Local Hour: Respect The Throne

Summary

The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz

Local Hour: Respect The Throne

Date: February 24, 2026
Setting: Elser Hotel, Downtown Miami
Hosts & Regulars: Dan Le Batard, Stugotz, Greg Cote, Mike Ryan, Amin Elhassan, Jeremy, Zaslow (Zaz), Dave Damasek, Tony

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Episode Overview

This episode, titled "Respect The Throne," brings the entire Le Batard crew together to riff on South Florida sports, Olympic hockey celebrations, sports and politics, Miami sports culture, and a playful "roast battle" between college football coaches. With the backdrop of a much-anticipated State of the Union address (and Team USA Hockey attending), the crew's signature blend of humor, regional pride, and social commentary is on full display.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. "Respect The Throne": Greg Cote’s Seat & the Rituals of the Show

• The show opens with banter centering around who sits in the "throne" (the main chair) and the clothing choices ("no hat in the throne" as a sign of respect).
  • Greg Cote explains his wardrobe: “When I sit in the throne...this is my look. Y’all get used to it.” (01:10)
  • Teasing about lateness and "traffic" as a perpetual excuse, poking fun at South Florida commutes.

2. Hockey Players, Olympic Gold, and Miami Nightlife

• The crew discusses the aftermath of Team USA's hockey win, focusing on the championship celebrations in Miami and upcoming responsibilities.

  • Worries about players being hungover or tired for the restart of the NHL season.
  • Amin, who attended the celebrations, describes seeing athletes "among the people," making it more inclusive than NBA celebrations:
    • “I thought it was cool that they were among the people, that it wasn’t exclusive.” (10:35, Amin Elhassan)
  • Hilarious speculation on Matthew Tkachuk’s role as the impromptu MC of the bus parade: “He had the mic, he had the cigar lit, he had the flag around him.” (09:11, Dave Damasek)

• Notable Celebration Moment: "I got a little teary eyed when the pole dancer went up with Old Glory. That was a moment in time. I really felt joy. From sea to shining sea." (07:57, Amin Elhassan)

3. Sports and Politics: The State of the Union & Team USA Controversy

• The Team USA hockey team's attendance at the State of the Union raises questions about sports, politics, and partisanship.
  • Jeremy articulates the tension:
    • "You're making sort of a show with [Cash Patel] right at the front as the biggest celebration." (25:25)
    • “When politics enters the arena, you are now inherently political.” (26:11)
  • The team debates whether the players invited politics in by celebrating with political figures, or if they’re unwitting “pawns.”
  • The crowd weighs whether attending the State of the Union is an honor or a dull obligation, with consensus leaning toward the former being more fun:
    • "State of the Union? These old white people are gonna applaud me…At 11 yesterday, they had the time of their lives." (22:44, Dave Damasek)
  • Amin outlines the lose-lose for progressives: "We're walking right into the bad." (29:07)

4. South Florida Sports: Playoff Anxiety and Miami’s Greatest Athletic Legacy

• Discussion pivots to Florida Panthers’ playoff odds post-Olympics, whether rested or exhausted Olympians will impact the NHL stretch run, and broader reflections on Miami sports.
  • “They have to go 19 and 6 in the final 25 to make the playoffs.” (16:55, Zaslow)
  • Questioning whether Panthers fans would be upset if Matthew Tkachuk rests post-Olympics, with some comparing it to international soccer culture.

Miami’s “Greatest Position” in Sports

• The crew debates what the most glorified position in Miami’s sports history is.
  • QB for the Dolphins vs. Hurricanes running backs, UM QBs, Hurricanes RBs with extensive NFL success.
  • Frank Gore, Clinton Portis, Edgerrin James, and others cited as part of the Hurricanes' RB legacy.
    • “Probably Hurricane running backs.” (35:31, Greg Cote)
  • Conversely, Greg and Cody argue quarterback “is always king,” with Marino and Dolphins lore looming.

5. College Football Sidestory: Spurrier Banquet "Roast Battle"

• Clips played from a banquet where Georgia's Kirby Smart and Miami's Mario Cristobal trade friendly jabs about NIL, recruiting, and championship credentials.
  • Kirby’s jab: "He’ll take your players, if you know what I mean." (37:21)
  • Mario’s comeback: "I got time today. When you have all that time to sit at home watching us play on TV throughout the playoffs." (39:44)
  • The crew rates Mario’s retort as the 10–8 round winner, admiring both coaches’ comedic delivery and stage command.
    • “I want that Mario Cristobal at all times every day.” (41:16, Greg Cody)

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On being sick but “not contagious”
  • Greg Cote: “I could tell. I could look at somebody. I could tell.” (01:42)
• On celebratory rituals
  • Dave Damasek: “If you didn’t know, like me…and you didn’t watch Olympic hockey, you’d have thought Matthew Tkachuk was the best player. He had the mic, he had the cigar lit, he had the flag around him. He was giving speeches…” (09:11)
• On politics at sports celebrations
  • Jeremy: “You're making sort of a show with him [Cash Patel] right at the front as the biggest celebration.” (25:25)
• On Miami’s most iconic sports role
  • Mike Ryan: “What’s Miami’s greatest position?” (34:54)
• Kirby Smart’s Banquet Zinger
  • “He’ll take your players, if you know what I mean.” (37:21)
• Mario Cristobal’s Response
  • “When you have all that time to sit at home watching us play on TV throughout the playoffs…” (39:44)

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Timestamps for Notable Segments

• Throne Respect & Greg’s Rituals — 00:08–02:15
• Olympic Hockey Post-Party — 07:07–14:00
• State of the Union/Politics & Team USA — 14:00–31:00
• Miami Sports: Playoff Anxiety & Greatness Debate — 32:42–36:38
• Kirby Smart vs. Mario Cristobal Banquet — 37:03–42:00
• Show Wrap-up (Marlins & banter) — 42:44–end

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Tone & Style

The show maintains its blend of sarcasm, Miami-centric ribbing, and self-aware social commentary. Even serious topics (politics, polarization, sports culture) are handled with wry detachment and humor, with the hosts quick to mock both themselves and the absurdity of the ongoing sports–politics crossover.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Show

This episode embodies what makes the Dan Le Batard Show unique: irreverent banter, insider sports insight with a strong South Florida flavor, and a willingness to tackle the tricky intersection of sports and cultural identity—all delivered in a way that makes even the most polarizing topics approachable, funny, and real. If you want a tour through the weird mix of hockey, party culture, Miami sports tradition, and hot-button politics, "Respect The Throne" captures it all.

Transcript

[Dan LeBatard]

This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stugats podcast.

[Greg Cote]

Got to tell you, I'm a little bit worried about the hockey players who apparently were partying all night long last night. The regular season begins back in two days. Why are you all smiling and laughing at me?

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Where's your hat?

[Dave Damasek]

It's a big head, man.

[Jeremy]

You okay?

[Greg Cote]

Yo, when I sit in the. When I sit on the throne. All right, this is the throne. Dave Damasek. This right here, you were. You were in the throne yesterday. How'd that feel?

[Mike Ryan]

I was. I was just going to remind you that apparently you missed the fact that the week started yesterday.

[Greg Cote]

No, I didn't miss you, but a pleasure to see you. I was sick. All right, so didn't miss anything. I was sick with sickness.

[Mike Ryan]

Still are.

[Greg Cote]

I've been in a house of disease the last few days. All right. I'm much better now. Thank you very much. You don't be worried about that. But when I sit in the throne, this is my look in the throne. I don't wear a hat in the throne.

[Amin Elhassan]

I don't bring respect to the throne

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

by not wearing the hat.

[Greg Cote]

It's like when you go to a really nice restaurant, you know, you would. You wouldn't wear a hat in a really nice restaurant, right, Dave?

[Mike Ryan]

No, indeed. So the gravitas is what you're going.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah.

[Mike Ryan]

Here.

[Greg Cote]

This is my look when I'm. When I'm in. When I'm on the throne, when I'm in the big chair, this is my look.

[Dave Damasek]

You wear your fanciest ratty hoodie.

[Greg Cote]

Well, I didn't think about that. Thank you for pointing that part out. I mean. So this is my look. Y' all get used to it. All right? Probably my look the rest of this week anyway.

[Mike Ryan]

Are you contagious?

[Dan LeBatard]

No, I'm good.

[Greg Cote]

I wouldn't. I wouldn't do that. Okay. You could hear I'm a little bit stuffy in my voice, but I would not come back if I was going to get.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

I don't like that when people act like they know exactly when and when they're not contagious. Like, how do you know you're not contagious?

[Greg Cote]

I could tell. I could look at somebody. I could tell.

[Dave Damasek]

You have a. Do you have a fever?

[Tony]

Yeah.

[Dave Damasek]

Fever. You contagious?

[Greg Cote]

No fever. Never even had a fever. Never had one.

[Dave Damasek]

Not contagious.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Can't be true.

[Greg Cote]

I didn't have a fever this weekend.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Oh, never this time. I thought you were saying you've never had my life.

[Greg Cote]

I've never had a before.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Cock of the walk, baby.

[Dan LeBatard]

Establish for the audience that Greg is lazy and late.

[Greg Cote]

Greg is not here yet.

[Dan LeBatard]

And when he sits down, hit him against somebody. Maybe Dave this time. Let's have fun.

[Greg Cote]

Yeah, we'll probably make fun of him when he sits down because he's going to complain about the traffic.

[Amin Elhassan]

Even though.

[Greg Cote]

Even though there's never. I come from Broward also. There's never a good traffic day. Like, what's the day you arrive? Like, all traffic was amazing today.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Some Fridays, it takes like 45 minutes, and that's a good day. But yes, you're right.

[Greg Cote]

It's.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

It's an hour plus every day.

[Dave Damasek]

Allow me to defend the man who's not here. All Browards are not created equal.

[Tony]

Where in Broward are you?

[Dave Damasek]

Where Broward is he?

[Greg Cote]

I'm very west. Like, I'm in the worst part of Broward.

[Dave Damasek]

He might be in a worse part.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

He's. He's west as well.

[Dave Damasek]

Yeah, he might be wester than you.

[Greg Cote]

What's a west? He lives in the Everglades. Okay. Like, you're all as far west as you can get. I'm in Cooper City.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

The issue is that Zaza and I, who live similar to my dad, give time that if traffic is bad, we still get here before 9. My dad just plays it. I'm going to leave it this time.

[Greg Cote]

He refuses to adjust. We've been in this building for five years.

[Mike Ryan]

Have we decided that Matthew Tkachuk doesn't need to show up anytime soon to the Florida Panthers? It's all over with for the Panthers. No one wants them trying to make a run. It's. It's a loss cause. Right.

[Greg Cote]

So this is what I'm worried about, Dave. You know, the guys. First of all, we're any. Was our crew at 11 last night?

[Amin Elhassan]

Some of us were.

[Greg Cote]

Who was there last night?

[Amin Elhassan]

I was there. Oh, Amin was there. A lot of people thought he was Cash Patel.

[Greg Cote]

Get the hell out of me.

[Dave Damasek]

A lot of people complained about ice. I said, man, that's not me.

[Greg Cote]

Okay, hold on a second. All right. Did anyone actually, like, did you wear the outfit? Like, were they eyeing you down and they thought that you were Cash Patel?

[Dave Damasek]

Well, someone called me a fascist, and I didn't know if that was because of the show or maybe because that

[Greg Cote]

could relate to anything, right? Yeah, you could be talking about anything there. So people. There may have been people who thought you were Cash Patel.

[Dave Damasek]

Absolutely. It didn't help that my eyes were crossed, but I told you guys, if I keep Doing it on the show, it's gonna stick like that. My mom told me that.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, that's what they say.

[Mike Ryan]

Side note, quickly, Mike Ryan, just before we started the show, he and I were talking up close, and we made eye contact. And I have to say, you know, listen, a little sunshine in this world ain't a bad thing. Mike Ryan, you have very pretty eyes. Very pretty eyes.

[Amin Elhassan]

Wow.

[Mike Ryan]

I was struck by it as we stood in the. In the morning light. What did your eyes behold last night, though, at 11. What struck you?

[Amin Elhassan]

Well, you know what? Like, this whole Team USA Hockey thing is a bit complicated. You know, I'm an ally. I put myself out there. I'm also wearing a Matthew Chuck jersey and a Team USA hat. And I like to get into, like, what later today is going to look like with the. With the players going up to Washington,

[Greg Cote]

D.C. oh, they're going today.

[Amin Elhassan]

They're going to be present for the State of the Union.

[Dave Damasek]

Yeah. Right.

[Amin Elhassan]

Well, the Patriots, the women, have taken the opportunity to decline the invitation.

[Greg Cote]

They said they were too busy.

[Amin Elhassan]

Right.

[Greg Cote]

Their schedule.

[Unknown Announcer/Ad Voice]

Huh?

[Jeremy]

Why you think?

[Amin Elhassan]

Because they were made fools of in that viral video. I understand. Anyone that has drawn the line, that even took a little bit of joy and had all the joy go away, watch. And what this team has done with this moment, I think some of them, they might. You could argue, they're victims of. They've been props for a propaganda machine, no doubt. And unfortunately, many of them are willing participants and probably pushing that, too. It's a. It's a complicated thing, and I understand why people feel some type of way about it.

[Dave Damasek]

Can you wear sunglasses at the State of the Union? Because there's no chance these guys are gonna be, like, fresh and ready to go.

[Greg Cote]

I wanna go back for a second to something Amin said. All right. Because my mother also told me that if you cross your eyes, they could permanently stay that way.

[Dave Damasek]

It's true.

[Greg Cote]

Your mother told you that can and stuff from parents.

[Mike Ryan]

Right.

[Amin Elhassan]

Mothers also said the same thing. Ours is a little different.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Ours is.

[Mike Ryan]

If you do the cross and a

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

bug flies by, then it'll get stuck.

[Greg Cote]

Oh, really?

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

So, like, if you got your eyes crossed and all of a sudden a bug flies by, boom, it's stuck.

[Greg Cote]

That'd be a hell of a coincidence if you're doing the cross. I think, at the same time that the bug comes.

[Dan LeBatard]

So I'm saying, what are some of

[Greg Cote]

the things that our mothers told us would happen if you don't. If you do it? Well, like, stick permanently too close to the tv. Oh, yes, that one might be true.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

My mom said if you. If you pick your nose too much, your finger could get stuck.

[Dave Damasek]

Your what?

[Greg Cody]

Finger.

[Mike Ryan]

How many years did that work on you?

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

I was 32 years old.

[Greg Cote]

I was always afraid of. Because one of the things that I was told was if you're one of the kids that flip your eyelids inside out, that they would stay. I was afraid.

[Amin Elhassan]

I don't like those kids.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Those kids never grew up.

[Greg Cote]

I didn't like those kids either. And I was afraid that if I did it, my eyelid would stay. And I got news for you. If my eyelids stayed inside out. That have been a tough life.

[Dave Damasek]

Can't make eye contact with anyone.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Waiting 30 minutes after you eat to

[Mike Ryan]

go in the pool.

[Dave Damasek]

Oh, yeah, that's a big one.

[Greg Cote]

No, don't do it, Mike. Don't do it. Don't. You guys are going to stay. What did I tell you?

[Mike Ryan]

You never.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

They never amounted to anything. Good pretty eyes.

[Mike Ryan]

It's gr. But also pretty, isn't it? I think we can all agree.

[Amin Elhassan]

What's up with this guy? Dude.

[Mike Ryan]

More than one of my children believed me for multiple years when I would do the thing of like, see, look at one half of me. When you look at me from. I'm trying to get to the camera. Look, this side is nice and thin. But when I turn around, like, look, I got a big belly.

[Greg Cote]

Whoa.

[Amin Elhassan]

That was a magic trick.

[Mike Ryan]

And my kids. It came to a head when one of the kids said at school, like, my dad's belly on the one side is fat. Show them. And like, I had to show other kids. I'm like, I've got the remedial child.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

I want to try the best half

[Mike Ryan]

of me is fat. Yeah. See if it works.

[Dave Damasek]

Good luck.

[Greg Cote]

So what did you see last night at 11?

[Amin Elhassan]

Well, you know, this being my third hockey celebration, a little jaded. Don't have the same kind of connection point. So not as fun as the Panthers celebrations. I will say though, I got a little teary eyed when the pole dance here went up with Old Glory. That was a moment in time. I really felt joy. From sea to shining sea.

[Mike Ryan]

Tkachuk put his medal on her.

[Amin Elhassan]

No, he did not. That was after they tried to avoid those photo ops when the players walk in with the Olympic medals. But you know.

[Greg Cote]

What time did they arrive?

[Amin Elhassan]

They arrived at around 11.

[Dave Damasek]

Yeah, it was. They weren't. I thought they were going to be ridiculously late. Apparently they went to dinner and they came right after dinner.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

That's what they do every time I like that.

[Amin Elhassan]

I didn't see any videos from the. The double decker bus ride around Ocean Drive, but I imagine they were all standing at attention by, you know, south of 5th, waiting for their opportunity to take a glance at Jake Sanderson when

[Greg Cote]

they're on that double decker going around Ocean Drive. Like Matthew Tkachuk, I would imagine he's. He's got the microphone, he's like the emcee. He's standing in front because he's done this tour like a couple times already. He's showing everyone the landmarks. Right.

[Dave Damasek]

If you didn't know, like me, if you were like me and you didn't watch any Olympic hockey, you would have thought Matthew Tkachuk was the best player. He was the captain. He was the guy making everything happen because he was the guy. He was the mc. He had the mic, he had. He had the cigar lit, he had the flag around him. He was making requests, DJ requests, he was giving speeches. They tried to get other guys to talk. Nobody really wanted to do it. Tkachuk was the only guy who was really embracing that role.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, it was like that for the Panthers celebration until Sam Reinhart got the microphone and didn't shut off for two and a half hours. But, yeah, it was an interesting celebration because I haven't had a championship celebration centered around the country. So instead of like We Are the Champions every five songs, yeah, you'd have that mix in, but you would have, like these American standards.

[Greg Cote]

Like, have we ever had the Red,

[Amin Elhassan]

White and Toby Keith, My God.

[Greg Cote]

Well, so we've never had this type of celebration in your lifetime, right?

[Amin Elhassan]

No, certainly not for hockey, I mean, but.

[Greg Cote]

And not for any sport.

[Amin Elhassan]

When USA Basketball wins, like, you're. You'll expect celebrate at the bar, but everyone's not like, where are we going after this? And also basketball celebrations are a little bit more exclusive. I think one of the cool things is, and I do think it's a testament, I mentioned this yesterday, of how the Florida Panthers have changed hockey culture down here. When New York gets snowed out, the hockey players on the bus are like, let's go to 11. Because those championship celebrations seem so fun. I thought it was cool that they were among the people, that it wasn't exclusive. It was more of an inclusive type of deal where people are reaching out, touching people, signing jerseys and having fun with other Americans that were.

[Mike Ryan]

We bring other Americans into the locker room to celebrate with the team. What are you talking about? This is old news.

[Dave Damasek]

I told Mike yesterday that when they make the movie, the miracle movie, about this team. There'll be a scene after they win and say, all right guys, boys, let's go to New York or D.C. and it's like this just in. Massive snowstorm cripples the northeast. And like, guys, what are we gonna do? And Matthew Tkachuk leans in and says, I know a place. And cut to 11. That's exactly how it went.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah. But I'm also sure that there was some vibes. Like you ever tell your friends, hey, you gotta try this place. It's amazing. And you go in there and the place is totally empty. I imagine that's what it was like when the double decker bus went around Ocean Drive. A bunch of Europeans confused outside of mangoes. Like, what is this?

[Dave Damasek]

What are you doing?

[Amin Elhassan]

Is that Jake Ottinger?

[Dave Damasek]

Who are these people? And why is it so cold outside?

[Dan LeBatard]

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[Amin Elhassan]

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[Dan LeBatard]

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[Amin Elhassan]

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[Greg Cote]

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[Zaslow (Zaz)]

We're confident against the lighting. This is a different team. You're a Panther group chat. No, no, I think no. But dude, you're so wrong on that. We've been terrified of this team forever, and I think there's a different energy where the Panthers, they want the Lightning st.

[Greg Cote]

I want T shirts made for this Panther run.

[Tony]

What could Be this Panther run our Panther group chat.

[Greg Cote]

We're not afraid of the lightning.

[Amin Elhassan]

That's a Tagline for World RAR3.

[Greg Cote]

This is the Don Lebatar show with the Stugats.

[Mike Ryan]

I just realized that much as Kurt Russell got to play Herb Brooks, that we are sitting now with Amin in the future movie about the 2026 Olympic team that you're gonna get to play Cash Patel, given the big inspirational speech in the locker room.

[Dave Damasek]

That's a role that I will cross my eyes and cross forever to be in that movie.

[Mike Ryan]

Are you though, you know, think globally, act locally, root nationally or root locally. Do you feel like Matthew Tkachuk. It feels like the Panthers are probably a little too far away, but there is. It's plausible they could get themselves back into contention. Would you be raw Panthers fans if Tachuk was like, you know, the medal and all the effort for the two weeks and then the celebrations, I need a couple of games to get right. Like I'm, I'm not going to, I'm not going to dress for the next.

[Greg Cote]

Might all do that.

[Amin Elhassan]

He is going to get a couple of games. I think, I think there have already been teams that say, I think so too, that, that players that have been, you know, playing for their countries are going to get a couple games rest.

[Mike Ryan]

No issue with that.

[Amin Elhassan]

No, no.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Every game is so important for them down the stretch. I heard Dave Hyde say yesterday that by based off some projections, they have to go 19 and 6, the final 25 to make the playoffs.

[Greg Cote]

Yes, they have to do something crazy to make the playoffs.

[Mike Ryan]

And in order to do one thing they would have to do is have Matthew Tkachuk in the lineup. I mean, that. That significantly improves their chances and if he doesn't dress and obviously, I know we're talking about Miami based hockey, but of course my heart belongs on the banks of the three rivers. And that team is in contention for the playoffs as well. Currently positioned and now Sidney Crosby almost played in the gold medal game, but then at the last second he just wasn't right. What happens if he's like, yeah, I'm going to take the next two weeks off. My knee was almost good enough to play in a big game like the gold medal game, but not enough for these regular season games. I wonder what the reaction is.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

You're.

[Greg Cote]

You're a Penguins fan. I could ask you.

[Mike Ryan]

I'm conflicted. Is the answer to that. I mean, I don't have a black and white answer for you. I'd be conflicted about it. I would love For Crosby to burnish his career, his legacy and all the rest of it. Had he played and they won the gold medal and all the rest of it. But if it meant that boy, boy going out there on that knee was rough. And now I need three weeks off,

[Amin Elhassan]

it just rolls off my back. As a soccer fan, that's, that's what happens when these guys go to play for their countries and they come back, look, and it doesn't have to be your country. I'm an Inter Miami fan. Every time that Argentina has friendlies, I'm like, well, there goes Messi for two games.

[Mike Ryan]

I mean who cares about Messi in this dumb American soccer league. That's not comparable to something.

[Amin Elhassan]

No, I'm saying. But I'm programmed that way to understand when, when players leave to represent their country, there's going to be a re. Acclimation point. They're, they're playing, they're log minutes over there. They're probably going to get eased back into the lineup. It's rarely.

[Mike Ryan]

That's a culture that exists and has for many decades in soccer that's different than American sports. Big time, multimillions of dollars annually and all the rest of it. Zaz, what do you think? Would you be, were you a high end hockey player? Would you say it's more important to me to represent the nation and it will in fact trump me in terms of, of deed and all the rest of it and dressing for the big game. It's more important to me than dressing for an NHL game.

[Greg Cote]

Well, as a fan, it's more important to me that he dresses for the Panthers, that he dresses for Team usa. That's me. But, but as a player I think the conversation is, it's, it's, it's that conversation where if it was the playoffs I would, I would be playing, you know that that's what it is. But. And the gold medal game is the playoffs and then he comes back and it's a regular season games like all right, I need a little bit of time here, but if this were the playoffs, I would play.

[Amin Elhassan]

I'm sorry, did you not want to win the gold medal? I'm a little confused. We need Matthew Chuck out there for the gold medal. You know, he logs some minutes. He's played a lot of hockey over his career. I'm good with giving him two games to recover.

[Greg Cote]

Yeah, just. It is what it is. Like I'm selfish people.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

It's a back to back though. He's getting like, I mean I know he's at 11 last night. But he's had, what, it'll be four days.

[Mike Ryan]

The union tonight.

[Amin Elhassan]

The State of the Union. Well, you want to talk about that? I think you want to talk about that because I think it's a fair. More than a fair criticism, and I can understand why people, like, check out on this team entirely because of it.

[Dave Damasek]

Can I ask a question? Forget for a second who the president is or how you feel, what the president is. Whatever. Would you want to go to the State of the Union? It's boring.

[Greg Cote]

Why would I want to go boring when I'm at home? I could turn it off. Oh, my God, you're there.

[Dave Damasek]

I never. I have never. I have never said State of the Union. Let me lock in.

[Amin Elhassan]

This one promises to be memorable.

[Greg Cote]

No, I'll give it a chance. I'll watch like 10, 15 minutes when I'm at home. Do you have. You grabbed my attention. All right, I'll keep watching. Otherwise, I'm changing the channel. If you're sitting there, oh, my God, I'm falling asleep.

[Amin Elhassan]

And you're in a suit.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Imagine you're in the suit there. You're itchy. What if it's hot in there?

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah.

[Mike Ryan]

Sweating in the suit. You're like, oh, I can't leave. I can't get up.

[Dave Damasek]

I sneeze a lot. Like, I'm a loud sneezer. I'm a multiple.

[Greg Cote]

What if I sneeze in the middle?

[Dave Damasek]

What's that?

[Amin Elhassan]

On the other hand, though, it is a hero's welcome. I mean, yeah, you play your entire career to be honored as a national hero in front of, you know, policymakers and really important people thanking you for the job that you did. I can understand the internal conflict that people might have.

[Mike Ryan]

If the entire argument is that these guys are too myopic, they're too insulated with all their money and fame and all that comes with that, that they don't really care. They're not deep diving on politics. Then why would it matter to them to be cheered by the Congress?

[Amin Elhassan]

I mean, I'm not looking at Brady Tkachuk looking for foreign policy. That's what I'm saying. Yeah. Like, I saw their pawns.

[Mike Ryan]

And there's no way to argue around that. Matthew Tkachuk might think it's. This is the moment of his life, I guarantee you. Because they are human beings. They're not. They're not a monolith sitting there. This is the greatest. Some of them voted the other way. So it's. So they're getting jammed up there. And why. It's bad is. And for all the people that are. Straw man argument. Arguing this like, oh, Cash Patel's a bad guy for wanting to do. To celebrate that Donald Trump's a bad guy for calling in. You're upset that the President of the United States called in and they laughed. No, these are straw man arguments. The problem is, is that they're getting jammed up in that spot. And now whether or not they want to be in there. Matthew Tkachuk clearly wants to put his gold medal on Cash Patel. Everybody standing around laughing uncomfortably at Trump's joke. Don't want to do that. What are you gonna do in that moment? The idea that you would, like, end the call or something is not. Is not a plausible result there. You're wishing that somebody would do something you wouldn't do in that same spot, but they are ultimately being used for someone else. I'm sorry there.

[Greg Cote]

I mean, you got it.

[Dave Damasek]

You got it. Juju. Put it on the poll. If you had a choice for one hero's welcome, would you rather be at the State of the union or 11? Because I feel like, yo, there's more.

[Jeremy]

Second night at Elaine.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Third option.

[Amin Elhassan]

Both.

[Dave Damasek]

No. Great. Because here's the thing. State of the Union, okay? These old white people are gonna applaud me and say thank you for what you did for their country. They're boring. And I have to behave. I have to be well behaved. Man, them boys at 11 yesterday, they had the time of their life. And my favorite ones were the ones who aren't Panthers. Cause you could see, like, their eyes wide and like, whoa, what is this about Panthers?

[Amin Elhassan]

Auston Matthews was like, I may never get this opportunity again.

[Greg Cote]

Welcome, Greg, aboard the show today.

[Greg Cody]

Hey, good morning.

[Unknown Announcer/Ad Voice]

Breakfast.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Breakfast was good out there.

[Greg Cote]

We saw you had yourself a little meal while you were here before coming in, huh?

[Greg Cody]

The egg and ham sandwich was extraordinary.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Why'd you say it that way?

[Greg Cody]

And the reason is the. The croissant instead of the. The tougher.

[Greg Cote]

Most people say ham and egg, but he goes, egg and ham, huh?

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah, you go. You lead with the egg. When that's the standard.

[Greg Cody]

Yeah. The chicken wins. Interesting. Chicken wins.

[Dave Damasek]

Which came first.

[Greg Cody]

Yeah, that's a good point.

[Greg Cote]

That's interesting.

[Greg Cody]

The chicken. Chicken and egg. Yeah. No, I. What percentage of the. Of the old senators and Congress people cheering tonight even watched any minute of Olympic hockey?

[Greg Cote]

I think a good portion of them

[Amin Elhassan]

probably watched mention the Senators, like Brady Tkachuk and Jake Sanderson will be there.

[Greg Cote]

I do wonder, though. So the team tonight, they'll be sitting like, in the rafters. Okay.

[Greg Cody]

Willing pawns.

[Greg Cote]

But that place is always packed. Of course, the team. It's 20 players. So are people having their seats revoked to make room for the players?

[Mike Ryan]

A lot of times aren't even showing up.

[Amin Elhassan]

Just plenty of seats available. Says. Yeah, yeah. If you just scroll on the old socials.

[Greg Cote]

Oh, is that right?

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah. A lot of people are boycotting this. A lot of people plan. There's talk that people plan to get up and leave during it. And there's always extra room for assembled media and.

[Greg Cote]

Oh, okay. All right.

[Greg Cody]

But it's pretty bad being honored at the State of the Union, which is the dullest, most boring hour and a half.

[Jeremy]

Thank you.

[Greg Cody]

In political history. I can see the White House lawn because that you expect. You expect the token White House attaboy here. But the State of the Union, when did that become a thing for teams? You know, I mean, Trump, and this is not a criticism of Trump because any president who's in office right now would do it. But Trump or any other president is going to wrap themselves in the flag, take credit for the Olympic performance. We did so great at the Olympics. He's going to take advantage of that. And as long as the players realize. And sometimes I get the feeling Matthew Kachuka is a little bit tone deaf on this. As long as the players realize that this is an immensely unpopular president with half of the nation and so going to this to serve as a willing pawn is controversial. And as long as they realize that and accept it, then I'm all for it.

[Jeremy]

They don't realize it. It like that's the, the part in all of this is that they're constantly saying, this whole group is constantly saying, keep politics away from this. Keep politics away from this. We don't want this to be political. You welcomed it in. You welcomed politics literally into your celebration and bringing Cash Patel into your locker room or not denying him access. Not, not that that would have been a very popular opinion amongst those guys. And maybe they didn't want that getting out. But you're. You're making sort of a show with him right at the front as the biggest celebration.

[Greg Cote]

But isn't that where someone part of the management team of Team USA needs to say something like, if you think one of the players for Team USA is going to stand up there and tell Cash Patel not to come in the dressing room and celebrate with them, you're nuts. I'm sure no one's going to do that.

[Jeremy]

I'm sure they were all brought to it. And I'm not even saying that they needed to. I'm saying when politics enters the arena, you are now inherently political. And when you accept an invitation to a State of the Union that is going to be a State of the Union that rants and raves against immigrants, against members of the LGBTQ community, against all sorts of different people, it is going to be a disaster tonight. And you're going to have all of these hockey players sitting there, maybe for the first time, realizing, uh, oh, what did we get ourselves into? I. We talked yesterday about the concept of, like, how is this gonna age? And I don't know that these guys are going to necessarily change their minds. There will be some who are still who are supportive of the president. There are others who are not. But when you're sitting in that room and you're realizing what's going on and some of the things that are going to be said tonight about the American people that could be. Who live in this country, that is going to be a giant state stain on these guys and the way they're perceived by. By the way, more than half the country. Trump is a very unpopular president at the moment. The people who love him, love him, but he's an incredibly unpopular president. When you look at the polling around

[Amin Elhassan]

the country, it's the most unpopular he's ever been during his career as a

[Jeremy]

politician, which is why he's wrapping himself in the flag of something that's actually successful, which is this team. I desperately wanted to enjoy. I did enjoy this. I. I was. I was feeling so American and proud to be an American. When USA won the gold, it was awesome. And within 30 minutes, politics got brought into it. I didn't ask for that. I didn't want politics to be brought in. I just like folks on the right. I'm saying, please, please keep politics away from my sports. It's my space to escape, too. I know we delve into it, but our show is more than just a sports show.

[Dave Damasek]

How would the other side feel if they win? And look who just walked into the locker room to congratulate other guys. It's Colin Kaepernick. They would have lost their goddamn mind.

[Amin Elhassan]

I feel like we're also walking into a trap right now because this is so historically unpopular for progressives, Democrats, anybody that is in opposition of MAGA to take out the US Men's hockey team. See, we can't even enjoy this when they were the ones that made this unavoidably political by having Cash Patel there, by having the president speak on the speakerphone, by getting invited to the State of the Union and I feel like and it's okay, look, I like our hand this year better than I've liked it in years previous. But this is a losing position for progressives coming out and trying to take away people's feel good and inject it with our opinions, even though they're the ones that made it political. It's why they do it so often. It's why they go to sports so often. It's why this administration in particular is so deft at handpicking who they go after and we're walking right into the bad.

[Mike Ryan]

That's exactly right. And it is not a great spot to be put in. And I don't give either side credit for seizing on this. But that's right, what it amounts to is Josh Pate or Jelly Roll or otherwise. Now react. And I'm sure at some point, Matthew, you could chuck like, oh, now it's a problem for me to do. Yeah, it was a problem always for you because for the last 10 years the message has been I want to leave politics behind and just get lost in sports. Now all of a sudden it's okay for you to align yourself with this? Of course it is. Tolerating intolerance is not a great spot, is not a great position to take. And that's ultimately what Kachuk and otherwise are doing here.

[Unknown Announcer/Ad Voice]

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[Zaslow (Zaz)]

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[Greg Cote]

Illinois, 21 and over in most states. Void in Ontario. Restrictions apply.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Bet must win to receive bonus bets,

[Greg Cote]

which expire in seven days.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Minimum odds required for additional terms and responsible gaming resources.

[Greg Cote]

See DKNG Co Audio Limited Time Offer Don LeBatard Mike Bryan's in there, and he's the one with a baby. He's the one who's gotta, like, worry about what the future is. And Mike Ryan bet on DraftKings because

[Tony]

Mike Ryan bet on us.

[Greg Cote]

This is the bet you're afraid of doubling down on? Putting up a billboard in Edmonton.

[Amin Elhassan]

Stugats. I care more about Matthew Tkachuk than I do my daughter.

[Greg Cote]

This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stugats.

[Amin Elhassan]

You know what?

[Jeremy]

I'll be watching instead of the State of the Union. He Bucks, baby. I can't wait. And I'll tell you this. Miami Heat won a couple of games this week. I'm gonna be even more annoying about that than I am about politics.

[Greg Cote]

Oh, is that right? Don't do that.

[Dave Damasek]

Don't let him win, too.

[Amin Elhassan]

How is that gonna work?

[Greg Cote]

Is that right?

[Jeremy]

Don't let him. Don't let him win two more. Don't let him get to five straight wins.

[Greg Cote]

I'll tell you something.

[Jeremy]

It's a healthy Heat team.

[Greg Cote]

I'm very happy with what I'm seeing and hearing from Tyler Herro.

[Amin Elhassan]

Okay?

[Greg Cote]

Tyler Herro should be coming off the bench, not because he's not a starter in the NBA, but that's just what's best for this team. And what he's been saying after these last couple wins and how well he's been Playing saying all the right things. I like Tyler Hero coming off the bench. I think I might be with you. If the Heat win these two games this week that's a five game winning streak.

[Jeremy]

It's a five game win streak and likely headed into Friday sitting in the sixth seed away from anyone else outside of the play in all of a sudden turning into Greg's team. You don't want to play in the first round.

[Greg Cody]

Yeah, there you go. I forget the acronym for that team.

[Greg Cote]

Tw.

[Greg Cody]

Yeah. I mean Tyler Hero is saying all the right things publicly. I wonder if behind the scenes he and SPO have had the conversation about I'm not real happy to be healthy.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Gosh.

[Greg Cote]

But it's not the so like you might be. You happen to know.

[Jeremy]

I happen to know.

[Greg Cote]

You happen to know that that's not.

[Jeremy]

I happen to know that there has not been a complaint about coming off the bench behind the scenes.

[Greg Cody]

Good for him. Not yet.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

He happens to know. Great Scott. He happens to know. He happens to know. Gather everyone.

[Mike Ryan]

Get the children.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

He happens to know.

[Dave Damasek]

So wise Dave, do you have a question?

[Greg Cote]

Sorry about that.

[Mike Ryan]

I thought that was done.

[Amin Elhassan]

Dave.

[Unknown Announcer/Ad Voice]

I'm sorry.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Do you watch the show? Do you know what we do here?

[Mike Ryan]

You have pretty eyes too. Now listen I'm curious in the local hour here and with Greg Cody now arrived what is now maybe it's Matthew Tkachuk's position. You know could be Dolphins quarterback. What is the greatest single position in Miami sports history you can cross into any sports. It could be hockey, goalie. It could be starting pitchers for the Marlins. It could be right like what's the

[Greg Cote]

position we glorify the most?

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah what's. What's Miami's greatest position?

[Greg Cote]

I mean it's got to be quarterback. I think it's quarterback in almost every

[Mike Ryan]

quarterback Reno greasy quarterback for whomst Ryan Taylor.

[Dave Damasek]

Is it a big deal to be a quarterback?

[Mike Ryan]

That's your greatest position you've ever had Kings. No Miami Dolphins quarterback is the category or the U quarterbacks or the U running backs.

[Jeremy]

I feel like you running backs you're running back right?

[Dave Damasek]

Come on now.

[Mike Ryan]

I don't think it's even in this city's rich sports history. The single greatest position that you could offer up to the sports gods is our call our local colleges Running back.

[Greg Cote]

Probably my hurricane Running backs.

[Greg Cody]

Yeah I don't know about that.

[Greg Cote]

They I I saw a stat recently they by far the most thousand yard NFL seasons out of any school.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah that's combined lafran Gore had multiple thousand yard years so that.

[Greg Cote]

So, yeah.

[Mike Ryan]

Okay. Well, I'm just saying it's not as though they have the highest number of players, individual guys who got a thousand yards.

[Greg Cody]

I think the quarterback is always the king. I mean, look at both of UM's Heisman winners have been quarterbacks the past three years. Cristobal is getting credit for winning the portal with star quarterbacks, not running backs. And I think down here though, you look at players, not positions. And if you're making an all time Mount Rushmore, you start with Wade and Marino. And then maybe just on merit, you add Lionel Messi, even though he's only been here a few years.

[Mike Ryan]

What the hell are we talking? You can't have Messi and Marina on the same list. We're talking when those aren't even the

[Amin Elhassan]

same sport in terms of efficiency and pro sports, getting the most juice out of that position, attacking forward, professional soccer, even dating back to Lewis Morgan.

[Dave Damasek]

He's got you there.

[Greg Cote]

Did you see?

[Mike Ryan]

Sheesh.

[Jeremy]

Did.

[Mike Ryan]

That's how dire things are in Miami has been.

[Amin Elhassan]

That's how great he has been.

[Dave Damasek]

They have like the fourth best player in the history of the sport.

[Greg Cote]

Speaking of the Hurricanes, did you see. So there was a. There. There's a banquet every year. It's like a Steve Spurrier kind of banquet deal where, you know, a bunch of coaches come and they all, you know, hang out, I guess.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Malachi, Tony got some award for freshman of the year, I believe.

[Greg Cote]

Din, everybody has a great time. And there were some words thrown around last night at this Spurrier banquet. Okay, first, this is Kirby Smart, all right? He's the head coach, Georgia Bulldogs. And here he is taking some shots.

[Tony]

Margo's right behind him. And if it had been up to him, he would have paid a lot more in IL money. It came down to us too. So I don't like you being real close to Mario right now, you know what I'm saying? He's still got another year left. Gotta be careful around Mario sometimes. He'll take your players, if you know what I mean.

[Dan LeBatard]

But

[Tony]

no, I'm just kidding.

[Dave Damasek]

Sorry.

[Tony]

I was talking to Mario earlier and he came up to me and he gave me a Lane Tiffin joke. And he. He and Lane are very similar in a lot of ways. They're like best friends. And he came up to me, he's like, you ought to start getting on some protein shakes. You've had to many carbs. And I said, well, you probably ought to spend some time with Steve Spurrier because he won more conference championships at Duke than You have in Miami.

[Greg Cote]

It's a little bit of a roast there of Mario Cristobal from Kirby Smart, by the way, when Kirby Smart says he'll take your players, if you know what I mean. Was there someone there who didn't know what he meant?

[Dave Damasek]

I like that. Like the quote, if you know what I mean. You don't get to do that when you're saying exactly what you mean.

[Greg Cote]

Who didn't understand.

[Dave Damasek]

It's like saying zaz got a big ass head, if you know what I mean.

[Amin Elhassan]

I know what you mean. Apparently, Kirby Smart, his writers. That was pretty good.

[Jeremy]

That was good.

[Greg Cote]

Good.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Tight five from him, by the way.

[Greg Cote]

All right.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Control the command with the mic, like waiting for the laughter to finish.

[Amin Elhassan]

Like it's a pro right there. The spur, your thing, it sung.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

I'm not sure he's kidding.

[Greg Cote]

Well, let's see. Let's see Mario's response. Let's give Mario a chance here.

[Tony]

I'll tell you what the first thing is.

[Amin Elhassan]

It's.

[Tony]

It's a great piece right there to watch. What. What a player like Carson Beck could do with great coaching.

[Dave Damasek]

You know what?

[Tony]

Seriously, let's give it up for Kirby Smart.

[Greg Cody]

Let's give it up.

[Amin Elhassan]

Let's give it up

[Tony]

for all his years of pre.

[Dave Damasek]

Nil.

[Tony]

We wouldn't have nil right now. Robinson family, great stuff. We leave at 9:30. On the real, we have more than one restaurant in Miami as opposed to Athens. Certainly appreciate being here. I know I could go on for

[Greg Cody]

a little bit now,

[Dave Damasek]

but.

[Dan LeBatard]

No, you got to give.

[Tony]

You got to give a guy like Kirby credit, you know, I mean, when you have all that time to sit at home watching us play on TV throughout the playoffs.

[Greg Cote]

Oh, shit.

[Tony]

If you don't take care of business, you know. But congratulations on the SEC and the championship.

[Mike Ryan]

That's awesome.

[Tony]

We were 50 against the SEC. I don't know what you were, but. Man, I'm in. I'm in enemy territory too.

[Greg Cote]

I got a feeling some of you

[Tony]

are on third and side. But no, you guys are super professional. I never felt so welcome in enemy territory. Except last year at the Swamp 4117.

[Dave Damasek]

But

[Greg Cote]

okay, let's. First of all, Mike, it's like, look at Mike Ryan.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

He was enjoying.

[Greg Cote]

He was.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

What are you doing with that hand?

[Greg Cote]

It's like you were at the Apollo.

[Jeremy]

He sounded like me when I was listening to Andrew FIREFRIEDMAN Talk about 30 change up.

[Amin Elhassan]

That was my first time seeing that. That was great.

[Greg Cote]

Okay, can we go around the room here? Who won that battle There Kirby Smart or Mario Criswell? Tony, who won there?

[Amin Elhassan]

Mario.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

You saw that.

[Mike Ryan]

You saw him working the stage too.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

He started walking to the other side, walked this way.

[Greg Cote]

It was great one for Mario.

[Zaslow (Zaz)]

Very clear setup, dude.

[Amin Elhassan]

That was a 10, 8 round.

[Greg Cote]

Jeremy.

[Jeremy]

Mario Cristobal.

[Greg Cote]

That's Chris, Kirby Amin, Zaz.

[Dave Damasek]

I go to roast battle whenever I'm in L. A. I know the roast battle people. I know Jeff Ross, all those guys. I'm going to tell you right now, I'm going to tell you right now that Mario crystal ball, he's got a welcome spot in the belly room at the comedy store. That was A1 material.

[Greg Cote]

Greg.

[Greg Cody]

I want that Mario Cristobal at all times every day.

[Dave Damasek]

Right?

[Greg Cody]

I want him in a post game speech. I want that Mario all the time. I thought that was brilliant. I don't know if he wrote all those jokes himself or.

[Greg Cote]

No, he didn't.

[Greg Cody]

Doesn't matter. He was great. He won.

[Mike Ryan]

Dave, listen, I like to debate things. Who's better than whom? But listen, credit to both of those guys. That was well done. The presentation from both. How did they both have those jokes holstered and delivered in the way they did? They both. I mean, it didn't appear that they were reading off of anything.

[Dave Damasek]

They. I, like I said, go to rose battle. A lot of times these comics they're reading off the phone, they're checking off their phone, their notes, like, what am I going to say about this guy? These guys going out the dome, they're not comedians. But like, like Tony said, the delivery, the pacing, the letting it breathe, it's all A1. Like, I have a new respect for both of those guys today.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, Kirby Smart did draw first blood. So Mario was sitting there, looked at his watch, said, I got time today.

[Dave Damasek]

But like, that's the part that I'm kind of confused about. It's like, yo, those were retorts. So how many of them could have been pre written?

[Amin Elhassan]

Well, because these were all things that were front of mind when we were chasing the playoffs and then in the playoffs, five and oh, against the sec

[Greg Cote]

and who was the kid that they were talking about?

[Amin Elhassan]

Mike Ellis Robinson, which was a great recruiting battle between Georgia and Miami. He ended up going to Georgia. It should be noted, plenty of Miami hurricanes, not good ones, but plenty of Miami hurricanes went to Georgia. They outnumbered the people that came over from Georgia.

[Jeremy]

Marlins right fielders. Gary Sheffield, Miguel Cabrera, Giancarlo Stanton.

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