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Dan Le Batard
You're listening to Giraffkings Network.
Stugatz
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Andrew Hawkins
The person who agonized four weeks over.
Stugatz
Whether to paint your walls eggshell or.
Andrew Hawkins
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Stugatz
They made it easy. Transparent terms, customizable. Down and monthly. Didn't even have to do any paperwork. Wow. Hey, have you checked out that spreadsheet I sent? Dinner options.
Andrew Hawkins
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Dan Le Batard
Shadow Show.
Chris Cody
Shadow Show.
Dan Le Batard
Shadow Show.
Chris Cody
Shadow Show.
Dan Le Batard
Shadow Show.
Chris Cody
Shadow Show.
Dan Le Batard
Shadow Show.
Chris Cody
Shadow Show.
Dan Le Batard
Shadow Show.
Mike Ryan
Shadow Show.
Dan Le Batard
Shadow Show. Shadowing it.
Stugatz
Shadowing it.
Dan Le Batard
I come in here today. That sound you heard of an exhale was Stugatz's. I come in here today and I see. Yeah, we're on. I see Andrew Hawkins. And I say to him by way of hello. Because I haven't seen him in a while. It's been a while, you know what. What do you have that's interesting to you these days? And he is totally silent for a while. And I move on with my morning. And there's just silence there. And then, I don't know, six minutes later, he shouts across the room, it's the year of the American white.
Chris Cody
Yeah, there it is.
Stugatz
He's right.
Mike Ryan
Yep. That's not wrong. And it took me a while to verbalize that in sports. That's the thing for me, especially in front of Stu Gotz, when I said that confetti fell from the ceiling. I don't even know how the hell he had it on cue, right? But sure enough, as soon as I said it, just fireworks.
Dan Le Batard
Do you care to elaborate? I mean, it seems obvious.
Mike Ryan
I mean, look, it's. It's. It seems obvious because it is, okay? And I. And I tried to deny it for a while, but Mac McClung being the three time NBA All Star Slam dunk champion was a thing. And when he first started jumping over things I'm like, all right, this will fade out. Somebody will catch up at some point.
Dan Le Batard
This was years ago. You were saying.
Mike Ryan
This is years ago. And I remember, actually, I think the first appearance that I made on this show, I introduced everybody to a man named Riley Moss, who was a cornerback at the time for Iowa. And I'm like, hey, buckle up. White cornerbacks are coming. And everyone was like, what are you talking about? And I had seen him play against my nephew. And fast forward to. Here we are. We got Cooper DeJean, we got Riley Moss, right? You got Cooper. You got Riley. You never have Riley Cooper. Let me be very clear on that. That's. You don't. You don't go there. Riley's good. Cooper's good. No, Riley Cooper, obviously. The Caitlin Clark taking over women's B basketball.
Chris Cody
Yep.
Mike Ryan
Right. Cooper cup. Cooper is like, Cooper flag. There's a lot of Coopers. Cooper's like the white Jalen right now.
Dan Le Batard
It's the year of the Cooper.
Billy Gil
Really, a couple years ago, under Chip Kelly, there was a moment.
Chris Cody
Yes.
Mike Ryan
Yeah, that's what we. Exactly. We don't. We don't go that one.
Billy Gil
Remember what a big deal that seemed like?
Mike Ryan
Yeah, that was a huge deal back then. But again, again, you can go Riley. You can go Cooper. You can't go Riley Cooper. That is the rule. So, yeah, it's. It's. If I would have told you, okay, coming into this season, there's going to be an NFL wide receiver who gets shot in the chest and then plays the next day because he was trying to get robbed for his chain. You wouldn't have thought of a white guy, Mike, that would. That would not be a thousand guesses.
Billy Gil
Took a couple weeks.
Mike Ryan
You wouldn't have got there. But this is. There's any.
Billy Gil
Did it happen in.
Mike Ryan
There's an evolution happening in American sports.
Billy Gil
Who's the leadership in the city?
Dan Le Batard
I. I have a number of different questions that I want to ask you, but when it comes to playing word association with a person, Riley Cooper, there's one thing you associate with him. It's not football player. It's not career. Like, the one thing. When I hear that name, all I think about, like, the first thing that floods to me is this guy was in the middle of using the N word at a. At a country concert.
Billy Gil
I think Kenny. Kenny Chesney. That's usually the word association that I do. Riley Cooper. Kenny Chesney.
Dan Le Batard
I associate him with only that thing.
Billy Gil
He was a part of that whole Gators team, which is really funny in retrospect.
Dan Le Batard
Again. We can.
Chris Cody
I don't think about that, though.
Dan Le Batard
We can do a whole resume if you want. I know there are other things on the resume.
Mike Ryan
The Gator thing is funny because that's his piece of the. Of the equation. Of all the different Gators players that got into trouble, his was saying the N word at a kidney Chesney party.
Dan Le Batard
All right, let's get started.
Stugatz
This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stugats podcast.
Dan Le Batard
Stugarts. I am curious if you had any sort of emotional or visceral reaction to the New York jets on their account. Thanking Aaron Rodgers for all of the memories, for everything you've given us.
Chris Cody
Name one.
Dan Le Batard
The past two years. Thank you, Number eight. You say the memory. The only memory I have is him getting injured after carrying the American flag on the field. Like, is there another memory of his jets career? Two years of the tenure, one of the greatest quarterbacks ever. The jets swallow him. I didn't think he deserved this goodbye. Did he deserve this goodbye from the New York Jets?
Chris Cody
He did not. There are two memories. It's him carrying the American flag, as you pointed out, and then him four plays later tearing his Achilles. That's about it. Thank you for nothing.
Dan Le Batard
I mean, well, how does this work? What is the other memory you guys have on two years of Aaron Rodgers? And how do jets fans feel about the entirety of the experience you got? Is it the end of Brett Favre's career with the Jets? Like, what?
Chris Cody
Brett Favre gave us something.
Billy Gil
Yeah, Brett almost made the playoffs.
Chris Cody
Almost made the playoffs.
Stugatz
Scandal.
Andrew Hawkins
He gave you that, too.
Chris Cody
I mean, for nine weeks. For nine weeks with Brett Favre, the Jets were the best team in the NFL. It was the best Jet. The best Jet team. Nine weeks.
Mike Ryan
I mean, he left it out there. Yeah, it was four plays, but you can't deny he left. He left his Achilles on the field for that franchise.
Billy Gil
You're talking about Brett.
Chris Cody
Yeah, he also left it out there.
Stugatz
All right.
Dan Le Batard
Really did. He did. I mean, it's true. Put it back up there again because I. I really do just want to look at this for a second.
Mike Ryan
And we were still talking about Brett far. But don't put that back up there.
Dan Le Batard
What the jets put up. Thank you. And for everything you've given us the past two years. Thank you, number eight. And my question is, what did the last two years. I don't know. I'm asking the question. Seriously.
Billy Gil
Nothing.
Dan Le Batard
What?
Chris Cody
I'm answering it. Seriously.
Mike Ryan
Popularity.
Chris Cody
No.
Mike Ryan
The jets have never been a part of the national conversation as often as they were in their franchise history.
Chris Cody
Yeah, but for the wrong reason.
Mike Ryan
Goes to the bottom line, though.
Chris Cody
No, I know, but we've always been like a team that everyone's made fun of and this kind of ratchet that up because you got an MVP quarterback. The greatest quarterback, I would say, in franchise history. Right. And in four plays, that's over. That whole dream is over.
Stugatz
What about hope?
Mike Ryan
Does hope mean nothing to you? You had so much hope.
Chris Cody
I have hope every August.
Mike Ryan
Today you woke up in those mornings feeling like you had a chance.
Chris Cody
No, that one morning. Yes.
Dan Le Batard
Hope and sales. At the beginning, he was good for hope and sales. That can't be disputed. Like he was good for business at the beginning. But then you're theorizing that the rest of what he gives is just attention to the jets, but it's not good attention. And then it becomes Chris Cody's theory of in the modern age, all attention is good attention. It doesn't even matter whether it is good or bad. You just make yourself more famous and that's the currency of the day.
Mike Ryan
That's not wrong. It's not a wrong take. And maybe I'm a little biased because the Browns gave me a beautiful thank you when I left after losing many of games, never seeing a playoff. But you, I mean, you talking about the love that they shouted me out with right after I left that organization. And I'm no Aaron Rodgers, so I'm.
Chris Cody
Like, you know, are you trying to convince me that I'm going to miss Aaron Rodgers?
Mike Ryan
I think you will.
Chris Cody
Is that what you're doing? I won't.
Dan Le Batard
I'm not sure actually, like, what are they going to do at quarterback? And Andrew Hawkins at least got his big goodbye from the Browns because he represents one of the great things in sports that everyone can embrace, which is the underdog. Aaron Rodgers was not that he's not the gritty underdog.
Billy Gil
Hawkins was also good for the Browns, whereas Aaron wasn't good for the Jets.
Stugatz
Yes.
Andrew Hawkins
Well, how often did you SK training camp to go to Egypt or whatever?
Mike Ryan
It was only that one year, Jessica. No, I never skipped training camp. No, I was. I was a show up guy for sure. When you're under 5 8, you kind of have to show up for everything.
Dan Le Batard
Well, but it wasn't on the Browns that you decided, I didn't really have a choice on the Browns. It wasn't where you said on the sidelines, I will not punt return during an exhibition.
Mike Ryan
No, that was the Cincinnati Bengals. And they also gave me a beautiful goodbye when I left Their organization.
Billy Gil
And then there was that one time where he was at training camp and he's like, I don't feel like doing this anymore. Tom Brady, Bill Belichick.
Mike Ryan
Yeah. Okay. All right. So maybe I am a little more Aaron Rodger than it looks like on the surface. Okay. Which is. Plays into my point. It's okay to thank him for coming to the Cuz he had to move a lot of mountains to go to the Jets.
Chris Cody
Right.
Mike Ryan
He had other places he could have gone at that time. This was the place that he chose. It didn't work out. It's okay to break up amicably and say, hey, no hard feelings. Thank you for the times that we had Stu guts.
Chris Cody
I can have hard feelings. I can.
Billy Gil
Okay, we've covered this a couple of times, but I thought you were going to kill it in New England. You patterned your game after Wes Welker, and you're the quickest man alive. And I'd seen you in Cleveland. I'm like, finally, the world's going to learn how good Andrew Hawkins is going to be. He's going to become a superstar in New England. Was it just not going that way in camp? Did you not feel the same? Because I kind of felt like it was going to work out.
Mike Ryan
I felt. This is no bs. I felt as quick as I ever had in my life in the off season with the New England Patriots. And it wasn't the work because everyone's like, oh, you get there and it's hard. There's not like, I'm not scared of work. I'm a workaholic, actually. So, like, if I was addicted to crack, like, you're not going to scare me with crack. It's a. It's a good thing in that the right in the middle of my work addiction. The problem was it was miserable, and it was miserable for a lot of things. And it was like, man, this just doesn't feel like at all what I want to do. My knee was hurting, and I locked up for, like, four weeks that off season. And so once I got there, by, like, day two, no bs, I was like, yeah, this isn't gonna work for me. There was no light in the building.
Dan Le Batard
Well, I wanna ask you about this. Okay. I wanna ask you about the. Not just the Patriot way. We were having this conversation last week about. I think it was Billy who said, you run a. Oh, no, it was Greg Cody who said, I run a loose ship. And I was like, I thought everybody wanted a loose ship. I thought that that would be more fun than Whatever it is that the Patriots do. But the Patriots do also win and could get, or did could also get trick that the reason they won is because they did it with no lights that way. So let me play some sound here of Cam Newton talking the other day about, like, what loser culture is and how Cam Newton felt walking into the Carolina locker room. He's on Travis Hunter's podcast here.
Mike Ryan
How did you handle the pressure of being the top pick?
Jessica
Let's put it in perspective. You're the top pick because what.
Mike Ryan
Where you play.
Jessica
No, no, no, no. You're looking at it from a personal situation. I'm talking about from the professional situation. You're the top pick because that was the worst team in the NFL for me. I wanted to be the number one pick. You could potentially be the first pick, but, bro, you have no way of impacting the game like a quarterback does. You can lock down the number one receiver. You can make impact plays on offense all you want, but it's still not like a quarterback. My issue is, when I was the first pick, I went into a locker room of losers. Guys didn't know how to win. Guys didn't know how to prepare. It was a culture shock for me. The games don't mean a lot to a lot of people in the league like you would expect. It's just money. Not everybody has capabilities to be impacted players.
Dan Le Batard
They're just players. He pissed off that locker room. Pissed off Steve Smith by calling him a loser.
Mike Ryan
I love Steve Smith. Big fan of Steve Smith. Not a guy I would want to piss off.
Stugatz
Right.
Mike Ryan
In an older time. He's mature. Very mature guy now. But in his heyday, yeah, he broke.
Dan Le Batard
The eye socket of teammates.
Billy Gil
He's still not somebody.
Mike Ryan
He's a tough dude. I don't want to piss him off.
Chris Cody
As long as he's alive. And maybe after, to be honest with you. Yeah.
Stugatz
Total respect when it comes to addictions, because you mentioned being addicted to crack. Like, when is. When is it like an addiction? And when are you an olic? Like, why aren't they crackaholics?
Dan Le Batard
Put it on the poll place great question at Lebatard show. Why aren't they crackaholics?
Stugatz
They're crack addicts, right?
Dan Le Batard
Not crackaholics, crack heads or crack addicts. They're not crackaholics. I've never heard crackaholic.
Mike Ryan
Yeah, that's a good.
Dan Le Batard
The losers in the locker room, but they do when Cam Newton says that. I can imagine Steve Smith bristling. But I want to ask you about the idea of what is the right line between having joy in the workplace and having misery in the workplace because of the distance between we've got too many rules or not enough rules.
Mike Ryan
Yeah. I don't think it's. There isn't a line. And I think that's the whole. The whole point. I don't know if the Chiefs, who, yes, they just lost the super bowl in a huge fashion, but you talk about success in a dynasty. They don't do this, do it the same way that the New England Patriots do it. That doesn't mean that because they're having fun and they have better marketing agents, that they're not still a dynasty and a culture of winning.
Stugatz
Right.
Mike Ryan
And I think for me, even when it comes to New England, and I. I say that it was miserable for me because I was 31 years old, I had three children. I had been playing professional football at that by that time for 10 years, chasing this dream which took me from living on somebody's couch to working in a factory to all these, like, ridiculous things. And my goal, I'm not BSing when I say this, was literally to play one game. So, no, I didn't come into the league thinking I was going to be a Pro Bowler. I didn't have any conception of thinking that I was going to get a second contract. I had, like, nothing. One game was all I wanted. So by 31 years old, and I'm walking down a hallway for 20 yards, me and just a coach. And when we get close, as we inch towards each other and I'm new and we get right beside each other, I say, hey, what's up, coach? And they look at you and just keep walking. I'm like, okay, yeah, no, I can't do this at this age. Maybe at 25, when I was incredibly hungry and I was just trying to prove myself and, you know, at that.
Dan Le Batard
You got your feelings hurt by that.
Mike Ryan
I didn't get my feelings hurt. It was that I didn't want to.
Chris Cody
Sadness and a loneliness to it.
Mike Ryan
Hey, mother. I said, what's up? You didn't hear me right? Don't do that. I didn't want to go there because I'm new here and because that's how I feel now, because I have children that I would rather be at home with at this time. That's why it was the wrong time.
Dan Le Batard
Let me ask you this part, because we like to dismiss people who care very deeply and get to the top 1% of the top 1% as losers when they lose. I saw. I Think it was Ben Axelrod who had this stat the other day while you were there. The Browns were 1 in 31, passed on three MVP quarterbacks in the draft with the first pick while going 11 in 31 and had their two best players request trades that they got from the 1 and 31. That's loser. That's in terms of a two year span. You will rarely see more loser than that in the NFL.
Chris Cody
Yeah, but Hawk is saying his personal goal was just to play a single game. He played 74.
Dan Le Batard
But I'm, but I'm curious. When Cam says that most of the guys in locker room didn't care the way he, they cared about money, that wasn't the locker room you were walking into with the Patriots, was it?
Mike Ryan
No, and I won't say that was the locker room that I was with with the Browns or the Bengals either. Like, you have 53 people. Yes. Everybody's motivations are gonna be different. My motivation was to play one game, but I'm also a maniac when it comes to living up to expectation. So I approached every day like it was a game because I was scared to death I was gonna get cut. So that is not fun. That is not fun to feel like if you make one mistake, you're gonna have trouble feeding your family. And so my standard, even though it was one game, was my goal, my standard never changed whether I was with the Browns, Patriots, Bengals or whatever. And there's other guys that I don't think. It's crazy to think about. People who grew up in poverty. Yes. Some people's goal is just not to be in poverty anymore.
Chris Cody
Right.
Mike Ryan
And it comes down to the fact, can you maintain whatever level of excellence that you got to to become the 1% of the 1%, or even if you won the genetic lottery, maybe a large majority of the guys in the NFL, it isn't work ethic, it isn't how you approach it. It is you won the genetic lottery. And because you're 6 foot 6 and you run a 44 with the 42 inch vertical leap, everybody understands. Well, even if you're not motivated and working hard, you're still better than the 57 kid from Toledo. Like, we'll still give you a shot. We have a better chance of winning with you than this guy. And so, yeah, it's not a surprise that it is a lot of luck to construct a locker room that has that right mix of guys who have the right mentality, that has the right mix of genetics as well. And also as a quarterback who aligns with where you are in that time. Most championship dynasties and teams have that going for them.
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Stugatz
Don LeBatard so, like, there was a time that, and I'll tell you who this person is that I admired and I said, that'd be a great career for me. Ryan Seacrest Stugats. And then to take it a step further, you know, just a couple weeks ago, James Corden was stepping down and said, you know who'd be a great replacement for him? Me. I could do that. I could replace James Corden.
Billy Gil
I actually agree with you on that.
Stugatz
If I don't have to move to LA and I could just do this somewhere near the Tamiami area. Like they have an old, you know, theater that's kind of abandoned right now. Maybe we do something there. I mean, people like to come to.
Billy Gil
My Kmart into your late, late show studio.
Stugatz
I didn't even think about that.
Mike Ryan
Wow, that's a theater right there.
Stugatz
This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stugach.
Dan Le Batard
Roy. Jess, were you as surprised as I was? Because he just mentioned not being surprised. Were you guys as surprised as I was to see Billy pop up at the Daytona 500 out of nowhere with no announcement? It's not as surprising to me as Cartersville, Georgia, and Billy Gilday was that he took his Whole family there unannounced. But I was surprised. Were you guys surprised?
Stugatz
Absolutely.
Dan Le Batard
Like, he probably wasn't there for the race.
Billy Gil
He had to have been there for something else, right?
Stugatz
No, no, you were there for the race. Yeah. Like, I mean, if you want to know the nuts and bolts of it, someone from NASCAR reached out to me a couple of weeks ago and I said, super bowl is coming up. Let's. We'll figure this out. And then super bowl came and went and we ended up, you know, in Daytona, the great American race.
Dan Le Batard
You went with Matt Coogler, producer of South Beach Sessions. You went with Matt Coogler. He was. I have never seen such joy out of what happened here. Where's the gearhead? I thought we didn't talk about. Thank you. I thought we didn't talk about Daytona 500 unless there was a gearhead. Why were you there? How were you there? Was Pitbull related, right?
Stugatz
Pitbull happened to be there. Demi Lovato was there the night before at a private party that we went to. So, I mean, it's a whole thing. Like, you just kind of. It's a big event. Great American race. It's the super bowl of motorsports, many say. Even though it's the first race. So we had to go at State, Tony. It's a quick drive up. We drove up. We, you know, we were going back and forth. I talked to Carl. I finally. I think maybe I'm going to be able to expense the place that we stayed that night so we can go cover the race the next day and. Yeah, I mean, if you invite us there and it's, you know, reasonable and we can make it happen. We'll go cover your event if Pitbull's there. Well, Pitbull being. Honestly, like, I didn't know because Billy was there. I didn't know Pitbull was there when I agreed.
Chris Cody
When you said yes.
Stugatz
Yeah. I didn't know Demi Lovato was gonna.
Billy Gil
Be supposed to be there last year. And then they had weather delays and so this was like a makeup date for Pitbull.
Stugatz
Yeah, I think last year he was supposed to perform. And then it got canceled. Not canceled, but, like, pushed back to the next day. And there was like a spoiler alert. There was. Well, I guess not spoiler. You could easily check in on what happened. The Daytona 500, but it rained after like 11 laps and there was a very lengthy delay. And then they have to drive around and they have to dry the track with special drying cars. It's a fun time have you ever been, Dan?
Dan Le Batard
I have and I find when you say find a cheap place to play, obviously I think outside of biker week, maybe biker. It's got to be the biggest weekend in Daytona. It's got to be bigger than biker week. Right? Like, I don't think there are cheap places or easy places to stay in Daytona during the Great American race.
Stugatz
Well, you'll find out.
Chris Cody
He's expensing it.
Stugatz
Yeah. We stayed in New Smyrna beach, about 35 minutes away and then we drove over an Airbnb. Lovely place to stay. Chad, great host. If anyone has any recommendations or looking for a place to stay in New Smyrna beach, stay at Chad's place. It was nice.
Billy Gil
The world center of racing in Daytona is really awe inspiring in terms of a sporting venue. Like I don't know how it comes across on tv, but having been there and seen it, it is a really huge, impressive thing. It's one of those. It's kind of like the sphere. It has to be seen to be believed at how huge it was. I'm so happy that Billy went because I know he's a gearhead. It's not his first Daytona. He's been to Homestead.
Stugatz
I've been to more Daytona 500s than Super Bowls.
Dan Le Batard
Put it on the poll, please. At Lebatard show. Bigger weekend in Daytona. Spring break Biker Week or Daytona 500 weekend?
Stugatz
Daytona 500. Come on.
Chris Cody
Of course it is.
Mike Ryan
I feel like we're glossing over how good of a dancer Matt Coogler was in that clip.
Billy Gil
Yeah, Coogler was, but that's what pit bull.
Stugatz
It was embarrassing, to be honest, because he did it the night before and we were like at this NASCAR event with big NASCAR bigwigs there and Jersey Jerry from Barstool was there too. And Cougs is just dancing up a storm like that. Can you please stop it? No one else is dancing, but he's.
Mike Ryan
Really smooth with it. That's not like that's not his first rodeo. That is in the mirror. Probably a lot of minutes and times logged at home to get that kind of just the shoulder symmetry to the beat. I can't hear the music, but I can hear it in my head because.
Billy Gil
I'm watching it because, you know, it's Pitbull, which by the way, we need to talk about what a professional pit bull is because he could have very easily said, I'm not doing that. In fact, he's no longer with Trackhouse Racing. But he's a professional. Even though Mother Nature got in the way last year. As he famously once said, they can't, they won't, they never will. Stop the party.
Dan Le Batard
All right, let's play this again so that everyone can see how wrong they were about Coogler being infectious. I want you to watch the bearded guy on the left.
Chris Cody
Watch the guy I'm focused on.
Dan Le Batard
He gets into it. Like you're saying he didn't get anyone else into it. And I say you're wrong. That bearded. He got that bearded guy. He was a leader. Coogler was a leader and he got everyone in there on that flat footed shoulder dance that doesn't involve lifting your feet anywhere off of the ground. It's just flat footed.
Mike Ryan
Yep.
Billy Gil
Look at all these people. Look at all the. Look at all the lives Pipple is touching right now, man. Boss is over.
Mike Ryan
I know how Kluger pulls now. I can see he's like, he's getting to get me in the. Put the music on and watch me become the center of attention.
Dan Le Batard
They. They should have played that on Saturday night on live television for three hours as part of the 50 year Saturday night Live anniversary. I want to talk about that in just a second.
Billy Gil
Transition.
Dan Le Batard
Well, the reason I'm transitioning. I'll tell you why I'm transitioning. I'm going to sit, I'm going to give you the secret of what this transition is. Billy, you laugh, but wait until you hear why the transition made an appearance. Louis said to me, hey, I've got four videos from Daytona. And then after 30 seconds he's like, none of them are good.
Billy Gil
Whoa, whoa, wait, wait a second. Hold on.
Dan Le Batard
That's what just happened. That's why.
Billy Gil
Impossible.
Dan Le Batard
That's why it just happened.
Billy Gil
Impossible. I was told in my NASCAR group chat, which Billy, if you want, and let me know that Billy had the best interview with Joey Logano anyone's ever seen.
Dan Le Batard
That's what I was told. But I was told the four videos that we have ready are not ready to go right now. And that's why you got the transition that you did. Thank you for just leaving it out there without pointing it out to everybody.
Stugatz
I don't know how that pops it out.
Dan Le Batard
So tell me what I'm throwing it to and we'll jump.
Stugatz
I have no idea what they have.
Dan Le Batard
Okay, very good. So let's throw it to the front. First video that Lewis says isn't good enough without context, as Billy doesn't know what video we're throwing it to.
Stugatz
What a day in Daytona.
Mike Ryan
Don't stop the party. Electric.
Stugatz
How many of these People do we think are here just for Pitbull? Most of them. Look at. Look at this. No one's in their seats. They're here at the stage watching pit. What a day. This is what NASCAR is about. This is what it's about. That's how you open a NASCAR season. Just like that. I'm home.
Billy Gil
That video was good enough.
Stugatz
That video was good enough. Singing, it's not exactly showing off nascar.
Billy Gil
Look at the access that fans have at a NASCAR race. You tried doing that at Formula one. Everyone turned up. This is like minutes before the race starts, minutes before the president has access to the speed.
Stugatz
You're like five feet away from the president. Like you can virtually do whatever you want.
Billy Gil
You're writing your name on the finish line.
Stugatz
Yeah, I did that. I wrote my name on the track. The way we opened the video, like I was on. It was in pit row on the wall as the cars are driving by, just shooting a start to a video. And it wasn't because, like, I was a special person. I just. Just stood there for 30 minutes so that I would have that spot.
Dan Le Batard
I will tell you that I really enjoyed just moments ago hearing Lewis in my ear cringe as Stugatz whispered to Billy in the talk back. That's the way you expense it when. When that video was played at the concert. Let's play another video here. That Lewis is deemed not good enough.
Stugatz
He's now in control and can play a video to tank well, but he.
Dan Le Batard
Was wrong on the first one. So let's see what else we've got.
Stugatz
67Th running of the Daytona 5 at Daytona International Speedway. The fans, as you can see, are lining up and they're getting ready for Pitbull, who's going to be hitting the stage shortly. Bit of a sad day. Pitbull had a falling out with his race team two days ago, so he's no longer part of trackhouse racing, unfortunately. So some are saying this may be his swan song. This may be his last performance for nascar. Time will tell, but. But just very lucky that we're here for this moment in history when Pitbull is going to sing one, maybe last time at Daytona International Speedway. Sir, are you excited for Pitbull today? I'm sorry? Are you excited for Pitbull today?
Mike Ryan
Oh, yeah, yeah.
Stugatz
Definitely sad that he had a falling out with Trackhouse Racing. I'm good, thank you. Okay. He seemed too emotional to speak on that.
Dan Le Batard
Two for two.
Mike Ryan
Good one.
Chris Cody
That's how you do it. Billy.
Dan Le Batard
Billy. Were you recognized by many people there? I Don't. I don't see us as having much. I don't see people in NASCAR checking in on this show for our NASCAR information and NASCAR coverage, no matter how hard Mike tries.
Stugatz
I was asked by many people. They came up to me just because they saw the camera, the microphone, like you a YouTuber. And I'm like, kind of. It's complicated. Like, let's just say yes for now.
Dan Le Batard
Let's play a third video of Billy at the Daytona 500 as Meadowlark Media tries to expand its coverage to see if we could grab some NASCAR fans.
Stugatz
Ends Daytona Motor Speedway International. Daytona International Speedway, the Super bowl of racing. Even though it's the first race, which is like, weird because normally the super bowl is the end of the year. Not normally. It's always at the end of the year.
Dan Le Batard
What's this music?
Stugatz
And that's where they determine the champion. That's the first race of the year, but it's the super bowl here. Daytona International Speedway. Check out the crowd here. It looks empty at the moment, but it's going to fill up. We're expecting a big crowd today. Weather. I don't know if it's going to cooperate, but we're expecting a big crowd.
Chris Cody
Went out on a limb there.
Dan Le Batard
Andrew, are you. You're walk. You're writing things down here. You're taking notes on Billy's.
Chris Cody
On how to expense.
Mike Ryan
I'm just trying to grade number one. How do you get things expensed at this company? That's important. I have a two hour commute every morning I come here. And also number just like some. Okay. Why was this looked at as not being good enough? And I'm taking notes for each video, so.
Billy Gil
All right, well, come ready because we're sending you to Talladega.
Mike Ryan
All right. Hopefully you have security, but. All right, we'll talk later.
Dan Le Batard
We're going to get to your notes in a second. Were. Were you with Demi Lovato? Were you. What were you doing there?
Stugatz
We were just at like a private party the night before that we were invited to for like NASCAR big wigs at an airport hangar. And then we saw the schedule and it's like, well, Demi Lovato is performing and we're like, really? Okay, well, now we have to go. And it was cinematic as we were walking and we weren't on the list, which, you know, it was a whole thing. And then we had to figure out how we were on the list, who we had to go through. It was a whole thing. But as we were walking in Demi's Hitting the stage and confident just starts playing. And then we were like watching or like, oh, we can get a little bit closer. Like we can get a little bit closer. And then it got to a point where like, like, this is close enough. Like, like you can literally like just walk up and be hanging out on the stage because it was like such a private party and everyone was just like talking their NASCAR in the back. And we were just there for Demi and like we were probably 15ft away from the stage just. Cuz we didn't want to get any closer and make it awkward.
Dan Le Batard
Let's. Let's see some of that video and see if Billy went 4 for 4 over Lewis's object.
Billy Gil
Is this an IG story? What is this? This is not.
Dan Le Batard
More Coogler dancing. And now, now Lewis is worried we're gonna get flagged by.
Stugatz
Oh yeah, this video is not gonna be on YouTube anymore because of that. I don't know why we heard that. I will tell you this. We had.
Chris Cody
Lewis tried to tell you.
Stugatz
You saw Thomas there. Thomas, like, it was the weirdest thing. Demi Lovato in the middle of the concert, pointed at Thomas and said, I love this guy. I love his energy. And then went back and continued singing because he was dancing. And she'd say things like, you guys may know this song. And then he'd scream out. And then you could see how close we were. He'd scream out, we know all of them. Demi, he's beaming.
Dan Le Batard
He is totally radiant. Look at him. That right there, you just caught him. That's the happiest he has ever been right there, just staring at that songbird in the middle of the NASCAR airplane hangar.
Stugatz
What a performer, by the way. Demi Lovato live. We thought because this is like a corporate event, like maybe we'd be mailing it in and like just be like going through the motions. Lip syncing potentially. No.
Billy Gil
Did she do heart Attack?
Stugatz
She. Oh, of course she did a heart attack. She did heart attack. She was. She was. Look at that. That was us when we decided, you.
Chris Cody
Know, she's playing right now.
Billy Gil
Posing for yourself.
Stugatz
Yeah, yeah. That was in the middle of a song. She came up.
Mike Ryan
We got right up with.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah. He really had five minutes.
Billy Gil
This is the biggest crew anyone's ever had for an event.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah.
Mike Ryan
This is amazing.
Billy Gil
Where's the Legato interview? Is there. Where's the greatest Joey Logano interview that has ever been? A minute.
Stugatz
How wrong people were calling us the Demi Lovat bros. How.
Dan Le Batard
How wrong was Lewis? Here I've got a beaming Andrew Hawkins here.
Mike Ryan
This is incredible. First off, this is the most I've ever watched any coverage of the Daytona 500. I'll be honest, never even.
Stugatz
We haven't seen a car yet.
Billy Gil
I'm being told the Logano interview is a YouTube exclusive.
Mike Ryan
What?
Billy Gil
I'm just going to watch that on YouTube.
Stugatz
Thanks. Yeah, sure thing. Hey, you sold that car yet?
Lewis
Yeah, sold it to Carvana.
Andrew Hawkins
Oh, I thought you were selling to that guy.
Chris Cody
The guy who wanted to pay me.
Lewis
In foreign currency, no interest over 36 months.
Billy Gil
Yeah.
Dan Le Batard
No.
Stugatz
Carvana gave me an offer in minutes, picked it up and paid me on the spot.
Mike Ryan
It was so convenient.
Stugatz
Just like that.
Mike Ryan
Yep.
Dan Le Batard
No hassle.
Mike Ryan
None.
Stugatz
That is super convenient.
Andrew Hawkins
Sell your car to Carvana and swap. Hassle. For convenience. Pickup fees may apply.
Chris Cody
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Stugatz
Lebatard Photography is not as hard as it's made out to be. And now with computers, I mean, you can make anything look like anything. It's almost cheating. It's not fair. If you push a button, it takes a thousand pictures. You're gonna find a good one in the batch.
Dan Le Batard
There were a lot of photographers there taking a thousands of pictures. One got that photograph. Okay, good retort stugats.
Stugatz
Haven't you ever passed by photographers? I guarantee you when that shot was taken, we didn't just hear. That's not what you heard. If you were by that camera.
Dan Le Batard
In.
Billy Gil
My ear with that.
Lewis
He does a good camera.
Stugatz
This is the Dan Levatar show with the stug.
Dan Le Batard
Why was this the best interview? Logano is a famously not great interview. Right?
Billy Gil
Logano's actually. He's got a sparkling media career. I don't know how well he's gonna handle like Billy interviewing him, but it.
Stugatz
Was quick it was like a quick walk and talk. I think we asked maybe like three questions and I will say not to betray anyone, but like afterwards his people were like, what the hell was that? That.
Billy Gil
So Logano is a Cup Series champion, reigning Cup Series champion, controversial Cup Series champion from last year. But I think from what I've heard, Billy was a little confused as to what type of champion he was.
Stugatz
Giving that information right before, he's like.
Billy Gil
Hey, you think you're going to go back to back here? And he's like, what do you mean here? He's like, yeah, back to back here.
Stugatz
I. I was like, you know, we're going to go back to back. And he goes back to back. And then he paused. He goes championship at the end of the year. I was like, yeah, that was, that was pretty much it. Yeah, stuff like that.
Billy Gil
Yeah, he didn't win the Daytona 500 last year. He certainly didn't win it this year.
Stugatz
Well, that's because the three guys we spoke to crashed into each other and all eliminated each other from the race. Jinxed them.
Billy Gil
It's all very, it's very random. Although William Byron Wins for a second consecutive year. How about that? The 24 car.
Mike Ryan
I just feel like we should have opened with, with these videos with this conversation. This has been my favorite part of the show, to be honest with you.
Dan Le Batard
I think Mike has some video of a wreck that he has wanted to show.
Billy Gil
Oh, the Ryan Priest thing. Did you guys see that? So, like these, I don't know if we have that. I'll give video some time. But either way, like these next gen cars, you'll see sometimes when they're getting real close to one another, the flaps will go up and that's to keep these cars grounded because it's been an issue at nascar, especially at super speedways because they travel so much faster, cars getting airborne. There have been really gnarly wrecks over at Daytona 500 going up into the barriers, putting the lives of people in the crowd in danger. So everyone wants to keep these cars on the ground. In fact, Ryan Priest last year had a nasty wreck in which it forced Daytona to chop up some of the grass that they have over there in the infield and pave it because the grass also helped make this cargo airborne. But here's ryan Preec, the 60 car goes airborne for the second straight year at Daytona. And it was horrific to watch live. It's amazing. These guys just get up and walk away. When you juxtapose that from what happened 24 years ago with Dale Earnhardt, which looks rather innocuous compared to that. And we lost Dale. That's just crazy.
Dan Le Batard
I've seen tires come off of those cars, and I just. Just get terrified at the idea of if that hit a person, if somehow the safety measures and the protective nettings weren't good enough, like, that would kill several people. Just a tire flying into the crowd.
Stugatz
How many sets of tires do you think they use at Daytona International Speedway for the Daytona 500? If you were to guess, betting man, how many sets of tires?
Chris Cody
Four sets of tires.
Stugatz
Good guess, Dan.
Dan Le Batard
I'm going to say a thousand.
Stugatz
Thousand? Well, I meant per car. Like, per car.
Dan Le Batard
A thousand per car. So somewhere between four and a thousand.
Mike Ryan
All right, Hawk, I thought you just.
Dan Le Batard
Asked how many tires. And so I was counting all the set tires.
Stugatz
These cars have four tires?
Mike Ryan
Yeah, I would say 20.
Stugatz
20. Okay. For this race, they only use seven sets of tires. How much do you guys think each set of tires cost?
Dan Le Batard
Oh, those. They've got to be thousands of dollars.
Chris Cody
No, they've got to be 400 bucks.
Stugatz
Okay.
Mike Ryan
I think if you get the premium, like, I paid, like 800 bucks or something like that for my set.
Stugatz
Okay.
Dan Le Batard
One of the most amazing things I have ever seen my father do before I knew what Hialeah was here in South Florida was back when he ruled Hialeah. He took me through a labyrinth of alleys and places. A door opened and they sold me a spare tire for $10. $10?
Billy Gil
Is that your guess?
Stugatz
Yeah, $10. Your guess for the set. Remember, it's four, the set. Okay, so $40, $2,800 for the set of four tires.
Mike Ryan
Well, those ones aren't stolen. So that's why. That's the difference between. When you.
Dan Le Batard
Have any of you ever bought something from someone either roaming around South Florida in a van filled with electronics equipment or bought something at a gas station from somebody who's just hustling, selling some independent stolen things. Have ever, any of you ever purchased from one of the vans in South Florida that pulls up next to you and says, would you like to buy?
Billy Gil
No, cheap. Typically, if a. If a van pulls up next to me, I try to avoid it.
Stugatz
Yeah.
Chris Cody
I sprint away.
Billy Gil
Nothing good happens if a good van.
Dan Le Batard
But you guys have all had this happen to you, correct?
Billy Gil
No.
Mike Ryan
Usually like this, the specificity of the van is what's throwing me off.
Billy Gil
Right.
Dan Le Batard
You gotta have a lot of room for the electronic equipment.
Stugatz
I think I told you I had a guy pull up to me, like in a van in a Home Depot Parking lot. Like, I was walking out. I had bought, like, a planter. And he's like, hey, hey, hey. You need a home sound system. Like, I have a whole surround sound, all these speakers. He's like, opening it up, and I'm like, where is this going? Like, I'm very confused by this interaction. He's like, oh, you know, like, I'm a contractor, and we ordered too many for this project that I'm on. So normally, likely. Normally, this is, like, a $7,000 sound system, but I could. I could probably give it to you for, like, three. And I'm like, does this man think that I'm just walking around with $3,000 to give him for a sound system system? In the event that someone came up to me with a van, like, full of electronic. It was the strange thing. I'm like, no, I have a small house. That's why I just kept telling, like, no, no, I have a small house. Like, no, this is Good Friday. I'm like, no, it's. It's. I have kids. It's gonna be too loud. Like, I just. I can't make this work. Thank you, though. Maybe next time. I think I hit him with a maybe next time.
Mike Ryan
Was it before or after he saw you hanging out with Demi Lovato?
Stugatz
Oh, this is way before. He didn't know I was a Levat pro at the time.
Mike Ryan
I was gonna say maybe that's why he thought you had three cages.
Stugatz
Yeah.
Mike Ryan
In a back pocket.
Dan Le Batard
Well, the idea that you would have any cash has had to be years ago, because no one's carrying cash. But 3,000, doll, certainly. I like the idea of the van pulling up with a credit card machine.
Stugatz
Like, I can tell you this, you don't need cash or a credit card machine when you have Venmo or. Yeah, I mean, it's easy to do. Boom. Boom. Venmo also sponsors our fine bucket. I don't know if you knew that, Dan Hawk. Sometimes, you know, we'll get fines for doing things sponsored by Venmo. Incredible.
Chris Cody
Well done.
Dan Le Batard
Hawk, what are your notes here on all of Billy's videos and his coverage for Daytona 500 that involved four other people and the first dancing Coogler I've ever seen.
Stugatz
The four. The three people. First of all, I will tell you this. This. That trip. You don't need to know the budgets for these things. That trip was, like, maybe $700 for four people to go to Daytona 500. It was like, next to nothing that we paid. It was like. Like a discount. I should Be. I should be up charging and put a premium on that. You know what I mean? Maybe put in some gas miles or. Or something. There's. But we had. We needed to have there someone for the social clips to get out there. We got those clips out.
Mike Ryan
Boom.
Stugatz
Right like that. Boom, boom, boom, boom. Not to say that we didn't see anything from All Star weekend, but boom. We got some NASCAR clips out almost immediately. Boom, boom, boom.
Dan Le Batard
We didn't. And we got some.
Stugatz
We got some other out there.
Dan Le Batard
We got eight people. I'm sure we'll get it by next All Star game. Let's play some video here. One more video of Billy at Daytona 500.
Stugatz
I think I'm home. Hello, sir. How are you? Who do we like today? Who are we liking today? Chase Briscoe, please. Really? Yes. You think that today's the day for Chase? Sure. Hoping so. Hope we can get the race in. Hoping it's a lead Briscoe today. You know what I mean? Yes, all the way. It's the number nine car coming through here. Taylor, be careful. Careful. It's a good looking car. Are we number nine guys? Is that Chase? Elliot something? Elliot. We're Elliott guys. I think. Here we go. The 48 car. A historic number in NASCAR. 48. Bowman's driving it today. I think we might be bowmen today here supporting the 48. You know what I mean, Billy? I like it. I like how we're looking so far. Good day.
Dan Le Batard
I am willing to authorize right now budget for you to be the correspondent at events where you have no expertise and just.
Stugatz
No expertise.
Dan Le Batard
Just wandering.
Stugatz
I was in the trailers. Gragson. Yeah.
Chris Cody
You got Bowman, right?
Billy Gil
I think it's.
Dan Le Batard
You got the historic number 4948. Whatever.
Stugatz
I mean, Jimmy Johnson. Come on everybody.
Chris Cody
If you guess, Elliot, you have a good chance of being right.
Mike Ryan
Yeah.
Chris Cody
Correct.
Stugatz
I mean I saw his name on the car. It's over the window.
Billy Gil
I mean he is the son of Bill Elliot.
Stugatz
I can't confirm or deny that this is a trick.
Billy Gil
Awesome. Bill from Dawson. Bill.
Mike Ryan
It's easy to see why Billy has his own day because this is not only.
Stugatz
I heard that you were shitting on that. I gotta tell you where it got to me that you were really pooh poohing that situation.
Mike Ryan
I was poo pooing the situation. I was not. That was not the sentiment.
Stugatz
I heard you said no big deal or something along those lines. I've had many a day.
Mike Ryan
No, they discredited my day because I didn't have an official seal on the declaration. But I did have a seal. And then they put up a picture of the music artist seal because he was black. And so it was just. It was a. It was a whole thing.
Stugatz
Billy, this is what. They try to divide us. This is what they. Exactly.
Mike Ryan
I just want you to know, not only am I proud of your day.
Stugatz
Thank you.
Mike Ryan
Those were the five best content clips that this show has to offer.
Stugatz
Wow.
Mike Ryan
Okay. And the reason why I gave some notes. Number one, they could have cut that one down by about 61.
Stugatz
Some of them were long.
Mike Ryan
You know, a little long. That was a little long. Number two, they could have cut right to the interview of the guy when you said, are you excited to see Pitbull? He says, yes. That's great. Content. Number three was kind of an opening that should have led all the videos because no one's in the stands yet. So it kind of gives you a little bit of a build up.
Stugatz
But you got to see the opening to the video package on YouTube. Oh, what an electric opening.
Mike Ryan
Trust me, I'm locked in. Number four, we could have cut right to Cougs dancing at the concert. Like anytime he's dancing, you gotta put him in there. I'm telling you, you. You just got to trust me on this. I know content. I'm not just some guy. And then number five, those are cut.
Stugatz
Off shorts, by the way. You can't see it here. It almost looked like a onesie. Those shorts, same exact print, like mid thigh.
Mike Ryan
I want you to watch the neck work at the end of this video. Just. Just let it get to the net. They. It gets cut off here. But this is. That was the. That right there was where I was like, oh, no, this is. This isn't a fluke.
Stugatz
He's a confident dancer.
Mike Ryan
I could. You could say. You can't. You can't hide that.
Dan Le Batard
Put it on the poll, please. Five was perfect at Lebatard show. Can you be a confident dancer if you are so flat footed that it seems your feet are made of cement?
Lewis
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Andrew Hawkins
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Podcast Summary: The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Episode: Local Hour: The Demi Lovatbros
Release Date: February 19, 2025
In this episode of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, hosts Dan Le Batard and Stugotz delve into a mix of sports commentary, pop culture insights, and behind-the-scenes anecdotes. The focal points include the evolving landscape of American sports, specifically highlighting athletes like Riley Cooper and Aaron Rodgers, alongside an engaging segment about Stugotz’s experience covering the Daytona 500 with his brother, Billy Gil.
The conversation kicks off with a discussion on the current trends in American sports, focusing on the prominence of white athletes, particularly those named Cooper.
Mike Ryan references past remarks:
“Mac McClung being the three-time NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Champion was a thing. And when he first started jumping over things I'm like, all right, this will fade out.”
(02:20)
Dan Le Batard summarizes the sentiment:
“It's the year of the Cooper.”
(03:33)
The hosts explore the cultural and racial dynamics influencing sports, debating whether the increased visibility of white athletes like Riley Cooper signifies a broader shift in the athletic landscape.
A significant portion of the episode centers on the recent exit of Aaron Rodgers from the New York Jets, examining the impact and legacy of his short stint with the team.
Dan Le Batard poses a critical question:
“Did he deserve this goodbye from the New York Jets?”
(05:46)
Chris Cody responds defiantly:
“He did not. There are two memories. It's him carrying the American flag, and then tearing his Achilles four plays later. Thank you for nothing.”
(06:14)
The discussion contrasts Rodgers’ unsuccessful tenure with that of Brett Favre, who, despite a brief period, provided memorable moments for the Jets.
The hosts critique the Jets’ decision-making and express disappointment over the mismanagement of high-profile quarterbacks.
Mike Ryan shares his personal journey through various NFL teams, shedding light on the challenges athletes face beyond the public eye.
Mike Ryan discusses his minimalistic goals:
“My goal was literally to play one game. So by 31 years old, I had nothing. Just one game.”
(15:22)
Dan Le Batard inquires about his emotional state:
“You got your feelings hurt by that.”
(15:26)
Mike Ryan clarifies:
“I didn't get my feelings hurt. It was that I didn't want to.”
(15:27)
Ryan elaborates on the pressures of maintaining performance standards and the realities of professional sports, emphasizing that success often hinges more on genetics and opportunity than pure work ethic.
A highlight of the episode is Stugotz recounting his recent adventure covering the Daytona 500 alongside his brother, Billy Gil. This segment provides an insider’s view of NASCAR events and the unique experiences that come with covering major sporting events.
The duo discusses interacting with celebrities like Pitbull and Demi Lovato, adding a layer of pop culture to their sports coverage.
Their coverage included playful interactions and candid moments, such as Matt Coogler’s enthusiastic dancing and unexpected encounters with NASCAR personalities.
During their Daytona 500 coverage, Stugotz and Billy Gil encountered high-profile artists, enhancing their reporting with vibrant, entertaining content.
Stugotz describes an impromptu performance:
“Matt Coogler was dancing up a storm like that.”
(23:42)
Billy Gil humorously critiques the dancing:
“He's a confident dancer.”
(46:43)
The hosts also discuss Demi Lovato’s dynamic performance, praising her energy and engagement with the audience.
These interactions not only provide entertaining anecdotes but also bridge the gap between sports and mainstream entertainment, illustrating the multifaceted nature of modern sporting events.
A portion of the episode involves evaluating the quality and strategy behind video content related to their Daytona coverage.
Mike Ryan offers critique and suggestions:
“Number one, they could have cut that one down by about 61.”
(45:45)
Stugotz defends their approach:
“We got those clips out immediately. Boom, boom, boom.”
(42:57)
This segment highlights the importance of content editing and presentation in engaging audiences, especially when covering live events.
The episode wraps up with reflections on their experiences and hints at upcoming coverage.
Dan Le Batard humorously suggests:
“I am willing to authorize right now budget for you to be the correspondent at events where you have no expertise and just...”
(44:23)
Stugotz confirms future endeavors:
“All right, we'll talk later.”
(30:54)
The hosts express enthusiasm for continuing their dynamic coverage of diverse events, promising more engaging content for their listeners.
This episode of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz offers a rich tapestry of sports commentary intertwined with pop culture moments. From dissecting the implications of high-profile athletes' careers to providing an entertaining behind-the-scenes look at major sporting events like the Daytona 500, the hosts deliver an engaging and insightful discussion. Their candid reflections and humorous exchanges ensure a captivating listen for both dedicated fans and casual listeners alike.