Aaron Solomon and Josh Bard and Caroline Willett and Jeff Weiner and Tierney Corgan. That's it. I just named the entire editorial team of around the Horn, a show that does an episode every day for 23 years. It's five people.

[Izzy Gutierrez]

You know, if we un. Cancel the show, can we get you a tripod for that phone, please?

[Dan Le Batard]

Guys, you're gonna get me for a full week in Miami. You guys can be Scorsese. We can cinematically shoot it any way you want. I. I just dropped off three kids at school. I only did two. Sorry, my wife dropped off, you know, but I also dropped off Antonella. I just walked through the streets here. It's 46 degrees and you got me here. I gotta ride around the horn. I gotta go to. I mean, this is my busy season. Today's Ash Wednesday, right? So now you just got me on camera without an ass.

[Kristen]

Oh, no.

[Dan Le Batard]

Wednesday.

[Kristen]

That's a first. That's a first.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's a first. First. You know, I've talked about that publicly, too, but that's, you know, something I always wanted to be. Exactly. You know, I'm trying to give a one to one ratio. I don't advise that for everybody in the industry, there's certainly a place for, for people to, To. To. To dress up any way they like or perform any way they want. You know, I like. I'm a goofball. I'll dress up with anybody. But in the role of that show, you know, if Woody Page is being amazing at being the crazy uncle, I, I want to. Want it to be like authentic. You know, that's a bad word because everybody uses that. But I want to be one to one me. And, and. And maybe, you know, I'll be a person who dresses up when I'm in Miami next month, in two months from now.

[Jeremy]

This segment is presented by LinkedIn Jobs. Post your job for [e-mail] conditions apply.

[Dan Le Batard]

Can I do that? I mean, yeah, that sounds like a great opportunity right now.

[Mike Ryan]

Earnestly, I want to say I grew up on the show and have been a huge fan. It's one of the reasons why I wanted to work in sports was because I watched this in pt.

[Dan Le Batard]

I remember this.

[Mike Ryan]

And that was when I was like four or five years ago. I think it was maybe right after I started working here. And I remember thinking like, oh, my God, that was the coolest thing ever. That Tony Reali knew who I was just walking down the street in the seaport. But. But earnestly like, thank you. It's been incredible to watch and I, I'm really grateful that the show existed when I was growing up, becoming a, you know, a sports fan and then working in sports media. But on a less earnest note, Stugatz's spleen costume, one of the laziest costumes that I've ever seen. We have a picture of it here. He's just wearing like a red sheet over his head.

[Dan Le Batard]

There it is.

[Kristen]

What is that? Yeah, well, he's an emergency substance.

[Dan Le Batard]

Oh, look at this, though. I mean, come on, Sarah Spain. Come on. Look at that. Look at Clinton and Tim. That, that, you take that screen grab and that works and then Logan, Roy. Oh, yeah, the number one. So who knows what his spleen looks like, but that, that he would. And I think his first words that show were, let me spleen something to you, Tony. You know, I mean, that's, that's.

[Kristen]

Tony.

[Jeremy]

I want to thank Tony, too, for this move. At the end of every show when.

[Dan Le Batard]

He throws the, the, the paper at the. Oh, that's a good one, Chris.

[Kristen]

The best.

[Jeremy]

I do it every camera. Anytime I'm around a camera, I throw a paper at it.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, yeah. I'm proud of my 4% success rate, my hit rate. 4%. I, I hit one behind the back. It's somewhere a gif on Twitter, so I'm proud of that too. Yo, chicken th.

[Mike Ryan]

I've never seen you do that.

[Dan Le Batard]

Wasting papers. 23 and a half hours.

[Jeremy]

What about the trees?

[Dan Le Batard]

Yes. Yeah. So, yeah, I, I think it won't be an infinity and a half hour break for me, but I hope, but this is, Let me come down and see you guys.

[Kristen]

We're going to do this. We are going to do this. We've been told. I, I, he's going to come down for a week. We're going to enjoy the holy hell out of celebrating a majestic career. When we're talking about Ash Wednesday, how many consecutive Ash Wednesdays have you.

[Dan Le Batard]

I mean, that would be all of them.

[Kristen]

Them since you started, since you started your first year.

[Dan Le Batard]

I mean, I wore an ash on PTI when I was that boy. I'm sure of it. So, I mean, I've always, of course, been that person. You know, I go to church on Sundays. Why do you give that?

[Mike Ryan]

I mean, you got to start now.

[Dan Le Batard]

I mean, I'm a spiritual person and, and I believe and I believe so that that's part of that.

[Kristen]

He's giving up around the horn for Lent. He's giving.

[Dan Le Batard]

I think someone else has given up, but yeah, I Would say, yeah, that's pat. No, I mean, I think, you know, we'll. We'll. We'll. We'll get to that. That week in Miami. And, and let's, let's, let's. Yeah, let's do something really fun.

[Jeremy]

Sorry about that, Tony.

[Izzy Gutierrez]

We muted.

[Dan Le Batard]

Dan.

[Jeremy]

Tony, let me ask you something. So I was walking in today, and I'm a Catholic, so Ash Wednesday is a thing for me. And there seem to be people doing Drive By Ashes, like on the corner. I was wondering, like, can I. Can I do Drive By Ashes? Because I'm trying to figure out, like, there's like a Mass at 7, but my daughter's going to bed at that time.

[Dan Le Batard]

I support it.

[Jeremy]

Should I. Should I, like, indulge and drive By Ashes or am I cheating? Because I'm not really doing the whole thing. Like, how does this work in yearbooks? I don't know why I'm asking you. Like, you're like a bishop or something. Cardinal Reali. What should I do?

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, I'm not Cardinal pizza bowler. Who is? We've learned about. Have you. Have you guys done this bit? I'm sorry if I missed it. Pierre Batista Pizza Bowl.

[Mike Ryan]

No, but we need to talk about. He's. He's apparently in the running to be the next Pope.

[Dan Le Batard]

Unbelievable. All time greatest name. Pierre Batista Pizzabola. You know, I get. I get in trouble. I get in trouble with a couple of my communities. You know, the Italian community wasn't happy with me when I spoke some things about Columbus. And my own church isn't happy sometimes when I've talked about how I. So if you're getting an ash, you're doing it right. If it's a drive by and you have what I will broadly call the primacy of conscience. If I can speak in a catechismic way for a second.

[Jeremy]

Yeah, I get to save time too. It saves me.

[Dan Le Batard]

I believe in the primacy of conscience. If you believe in your heart that this is the way that you and. And you will continue to pay it forward in the spiritual way. That's the way. Yeah. It saves time too. Yeah. Timing. Yeah.

[Kristen]

I don't think. I gotta be honest, I don't. I don't think any of that is on the up and up. I don't think you can.

[Jeremy]

Oh, there's a church here. They were just standing on the corner doing ashes for anyone that wanted.

[Kristen]

All right, put it on.

[Jeremy]

But then I'm wondering, like, do I need to make a donation? And then, like, do I Venmo. A church. Like, how does that work?

[Kristen]

You know, put it, put it on the poll at Lebatard show. Does God allow his sacraments on street corners at Lebatard show? I just think that you're. You're doing it very hastily. If you're not properly honoring God by, By treating it as a drive through Ash Wednesday situation.

[Dan Le Batard]

I believe in any prayer, as hasty as it could be, still counts as a prayer. You know, the boom, boom, boom, sign of the cross pump. I mean, you know, if you're doing it and it's. And it takes a second, that's fine. That's a good second.

[Tony Reali]

You spent one more time with you, Tony. Can we just be honest just one last time here? Just like Jessica, like, I grew up watching the show. The first time I ever thought about, hey, sports tv, seems like it would be something fun is when I was like 10 years old and my mom turned to me and said, who's that guy? You should try to do that.

[Dan Le Batard]

That.

[Tony Reali]

And it was you watching around the horn. And I watched religiously all the time. Our power radio.

[Dan Le Batard]

There we go.

[Tony Reali]

That was amazing.

[Dan Le Batard]

So you're worried about my camera angle and now you guys can't keep the lights on.

[Tony Reali]

We are being assaulted by light. Literally. Looks like the heavens are projecting on us right now.

[Dan Le Batard]

But, well, that's. That was to show you that, you know, one sign of the cross that was walk away was enough.

[Jeremy]

Or God was like, don't do the drive by ash.

[Kristen]

Yeah, clearly I believe I blasphemed, and that is my comeuppance for threatening God with my blasphemy.

[Tony Reali]

That was terrifying. But. But all that said, Tony, like, even God was like, enough, Jeremy. All right, fair enough. I was just going to say, you know what? I'm going to power through nonetheless. Tony, you were an inspiration to so many different people, including myself. And I was lucky enough to intern with your show and learn so much from the way that you treated people on the staff. It created an environment that, that I wanted to continue to be a part of. It's why I aspired to be a part of a show like this, because I knew that Dan had. Had learned so much from the offices that, that you were a part of in D.C. and learning from all of the folks who you mentioned before and Josh and Jeff and. And interning with Caroline. These are amazing people who do amazing work. Thank you so much for being an inspiration for me. And I know.

[Dan Le Batard]

So thank you for saying that. Of course. That's on you. You did it all. I remember when Your intern application came in. I remember that moment. Did we make a video? Congratulations. You did.

[Tony Reali]

You made a video.

[Dan Le Batard]

One of my favorite things. We always did.

[Tony Reali]

It was the best thing in the world, you guys. It was a buy and sell on every intern. And they would.

[Dan Le Batard]

Do buyers tell you what I need to go to confession for? Okay. Is that the only thing?

[Kristen]

How did this become about Jeremy?

[Tony Reali]

32 minutes to do this?

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, it. So I gotta say, what I get in trouble with at ESPN was giving tours to people on the street who would just recognize me, and I'd say, come up and see the show. And this is where I get in trouble, because we didn't go through security, and I recognize what that is. But. And making videos, you know, I would say, yes. I would make videos for bar mitzvahs and brisses, which, you know, bar mitzvah video is great because you get to sign off with saying, I hope this one goes better than Brisbane. You know, I love that bit. And hockey teams winning, and I want to just give all that to people, you know? But when an intern joins us and we get to send them a video and an email telling them they got the job, that's my favorite thing. I love that one.

[Tony Reali]

It's one of the most special moments I'll ever experience.

[Dan Le Batard]

You still have the video? I do.

[Tony Reali]

I still have it. I can find it somewhere.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, if you can find it. I mean, I'm sure it's not, you know, going into the broadcasting hall of fame.

[Kristen]

I don't think Jeremy has the video.

[Dan Le Batard]

I don't think he, at the very least, have an evidence. I remember what you're talking about. It was 2016. It's not that long. And we thought Adrien Brody was going.

[Kristen]

I'm really, really young. You're not allowed to talk. As one of the chickens, I wasn't sure if I could do it or not.

[Dan Le Batard]

You're not allowed to.

[Kristen]

What are you doing? Tony, good seeing you. And really, honestly, one of the great stories in the history of espn, one of the longest runs in show history and better as a human being than he was as a TV host, and he's been one of the best in the history of espn. Tony, thank you so much, buddy. We'll see you in a few weeks.

[Dan Le Batard]

See you in a little bit. Thank you, guys. I love you all. All right, bye now.

[Mike Ryan]

Thank you, Tony.

[Dan Le Batard]

All right. Thank you, Tony.

[Kristen]

Really sort of petered out there. Coca Cola.

[Stugatz]

Howdy, folks. It's Mike Ryan. I talk to you about Miller Time all the time, but we're in the wintertime right now and one of my favorite pastimes is to crack open a Miller Light and enjoy myself some Miller Time during the wintertime because when there's a brisk chill in the air, it just makes everything right. My friends and I who live down here in South Florida can actually sit outside because it's not super muggy. We can thoroughly enjoy our Miller Time together. And for you listening, I know there's a lot of things going on right now. Sports cheap among them. Nothing more important than sports. From basketball and hockey to game night. Winter means more moments with the coolest people in your life. Make these moments even better with Miller Lite, the great tasting light beer for people who love beer. Now's the perfect time for friends, family and a great tasting light beer tastes like Miller Time. And you know Miller Lite is brewed for taste. It hits different than other light beers and at just 96 calories and 3.2 grams of carbs per 12 ounces, miller time is always a good time. Miller Lite Great Taste 96 calories Go to millerlight.com Dan Find delivery options options near you or you can pick up some Miller Lite pretty much anywhere they sell Beer tastes like Miller Time. Celebrate responsibly. Miller Brewing Co. Milwaukee, Wisconsin 96 calories and 3.2 carbs per 12 ounces. If you're a small business owner, you know how difficult it can be hiring the right people. And it can be a real grind. It takes the right partner to make sure you're getting the most qualified candidates. Well, got the right partner for you. LinkedIn Jobs when you clock out, LinkedIn clocks in. LinkedIn makes it easy to post your job for free. Share it with your network and get qualified candidates that you can manage all in one place. Metalark Media continues to grow as a content studio and we strive to hire only the best and most qualified candidates. Thankfully, with LinkedIn, they've made it easy for us to find them. So if you're a small business owner looking for the perfect hire, LinkedIn has you covered. With LinkedIn's new job posting feature, you can write job descriptions effortlessly and get your job done front of the right people using deep candidate insights. Quality matters based on LinkedIn data, 72% of small businesses using LinkedIn say it helps them find top talent. Join over 2.5 million small businesses using LinkedIn for hiring today. Find your next great hire only on LinkedIn. Post your job for [e-mail] dls that's LinkedIn.com dls to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply.