The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Episode: Local Hour: A Life Before Cell Phones (feat. Mr. Fat Mouth)
Date: January 21, 2026

Overview

Broadcast from the Elser Hotel in Downtown Miami, this episode of the “Local Hour” blends heated college football talk, Miami sports heartbreak, and a humorous, nostalgic look at life before smartphones. Dan, Stugotz, and the crew dive into the ongoing fallout from Miami Hurricanes’ recent losses, the legal quagmire around college athlete transfers and NIL contracts, and the highly publicized spat between Mike Ryan and Miami legend Uncle Luke. The conversation is laced with classic banter, generational comparisons, and spirited takes on what it means to be a fan, a journalist, and a member of sports media in 2026.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. South Florida Sports Hangover & The FSU Defeat

• The crew reflects on the city’s somber mood after the Hurricanes’ basketball loss to FSU and challenging week in Miami sports.
  • Dan Le Batard: “There's a feeling of, like, sickness of hangover all over the city.” (00:15)
• Mike Ryan’s emotional state sets the tone:
  • Dan Le Batard: “He goes, terrible. I want to die. Like, I don't know what I'm supposed to say to that.” (00:23)
• Fandom and emotional investment are explored, with Lucy sharing how journalism dulled her sports rooting:
  • Lucy: “I have had the fandom beaten out of me by journalism, by neutrality, impartiality.” (02:18)

2. Darian Mensah Transfer Controversy & NIL Contracts

• The ongoing legal uncertainty over star QB Darian Mensah’s potential transfer from Duke to Miami prompts deeper analysis of the NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) era.
  • Stugotz: “Duke is suing to keep Mensah from coming here... because they've stability at that position and Darian Mensah is very good. But Manny Diaz and Duke are now preventing him from coming to Miami because he's got a contract.” (02:47)
• The complexities of NIL contracts and their implications are unpacked:
  • Zas: “The way that they write a lot of these contracts is you can't write a contract that says you are going to play X amount of games for the Duke Blue Devils next year...” (05:23)
  • Greg Cote: “Now there are employee agreements for non employees and contracts that people have to adhere to.” (04:41)
• The crew anticipates eventual stabilization:
  • Stugotz: “That's where we are along the path on all this NCAA stuff... where we're making up the rules, we're trying to figure out what the contracts look like.” (07:44)

3. Nostalgia & Absurdities of Pre-Cell Phone Life

• Generational humor erupts as younger crew members grapple with the concept of a world before cell phones:
  • Zas: “So, like, when you didn't have cell phones, how would you talk to each other? Did you, like, write a letter?” (08:51)
  • Dave Den Herder: “I would just assume they were dead.” (09:17)
• The conversation covers physical maps, gas station directions, rotary phones, and radio requests, hilariously exposing tech-age gaps.
  • Zas: “Did you guys have to use, like, maps to get there? Like, physical ones?” (09:32)
  • Lucy: “With what, with a wall phone, a landline. It was a rotary.” (13:59)

4. The Mike Ryan vs. Uncle Luke Beef (“Mr. Fat Mouth”)

• The highly publicized and playful feud between show member Mike Ryan and Miami hip-hop icon Uncle Luke is relived in detail.
  • Dan Le Batard: “Why doesn’t Uncle Luke go watch or listen to the Dan LeBatard show and see what fat mouth Mike Ryan…” (18:42)
  • Uncle Luke’s tweets escalate from mockery to direct threats:
    • “Mike Ryan you a piece of shit. You know nothing about football.” (20:01, paraphrasing)
  • Mike Ryan describes their real-life interactions, sensing joking until lines were crossed:
    • Mike Ryan: “...talking about how he's going to beat my ass in public when I was just laughing with you….” (21:56)
• Dan and Stugotz contextualize Uncle Luke’s long history of trolling, impactful civic presence, and the tradition of Miami sports “keeping receipts.”
  • Dan Le Batard: “He's a professional troll who once invited me to a party... my mother was legitimately afraid that he was going to throw me into the ocean to die.” (23:25)
• The suggestion of a charity boxing match between Mike Ryan and Uncle Luke serves as comic relief.
  • Lucy: “I'd like to propose a boxing match for charity between Uncle Luke and Mike.” (23:01)

5. Coping as Miami Sports Fans & Special Teams Blame

• The group examines popularity and significance of the “what if” Twitter moment regarding a Miami punt return trick play that never happened.
  • Stugotz: “I want to ask you guys something here about the coping involved that the Miami Hurricane fans have been doing the last couple of days.” (31:32)
  • The play is discussed as both missed opportunity and evidence Indiana simply “did the small things better.”
    • Dan Le Batard: “I thought we all understood that game was decided by Indiana special teams.” (32:02)
    • Greg Cote: “The punter from the punter booming that punt to Miami, not being able to maintain their blocks, which was a running thread throughout special teams... that's the difference.” (33:07)

6. Dolphins Coaching Carousel & Mike McDaniel’s Legacy

• Analysis pivots to NFL, specifically the fate of former Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel, his rumored interest from other franchises, and the unresolved debate over Tua vs. Justin Herbert.
  • Dan Le Batard: “It’s funny to see what’s happening in Miami where he’s in demand, at least in part because everybody understands… Oh had the number one passing offense in the league…” (35:55)
  • Greg Cote: “McDaniel with Herbert is going to make you realize how bad Tua is.” (37:11)
  • Lucy: “The thing about Mike McDaniel is when he was winning... everybody loved his quirky personality. Then TUA got worse. Then the losing started... He didn't change. The losing changed our perception of him. He's the same coach as he always was.” (41:56 - 42:13)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Dan Le Batard: “He goes, terrible. I want to die. Like, I don't know what I'm supposed to say to that.” (00:23)
• Lucy: “I have had the fandom beaten out of me by journalism, by neutrality, impartiality.” (02:18)
• Stugotz: “Imagine trying to meet someone at a stadium when you don't have cell phones. If your friends are late, I would just assume they were dead.” (08:55 & 09:17)
• Zas: “Did you guys have to use, like, maps to get there? Like, physical ones?...That's dangerous.” (09:32-09:48)
• Greg Cote (Coping with cashless parking): “I'm like, you're taking this cash. This is how I'm paying for this. This has value anywhere I go in the world, and it's going to have value here.” (11:25)
• Dan Le Batard (on Uncle Luke): “He's a professional troll who once invited me to a party that I was going to go on a boat with him... my mother was legitimately afraid that he was going to throw me into the ocean to die.” (23:28)
• Lucy: “I'd like to propose a boxing match for charity between Uncle Luke and Mike.” (23:01)
• Greg Cote (on special teams): “That’s the difference. Like, they execute those two things. Honestly, credit to Malachi Tony for not forcing it because he did have Bryce Fitzgerald, I believe, on the other side.” (33:07)
• Dan Le Batard: “Has a chance to be especially painful for Dolphin fans, because you know, Dolphins took Tua instead of Justin Herbert, and now you got the coach who rightfully has been run out of town linking up potentially with Herbert with an opportunity to improve him even more.” (36:37)
• Lucy: “The losing changed our perception of him. He's the same coach as he always was.” (42:13)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00 - 03:59: Miami sports hangover and emotional impact post-Hurricanes loss
• 04:00 - 07:14: NIL contracts, legal gray areas, and Mensah’s transfer tangle
• 07:15 - 14:14: Generational riffing on life before cell phones – meeting up, giving directions, requesting songs
• 17:33 - 28:32: Full breakdown of the Mike Ryan vs. Uncle Luke saga – tweets, beef origins, and on-air reactions
• 31:32 - 34:33: Hurricanes coping with missed special teams opportunities and fair critique of Mario Cristobal
• 35:55 - 43:58: Miami Dolphins coaching carousel, McDaniel’s reputation, and perennial Tua vs. Herbert debate

Tone and Style

• Conversational, irreverent, and nostalgic with classic Le Batard Show energy
• Regularly blends earnest sports breakdowns with playful, even absurd tangents
• Open self-deprecation and constant reminders of the show's South Florida and generational roots

This episode is a must-listen for fans fascinated by the intersection of college sports chaos, South Florida nostalgia, and legendary Miami figures—plus, it offers priceless moments vouched for by the show’s unique chemistry and humor.