Podcast Summary: The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz

Episode: Local Hour: Mike Ryan's Dark Money (feat. Pablo Torre)
Date: December 8, 2025
Guests: Pablo Torre, Roy, Zaslow, Mike Ryan, Chris Cody

Episode Overview

Broadcasting from the Elser Hotel in Downtown Miami, Dan Le Batard, Stugotz, and the crew dive deep into one of the wildest weekends in Miami and national sports. This "Local Hour" focuses on Miami’s sports dominance (with Inter Miami and the Hurricanes), the wild finish to the college football season, and an inside look at campaign tactics (dubbed “dark money”) used by passionate fans—namely, Mike Ryan—to influence the College Football Playoff (CFP) selection. National reaction, playoff processes, and the fallout for programs like Notre Dame are all on the table, delivered with the show’s trademark blend of humor, cynicism, and Miami-centric pride.

Key Topics and Discussion Points

1. An Epic Miami Sports Weekend

• Miami Teams on Fire:
  • Panthers win an incredible 7-6 game.
  • Inter Miami takes home the MLS Cup in Lionel Messi’s 43rd title.
  • The Hurricanes punch a ticket to the College Football Playoffs.
  • Cyclones reach the championship finals.
• Quote:
  • "What a weekend. Panthers. They got it going again... Inter Miami. They win... Keynes. They're in the college football playoffs." – Roy (02:35)

2. Inter Miami’s Place in History – The Messi Effect

• Debate: Where does this Inter Miami title fit in Miami sports lore and Messi's legendary resume?
• Perspective:
  • Mike Ryan frames it against the Dolphins, Heat, Marlins, and UM.
  • Nationally, MLS isn’t given much weight, but locally it's monumental.
• Messi's Place:
  • "He has 43 titles. I think we've slotted it just behind a gold medal, an Olympic gold medal, just ahead of the league's cup... We have ranked it 31st on Messi's career achievements.” – Pablo Torre (05:41)
• Ownership Triumph:
  • Jorge Mas and David Beckham’s persistence in landing Messi and building a new Miami sports legacy.
• Comp:
  • “Should Miami feel about this championship the way that say a city in Taiwan would feel if LeBron James at 36 or 37 went over there and played?” – Dan Le Batard (38:37)

3. The College Football Playoff Controversy & "Dark Money" Influence

• The Situation:
  • Miami fans, led by Mike Ryan, actively funded billboards and a plane flyover ("H2H matters. Miami IN") to sway the CFP committee.
  • This grassroots campaign is compared to political dark money Super-PACs.
• Quote:
  • "Mike Ryan is an actual bona fide power broker, is actively changing the conversation. He is throwing dark money... I don't know who's funding Mike Ryan." – Pablo Torre (06:40)
• Impact:
  • General consensus that the intense lobbying did influence committee perceptions and media narratives.
  • “I do believe that Miami argued its way into this over the last month...” – Mike Ryan (09:54)
• System Flaws Exposed:
  • The backroom nature of selections; panel is called “12 old, rich white guys... There's one woman.” – Pablo Torre (07:35)

4. Notre Dame's Reaction and Future Fallout

• Notre Dame Left Out:
  • Committee choices leave Notre Dame reeling, with palpable disbelief.
  • “Notre Dame should feel wrong because they are better than Alabama. They are better than Oklahoma…” – Mike Ryan (08:35)
  • Notre Dame pulls out of their bowl game to make a statement, forfeiting ~$4 million.
• Contractual Irony:
  • Next year, Notre Dame is guaranteed a playoff slot if in the top 12, a result of new contractual protections.
  • “If this happens to them next year again, they're automatically in. In writing, no matter what it is that they're doing with the system...” (09:54)
• Debate on System Change:
  • Pablo wonders if real reform will happen or if the drama just repeats every year.
  • “Are people gonna actually agitate for revolt?... Or is 12 [playoff teams] just not enough?” – Pablo Torre (25:39)

5. Miami’s Tactics: Fan Activism and Local Cynicism

• The Plane and Billboard Campaign:
  • H2H (Head-to-Head) was the key slogan.
  • “It sounded a bit, you know, it's from Miami... generally resorts to thuggery. It was threatening.” – Mike Ryan (18:30)
  • “It was only slightly less threatening than ‘we know where you live.’” – Mike (18:46)

6. Detailed Breakdowns: College Football Grievances

• Alabama’s Non-Slide:
  • Outrage that Alabama didn't slide after a blowout loss in conference title game.
  • "Alabama is the first team in the CFP era to not slide whatsoever in the rankings after losing their conference championship game and they got blown out. They had negative three rushing yards." – Pablo Torre (08:36)
• Debate Over Merit:
  • Arguments about who truly deserved the spot: Miami, Notre Dame, Alabama, or Oklahoma.
• Systemic Petulance:
  • Notre Dame’s non-participation viewed as both a financial statement and possibly a byproduct of coaching instability (Marcus Freeman’s rumored NFL interest).

7. Meta Commentary & Show Humor

• The crew frequently jokes about their on-air activism blurring with actual influence, Miami’s ‘thug’ reputation, and even how the debate resembles “March Madness” snubs.
• Pablo riffs on Miami’s campaign:
  • “What Mike Ryan did in this billboard and that plane is basically say, I am going... to spend money haunting you if you don't do what we want.” (09:27)
• Ongoing gags about the number of Texas A&Ms, Magic Cities, and “Taipei Kings” basketball.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Mike Ryan, on the 'dark money' campaign:
  • "For the editorial judgment on where it is, we should start the local hour today, given your homer biases, given the fact that you helped fly a plane in Texas over where the committee was to remind them that head to head mattered..." (06:06)
• Pablo Torre, on the selection committee:
  • "It's ridiculous that this stuff is decided in a literal back room with 12 old, rich white guys. And there's Condi. No, not Condi anymore... There is one woman. Yeah, there is a woman.” (07:35)
• Roy, succinct on Notre Dame:
  • "The only thing Notre Dame can gripe about is that they were duped. That's it." (19:47)
• Pablo, on the fundamental issue:
  • “The committee just never actually consistently defines [the rules], which is why on the back end you can have endless and understandable feeling of dupedness. Everybody feels on some level like they got scammed.” (24:36)
• Dan, comparing Inter Miami's feat:
  • “Should Miami feel about this championship the way that say a city in Taiwan would feel if LeBron James at 36 or 37 went over there and played?” (38:37)
• Mike, highlighting the performative nature of the playoff debate:
  • “Even people who got in are like, wait a minute, why are we playing?... Why are we doing two rematches by the way of regular season games that we've already seen?” (24:36)

Timeline & Important Timestamps

• [02:22] – Roy revels in Miami's epic weekend, highlighting Panthers, Inter Miami, and Hurricanes successes.
• [05:22] – Pablo Torre ranks Inter Miami’s title on Messi’s legacy (31st place).
• [06:06] – The start of the “dark money” discussion; Mike Ryan’s activism for Miami in the playoff race.
• [07:35] – Pablo rips the CFP selection process as “a literal backroom.”
• [08:36] – Pablo spotlights the injustice of Alabama's ranking after a blowout.
• [09:54] – Mike Ryan lays out how Miami’s “arguing” made a difference and Notre Dame’s new, ironclad contract is revealed.
• [13:29] – The billboard wording (“H2H matters. Miami IN”) and campaign logistics dissected.
• [18:30] – The hosts joke about the threatening tone of their Miami fan activism.
• [25:39] – Pablo questions likelihood of real CFP reform.
• [27:36] – Dan probes Mike Ryan’s psychological “darkness” before the selection.
• [29:06] – Pablo breaks news on possible Marcus Freeman-Giants NFL connection.
• [38:37] – Dan’s Taiwan/LeBron analogy for Inter Miami’s Messi-catalyzed championship.
• [39:47] – Pablo details how Beckham and Mas rescued Miami soccer, and Messi’s statistical dominance.
• [43:06] – Pablo admits TV ratings for MLS are actually down despite Messi mania.
• [44:57] – Roy trashes Dolphins quarterback Tua’s recent performances.
• [45:23] – Miami Dolphins’ brutal closing schedule discussed.

Final Thoughts

This episode blends the spirit of Miami sports fanaticism with sharp, irreverent commentary about the politics and pageantry of college football. It’s a time capsule of how local activism, fan psychology, ownership ambition, and flawed NCAA processes collided during a momentous weekend for 305 sports. The recurring theme: sports, like politics, is about shaping narratives—sometimes with "dark money," sometimes with pure spectacle. The laughs are as memorable as the insights, and the absurdity of the system is rivaled only by the passion of the fans (and podcasters) who try to game it.