The Big Suey: Mike's Chocolate Friends (feat. Jessica Smetana)

Summary

The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz

“The Big Suey: Mike's Chocolate Friends” (April 3, 2026)

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Episode Overview

Broadcast live from the Elser Hotel in Downtown Miami, this episode of The Big Suey brings together Dan Le Batard, Stugotz, Jessica Smetana, Amin Elhassan, Mike Ryan, and guests for their signature blend of irreverent sports talk, pop culture banter, and inside jokes. The crew runs through the NCAA basketball tournaments, viral sports memes, behind-the-scenes mascot intrigue, chocolate industry squabbles, and more—sprinkled with their characteristic wit, incredulity, and skepticism about nearly everything.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. NCAA Women's Final Four Preview

• Jessica Smetana outlines the elite class of teams in women's college basketball, noting this year’s dominance by four programs.
  • “There's just four teams this year that were so much better than everyone else.” (04:17, Jessica)
• Breaks down expectations for the games: UConn vs. South Carolina and UCLA vs. Texas.
  • “South Carolina is kind of the underdog and like, they're just never really the underdog.” (05:34, Jessica)
  • “If UConn makes it to the Final Four and loses, the season's a failure.” (05:50, Jessica)
• Pushback on the idea that the UConn/USC winner will automatically claim the title: “I wouldn't say so. UCLA is really, really good…” (05:59, Jessica)
• Discussion on changes in UConn's public perception and rooting interests:
  • “People have said that since the eight year title drought, Geno has softened.” (07:07, Jessica)
  • “Paige Beckers...certainly helped his popularity with a lot of people, including me.” (07:17, Jessica)

Notable Quotes

• “I don't like UConn. They're the rival of Notre Dame. But Paige is pretty cool.” (07:17, Jessica)

2. NCAA Men's Tournament Format Critique

• Dan wonders why the men’s tournament doesn’t reseed at the Final Four stage, leading to a meta-conversation about bracket logistics versus competitive integrity.
  • “If we're basing how we're going to format the tournament instead of trying to make it the best possible competition, we have to make sure everyone can pick their brackets. That's dumb.” (10:02, Dan)
• Jessica raises concerns about expanded tournaments ruining bracket pools: “My biggest concern...it's going to f with people's brackets because selection show, if it's on Sunday now, you got to do a bracket by Tuesday.” (09:13, Jessica)

Notable Quotes

• “Zaz, we've been doing this for a billion years. Everyone loves it.” (10:52, Amin)

3. Tiger Woods and Celebrity DUI Dissections

• The panel riffs on the viral Tiger Woods bodycam video and his casual name-dropping to police.
  • “I was talking to the president.” (11:41, Mike – referencing Tiger's comment)
  • Jessica speculates on motivations and implications: “I'm assuming he said that to...name drop the president to try to be like...we're all...” (12:09, Jessica)
• The conversation segues into memes and the recent Justin Timberlake DUI video.
  • “Oh yeah, we got the director's cut. He's in the station, he's filling out the form. It says race white, which I thought was, wow, that was great.” (14:05, Amin)

Memorable Moments

• Multiple riffs on the “director’s cut” of celebrity encounters: “I've seen Director's Got. So much better. I've seen. Yeah, the studio was right.” (14:30, Amin and Jessica)
• “That's Lord of the Rings. The director's cut. Better in the studio was right.” (14:35, Jessica)

4. The Mascot Secret Society & In-Arena Stunts

• Amin pulls back the curtain on sports mascots, explaining the economics and logistics of mascot appearances.
  • “The mascots are incredibly well paid. The Denver mascot makes like 600 grand a year.” (25:12, Mike)
  • “Harry the Hawk not only was, like, crazy pay, but he had his own separate mascot company.” (25:41, Amin)
• Debunks common arena tropes: “The guy who gets a cake in the face? That’s staged. Kiss Cam? Almost always a setup.” (23:27–24:28, Amin)
• Explores the April Fool’s controversy at the Washington Wizards game—a blindfolded half-court shot prank that prompted public outrage.
  • “All participants were in on the joke, but we missed the mark.” (22:02, Amin, quoting Wizards statement)

Notable Quote

• “It's a secret society. They all know each other…Across sports. Baseball, football, hockey, everything.” (26:43, Amin)

5. Old-School Radio Announcers & Overblown Reactions

• The panel analyzes Atlanta Hawks play-by-play Steve Holman’s melodramatic calls, comparing past and present “thuggery” accusations against opposing teams.
  • [Plays Holman's call] “These Miami Heat players are street thugs.” (31:42, Holman)
  • Recent example: “What a dirty rotten team this Orlando Magic is.” (33:13, Holman)
• Reflexive laughter at Holman’s hyperbole (“dirty rotten” repeated 7 times) and discussion of generational differences in play-by-play styles.

Notable Quote

• “Someone under the age of 90 say ‘dirty rotten.’ That is an old man's phrase.” (33:56, Jessica)

6. Reese’s Chocolate Recipe Controversy

• Jessica summarizes the controversy: the grandson of Reese’s founder claims Hershey’s watered down the recipe.
  • “I've been saying this for a while. This for real, this does not taste…right.” (36:31, Jessica)
• Mike reveals his “chocolate friends” and relays industry skepticism: “This guy is in the chocolate industry circle…considered a kook.” (37:25, Mike)
• The group jokes about legacy grievances and the economics of selling family food brands.
  • “If your grandfather invented one of the most iconic products in America and then you grew up one day and that product didn't taste good anymore, would you try to protect the family legacy?” (39:41, Jessica)

Memorable Moment

• The “chocolate friends” running gag, as Mike is pressed on his confectionery connections.
  • “You have chocolate friends? Yeah, well, no, I read a…yes, I do.” (37:32, Dan/Mike)

7. Brief: Notre Dame Basketball Family Drama

• To close, Jessica is quickly asked about recent drama surrounding a Notre Dame basketball-related public figure (implied, perhaps referencing JV Ivan's off-court comments), and the panel speculates on privacy and mental health considerations in addressing family issues in public.

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [03:12] Jessica describes women's Final Four parity (“There's four teams…”)
• [05:54] UConn, South Carolina, Texas, UCLA: Previewing the top teams
• [09:13] Jessica on NCAA bracket expansion ruining pools
• [11:18] Tiger Woods bodycam video analysis
• [13:47] Justin Timberlake DUI, director’s cut conversation
• [20:09] Dan delegates “what happened at the Wizards game?” to Amin
• [23:27] Truth behind arena fan contests revealed by Amin
• [25:12] Discussion on mascot pay and side businesses
• [32:35] Classic and current outrageous Hawks radio calls played and dissected
• [35:42] Reese’s chocolate recipe controversy explained by Jessica
• [39:03] Mike’s “chocolate friends” industry gossip
• [41:00] Final segment on Notre Dame’s internal basketball drama

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Notable Quotes

• “If we're basing like, like how we're going to format the tournament, instead of trying to make it the best possible competition, we have to make sure everyone can pick their brackets. That's dumb.” —Dan (10:02)
• “The mascots are incredibly well paid.” —Mike (25:12)
• “These Miami Heat players are street thugs.” —Steve Holman clip (31:42)
• “Someone under the age of 90 say ‘dirty rotten.’ That's a. That is an old man's phrase.” —Jessica (33:56)
• “I've been saying this for a while. This for real, this does not taste…right.” —Jessica (36:31)
• “You have chocolate friends? ... Yes, I do.” —Dan/Mike (37:32)

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Tone and Style

Fast-paced, sarcastic, and full of running jokes, the episode pairs critical sports talk with affectionate inside humor. Jessica brings analysis, Amin offers industry wisdom (and mascot conspiracy theories), and the main cast supplies banter, laughter, and skepticism throughout.

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Summary Takeaway

This episode typified The Big Suey’s blend: serious sports talk spiked with comedy and pop-culture absurdity, from Final Four breakdowns and sports radio throwbacks to mascot mafia exposés and chocolate conspiracies. Perfect for listeners who like their sports takes unpredictable and unapologetically oddball.

Transcript

[Mike Ryan]

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[Amin Elhassan]

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[Jessica Camerato]

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[Dan Le Batard]

Welcome to the Big Suey presented by DraftKings.

[Amin Elhassan]

Why are you listening to this show,

[Dan Le Batard]

the podcast that seems very similar to

[Amin Elhassan]

the other Dan LeBatard podcast?

[Dan Le Batard]

I'm sorry, I'm not going to apologize for that.

[Amin Elhassan]

In fact, the only difference seems to be this misimaging. I have been tempted in restaurants just walking past tables to grab somebody's fries that if they're just there. That hasn't happened to you guys. I've done it.

[Dan Le Batard]

And now here's the marching man to

[Amin Elhassan]

Nowhere Fat Face and the Habitual Liar.

[Sponsor Voice]

This episode of the Dan Lebizard show is presented by DraftKings. DraftKings. The crown is yours.

[Dan Le Batard]

Proud of yourself?

[Amin Elhassan]

Ten count. Look at that. We got fireworks on the screen.

[Dan Le Batard]

All right, we did it everybody. We made it to Friday. Oh, Friday's Friday's got feel.

[Mike Ryan]

You just got here.

[Dan Le Batard]

Made it to Friday. It is. It is a weird your fly fishing Monday.

[Amin Elhassan]

This is your Monday.

[Mike Ryan]

Tgif.

[Dan Le Batard]

It is. It is like a really weird move that I used to make fun of. One One of my former co hosts in local radio, Brett Romberg, used to pull this move where Romberg would be on vacation and he'd miss the week, but he'd come Friday and you would do the show. Why are you back?

[Sponsor Voice]

Like I had that thought When I heard you were coming in.

[Dan Le Batard]

Right. It's a weird move that I just.

[Mike Ryan]

So you're just bitten, you know, biting off the rock.

[Sponsor Voice]

You could have so easily just gone home and.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah.

[Mike Ryan]

Your schedule.

[Dan Le Batard]

Oh, okay. So team guy. That speaks to my character. Right. I thought I was supposed to be back. I was supposed to be back on Friday. Left one of my kids home. I was supposed to be back on Friday, but we came back a day early, so I was like, you know what? I can come in and work. That speaks to my character. Okay. Thank you for acknowledging that, Jessica, would you like to acknowledge that as well?

[Jessica Camerato]

I would acknowledge that I thought you meant your character on the show, which I was going to say, what character? But now I realize you meant your character is in your moral. Upstanding.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's right.

[Jessica Camerato]

And that I also don't know very much about.

[Dan Le Batard]

Do you have a. Do you have an arena or stadium, Jess, that you had heard great things about? You got to go visit it. You got to catch a game there, and then you went into the dump.

[Jessica Camerato]

Okay, I wouldn't say dump, but I didn't love Jerry World. I got to be honest. Too big, too. It's just too big. It's just too big. But I also went for a college football game, which not a college football stadium, so.

[Dan Le Batard]

All right, Women's Final Four tonight. Help me out here, okay? Because.

[Amin Elhassan]

Help him.

[Dan Le Batard]

Like, Like, I know you follow closely. I follow it on the periphery. You know, like, I. You know the deal. I do shows at espn, obviously. No, no, no. What I mean by that. No, no, no.

[Mike Ryan]

You're wearing a backwards hat.

[Dan Le Batard]

What I mean by that is I do shows on ESPN, so I have to know what's going on.

[Mike Ryan]

40 plus, white male. You know the deal that.

[Dan Le Batard]

All right, my wife. To calm down, but help me out here, Jess. I know you're. Never works, so it never works. Telling the wife to calm down never works. All right, anyway, tonight is the women's final Four, but help me out here. Like, has there been. Has there been a day yet in this women's tournament? It's like, wow, we. We had a great slate of games today.

[Jessica Camerato]

I feel like there's been really great games, but the. The best four teams that have been the best four teams this whole season that were the best four teams at the end of last season have just been a step above the teams behind them. So the great games, I would say, have been mostly amongst those teams with themselves. And so last weekend, the Elite 8 games were all. I wouldn't say they were all like huge blowouts. I'd say, like the Texas Michigan game was a huge blowout. But like, some of them are close, but you could obviously tell, like, the better team was going to win by 15 to 20 points. But I would say, like between, yeah, like the 5th to 25th ranked teams and beyond that, there were some really good games in the mix. There's just four teams this year that were so much better than everyone else.

[Dan Le Batard]

So tonight, like we fully expect, then

[Amin Elhassan]

we're getting games tonight.

[Dan Le Batard]

Like these two. These two games tonight are going to be games.

[Jessica Camerato]

I think so. I think the UConn, South Carolina game right now, I saw the point spread was like four and a half points, five and a half points, something like that. So, like, that's pretty close.

[Dan Le Batard]

Six and a half?

[Jessica Camerato]

Yeah, six and a half. Okay. Ucla, Texas will like one and a half. That's the later game. So I think UConn, South Carolina, I'm really happy that's a Final Four game and not a potential championship game because that was what the championship game was last year. I think this is a really exciting game because South Carolina is kind of the underdog and like, they're just never really the underdog. This has been a dynasty program under Don Staley for the last decade plus. And right now, UConn's coming in as the team with. Has not lost a game yet this season. But also like Yukon, if UConn makes it to the Final Four and loses, the season's a failure. Right. So, like, they've. They've got a lot to lose and South Carolina can kind of play. Spoiler to that.

[Amin Elhassan]

But, Jess, this is the championship game, right? The winner of this whole thing will come out of UConn. USC?

[Jessica Camerato]

I wouldn't say so. I think, you know, UCLA is really, really good. UCLA has won some tough games this year. I think there was a modest debate whether or Not UCLA or UConn should have been the overall 1 seed. They have Lauren Betts on their team, who's a 6, 7 center. She's really good. Kiki Rice, who's going to be a lottery. Yeah, I saw that.

[Dan Le Batard]

Really?

[Jessica Camerato]

Kiki Rice is going to be a lottery pick in the WNBA draft. And then Texas has Madison Booker. They've been playing really well. They're coming. They beat South Carolina in the SEC championship game, what, you know, less than a month ago. So obviously we know they can go head to head with South Carolina. So. I wouldn't say that necessarily. I would. I would kind of say that about the men's Final Four, but I think Arizona and Michigan, whoever wins that game, I probably would make them, you know, my favorite to win the championship. But you never know.

[Dan Le Batard]

UConn, you know, it wasn't that long ago when they were doing literally all the winning. It was really easy to root against Ariema. They always have all the star players. But now even with them undefeated, I don't feel that way. Like, is it, is it still like that, that most everyone roots against this big UConn machine?

[Jessica Camerato]

I would say, well, for me as a Notre Dame fan, yes, like obviously don't. I don't like UConn. They're the rival of Notre Dame. But I would say people have said that since the eight year title drought, Geno has, has softened. I think he has kind of like a, a little like grandpa figure and so he's a little easier to, you know, more palatable for people that aren't UConn fans to root for him. Now, I'd say like Paige Beckers, as one of the coolest college women's basketball players in a long time, certainly helped his popularity with a lot of people, including me. I was like, damn, I don't like UConn. But Paige is pretty cool. She's a cool, cool lady. But I think still there, you know, I would say from the average fan, it's more boring if they win. If they just steamroll through everyone steamroll through the Final Four, steamroll through the championship game. I think most, most people would say zaz, like that's kind of a boring outcome. It'd be cool to see like Texas and ucla, they were in the final Four last year, but before that hadn't been to a Final Four in over what, four decades? So it'd be kind of cool to see some, some new blood. Even though they're, like I said, two of the best teams this season by far. They're somewhat, you know, new to the final Four and it would be a big deal for either of them to win a championship. So I don't know, might make people a little bit more.

[Dan Le Batard]

So the women's Final Four is tonight, gets going at 7 o' clock and the next one is at 9:30 tomorrow. The men's Final Four. Is it, Is it like, am I being dopey if I wonder why? Aren't they, I guess essentially during the day. No, no, maybe not necessarily.

[Jessica Camerato]

Too late. Says they're too late. I'm sorry, this, the second game's not at like 930. What are we doing?

[Dan Le Batard]

No, no, no, that's that's what I mean.

[Jessica Camerato]

So that's what I mean.

[Dan Le Batard]

Tomorrow with the men's Final Four. Am Am I being dopey for not understanding why they don't recede the men's Final Four? Once we get to the Final Four, you have one versus one and two versus three. Like, am I missing something there? Where, like, I guess it's easy enough. Where, all right, this side of the bracket plays this side. Like, that's how they do it. But why don't they recede instead of us having two number ones face each other tomorrow and a 2 versus a 3. Like, why isn't it 1 versus 2, 1 versus 3?

[Jessica Camerato]

Because I would ruin your office bracket pool. I mean, don't keep it simple. Stupid. This is what I'm actually, I'm not even joking. One of the things I'm the most concerned about, if they do expand, which a lot of people think is inevitable, and there will be expansion of the NCAA tournament in the near future. Yeah. More games, more teams. There's going to be more games, like Tuesday, Wednesday, and then fewer teams in the full bracket. I guess. I don't. I read an article about. I don't want to overcomplicate things, but my biggest concern, it's going to f with people's brackets because selection show, if it's on Sunday now, you got to do a bracket by Tuesday. And then if you got all these playing games, how are you going to select the next round if there's so many games contingent upon who wins the playing game? And then is that going to ruin the entire, like, fun communal aspect of. Okay, so out of bracket at work?

[Dan Le Batard]

Okay, so, like, I'm concerned. So I totally hear what you're saying, and it sounds like you're probably right about that, but that's stupid. Then if we're basing like, like how we're going to format the tournament, instead of trying to make it the best possible competition, we have to make sure everyone can pick their brackets. That's dumb.

[Jessica Camerato]

I think, I think really, to answer your question, is like, this is the. This is the format that we've selected, Right? Just the straight bracket, no receding. You. You get the luck of the draw in some instances in your region. And then, you know, if there's a huge upset in another region, you might be lucky. You might. That might help you out. And that's kind of how it works. In some years, the team that wins the tournament might not have been the best team all of college basketball. And like, that's okay because they won the tournament. How? It's set up and you have to deal with it.

[Amin Elhassan]

Zaz, we've been doing this for a billion years. Everyone loves it.

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, I prefaced it with, am I being dopey?

[Amin Elhassan]

All right, I said that you're being dopey.

[Dan Le Batard]

If I. If I preface what I'm going to say with I'm being. Am I being dopey? I'm asking you this question. I can then say whatever I want. I mean.

[Amin Elhassan]

Well, no. You still get called a dope, though, at the end of it.

[Dan Le Batard]

All right, well, it was a question, Jessica.

[Jessica Camerato]

Thank you, Amin. I needed a little backup.

[Amin Elhassan]

You're welcome. I've been tripping all morning long overseeing this video of Tiger Woods.

[Jessica Camerato]

Oh, God.

[Amin Elhassan]

Cops call him over and he does the nonchalant.

[Jessica Camerato]

Sorry.

[Amin Elhassan]

I was talking to the president. We actually had a spirited debate on whether he could have been talking about the president of his homeowners association or maybe of a car dealership nearby. What was your reaction when you saw not only what he said, but how he said it? And we got the video here so we could roll it, say, good.

[Dan Le Batard]

And just keep me down here with us, please.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah, I was talking to the president.

[Sponsor Voice]

The hand flip. The hand flip where he's just.

[Amin Elhassan]

No big deal. This thing here connected to power.

[Jessica Camerato]

You guys know who he's dating, right?

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah.

[Amin Elhassan]

Dating?

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah.

[Dan Le Batard]

Who's dating?

[Jessica Camerato]

Oh, you got Don Jr. Don Jr's ex wife, Vanessa Trump.

[Amin Elhassan]

Really?

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah. But also. But also, even before that, obviously, tight. He won very tight. Some award from the president, obviously.

[Jessica Camerato]

I think he won, like, the Medal of Freedom.

[Mike Ryan]

Medal of Freedom. Yeah. I wanted to respect it. And they go, I didn't know you

[Jessica Camerato]

were doing a thing. Just forgot what it was called. Yeah, they're buddies. So I think he really did mean the president. And I'm assuming that he said that to. I mean, the cops already knew he was Tiger Woods, I'm assuming. But I assume that he name dropped the president to try to be like you guys, like that guy, right? Like, we're all.

[Dan Le Batard]

Well, does that help? Like, because the cops definitely know he's Tiger Woods. If you know he's Tiger woods and you're not about to let him off, isn't there, like, nothing Tiger can do at this point to get off then?

[Amin Elhassan]

That's one hell of a Hail Mary.

[Jessica Camerato]

I would assume that's the case, Szaz. I would assume. And given how I read some of the transcripts, I watched some of the body camera stuff. The officer who arrested him was like, I can't let you go. You don't seem okay.

[Dan Le Batard]

I have to do the right thing.

[Jessica Camerato]

Maybe if this was a borderline case, but again, I don't. I wasn't there. I don't know. I've just seen the videos, and he. He did not seem well.

[Amin Elhassan]

Have you seen the. The memes made of the picture?

[Jessica Camerato]

I've seen every meme of him kneeling down where he looks like a high school football coach breaking.

[Sponsor Voice]

That's a good one. That's a good one.

[Amin Elhassan]

Breaking a huddle or breaking it to the Little League team that they're not

[Sponsor Voice]

getting new cleats for the season.

[Jessica Camerato]

That's.

[Sponsor Voice]

That's my personal ET1. ET is the best.

[Jessica Camerato]

Yeah. Yeah. It's a bad situation, but, yeah, that did not make him look good. And now it's, what, April 3rd? And we've gotten two DUI videos of celebrities on our timelines. The Justin Timberlake one. I mean, did you see Justin Timberlake?

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, I saw it. I saw it, but I thought I saw it when it happened. Like, this was like a year ago or so, maybe even longer.

[Jessica Camerato]

It was a while ago.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, it's been a while.

[Sponsor Voice]

You saw one part of it. You saw just the clip of him, like, standing outside of the car and maybe for just a moment, walking. But this was. I mean, this was. It felt like we were getting the extended version.

[Amin Elhassan]

Oh, yeah, we got the director's cut. He's in the director's cut. He's in the station. He's filling out the form. It says race white, which I thought was, wow, that was great.

[Mike Ryan]

He could be shitty.

[Sponsor Voice]

It could be a terrible moment.

[Amin Elhassan]

But that's a showman turning it on. That's the charm. Have you.

[Dan Le Batard]

Have you ever watched a movie and then you watched the director's cut and you're like, whoa, director's cut. So much better.

[Amin Elhassan]

I've seen both. I've seen Director's Got. So much better. I've seen. Yeah, the studio was right.

[Jessica Camerato]

That's Lord of the Rings. The director's cut. Better in the studio was right.

[Amin Elhassan]

Absolutely. Lord of the Rings. You know, the Lord of the Rings. The director's.

[Dan Le Batard]

Cause I don't think I've ever seen Lord of Directors four and a half hours.

[Jessica Camerato]

Oh, my God, it's so. The Return of the King is so. How does the director, when he makes

[Dan Le Batard]

the movie before the studio tells him you got to cut it down? How does he think then four and a half hours is an acceptable movie to put in theaters?

[Jessica Camerato]

Because. Yeah, I don't know. The Paycheck filmed all that stuff. They want to use it. They're spent a lot of money on that scene with the Sauron, the mouth of Sauron. They want to put that in the movie.

[Sponsor Voice]

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[Stu Gotz]

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[Mike Ryan]

hey Roy, buddy.

[Stu Gotz]

Yo.

[Mike Ryan]

You know that energy shift when the game gets good and everybody all together in unison knows to stand up on their feet.

[Stu Gotz]

Oh, absolutely, Mike.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah. You've been at many big time sporting events. You know that moment quite well. That's what it's like when you take your first sip of Cuervo.

[Stu Gotz]

Oh, delicious.

[Mike Ryan]

It's the signal that says, we're not checking the time anymore, pal. It's when small talk turns into stories. Cuervo, man. It's that high five. A random stranger effect. That's right. The game is popping. You're hugging people you never met before. That's the kind of energy that Cuervo brings. It's so smooth, so delicious. That's the Cuervo effect. Keep it cuervo.

[Dan Le Batard]

Don LeBatard, Mr. Mr. Schurt, if I

[Jessica Camerato]

may say for a second, Miami, they were simulating the snap count the entire game, and they were clapping at the line of scrimmage. And the only thing I want to see clapping are them cheeks on Mrs. Met in my face Mike shirt. All right, so that's one thing.

[Mike Ryan]

Stugats.

[Jessica Camerato]

They're a bunch of cheaters, Dan. And you know who should be cheating? Mrs. Met on Mr. Met. And he can watch if he wants.

[Stu Gotz]

This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stu guys.

[Mike Ryan]

I do think that there is, like, one really good example of the director's cut totally changing the movie experience. Making a bad movie, something that's at least tolerable.

[Amin Elhassan]

Don't say Justice League.

[Mike Ryan]

No, no, no, no.

[Stu Gotz]

Not.

[Mike Ryan]

Not the cybercrime. It's Miami Vice. Miami Vice.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah. Really?

[Sponsor Voice]

Mike loves the director's cut.

[Mike Ryan]

The director's cut of Miami Vice is. Is much better.

[Amin Elhassan]

Do they still know a good place to get a movie?

[Mike Ryan]

You bet your rats.

[Dan Le Batard]

Okay, now. Okay, so director's cut was so much longer.

[Mike Ryan]

Or like, it was longer, but, like, so famously. There were all sorts of problems on the set. Jamie Foxx at one point quit the film, which is why the movie is almost the one that was in theaters. Jamie Foxx is, like, barely in it.

[Jessica Camerato]

Oh, really?

[Mike Ryan]

So it does plug a few holes in it, and it makes it. It shouldn't have been Miami Vice. And I think Michael Mann even said, like, in one quote, he's like, I just wanted to do this cop movie, and the only way that I can get the studio to do it was by saying, I'm returning to the Miami Vice franchise. But it's not a Miami Vice movie. It's way too dark. If you get that out of your mind, it's actually like, a not bad cop.

[Dan Le Batard]

I don't know that. Like, I don't really I don't know that I do director's cuts. And I say that because obviously I've seen the, you know, studio version first, and I don't then go back and watch the director's cut because I feel like then the whole movie, I'm only just looking out for the stuff I didn't know, I didn't see. I'm with you. Like, it's not a real experience.

[Mike Ryan]

I'm with you, too, because, like, with a Snyder cut, like, okay, I'm going to give you another chance to dis.

[Dan Le Batard]

That's a whole different movie, though.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah, but. And I had to be convinced to do the Miami Vice thing, but the Internet was really insistent, like, no, it's actually not that bad if you watch the director's cut. And I can kind of confirm, you

[Dan Le Batard]

know what I'm saying?

[Amin Elhassan]

I'm kind of with you because I do get that paranoia that. That wasn't in the original version.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yes.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yes, it was. Oh, yeah, yeah, my bad. It was.

[Jessica Camerato]

Guys, just let the movie wash over you. Don't think about it too hard.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, I guess so. I guess so. Mike, can you. Can you tell me what happened at the Washington Wizard? Because I. I was away this week, and I. I caught everything that happened, but there were some things that slipped through the cracks.

[Amin Elhassan]

Mike, sit this one out. I got this.

[Dan Le Batard]

What happened at the Wizards game?

[Amin Elhassan]

I. I am fastest.

[Jessica Camerato]

This is the most. I mean, this is. I thought of you immediately when I saw this.

[Amin Elhassan]

So they had a. Like a contest. Oh, shoot. A half court shot, blindfolded. If you make it, you win 10,000.

[Dan Le Batard]

On April 1st.

[Amin Elhassan]

On April 1st. And so they got the guy down there, he's blindfolded, and all the mascots. You know, sometimes they invite mascots from other sports and other.

[Dan Le Batard]

Usually when it's your mascot's birthday.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, yeah. They do that a lot.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah.

[Amin Elhassan]

So they're all there. And here we go. One, two, three. And the guy, of course, like, misses it horribly. Although.

[Dan Le Batard]

Can I ask you something, though? Can you hold on for a second? When they do the mascot birthday party, like, let's say it's the Atlanta Hawks mascot's birthday party. They want to invite Bernie. Does. Does the actual Bernie get on a plane and go.

[Sponsor Voice]

Probably makes so much more money for that appearance than he does. Is normal.

[Amin Elhassan]

Who else would put a pin in it? I will explain that whole world.

[Dan Le Batard]

Okay. You'll come back to the pin.

[Amin Elhassan]

I know all about the master.

[Stu Gotz]

Put a what in it?

[Sponsor Voice]

Pin. Place.

[Amin Elhassan]

Pin.

[Mike Ryan]

Oh, pin.

[Amin Elhassan]

Okay, pin it. So the guy of Course misses it horribly, but he's blindfolded, so everyone cheers, like, hey, we're gonna cheer. Oh, my God, you made it. You made it. And they give him the big novelty check, and he's jumping up and down, and the mascots are celebrating. And then the in arena host says, wait a second. Let's watch the video again. And it shows him missing, like, oh, sorry. Check's not yours.

[Dan Le Batard]

Now. What's the crowd doing during all of this?

[Amin Elhassan]

Well, they were chee. And he's like, hey.

[Dan Le Batard]

Because they played along.

[Jessica Camerato]

The Wizards game. Let's be clear. Crowd much of a crowd?

[Amin Elhassan]

Crowd is okay.

[Jessica Camerato]

Crowd's not really a part, but they

[Dan Le Batard]

were told to kind of play along.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yes, they played along, and then they pulled the check. And then, you know, people booed or whatever. And so it's not even the first time that's been done.

[Jessica Camerato]

And it's outrage.

[Amin Elhassan]

Everyone's outraged outrage to the point where the Wizards had to release a statement on April 2. Quote, we apologize for last night's April Fool's joke that left many wondering if we had misled a fan. The skit involving our mascot and other members of our performance team was scripted and intended to celebrate the day. All participants were in on the joke, but we missed the mark. Our fans are our priority, and we continue to be committed to providing a positive experience to all who attend our game.

[Sponsor Voice]

There had to be a heated debate, like, in their. Like in the Wizards, like, high up, like, we're not releasing that. Right.

[Amin Elhassan]

I'm putting that out. I. 100% can guarantee you, Chris, not only was there a debate, but at one point, someone said, yo, is it worth your job to fight for this?

[Game Announcer]

This?

[Amin Elhassan]

And then, all right, just put it out. Like, that's the argument that went.

[Mike Ryan]

They missed the mark.

[Amin Elhassan]

I mean, what's the mark, everybody?

[Mike Ryan]

There is the mark. That's the whole point.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yes.

[Dan Le Batard]

So it seemed like.

[Jessica Camerato]

It seemed like the joke was on the guy who missed the shot the whole time. Right. Like, he thought he won 10 grand,

[Dan Le Batard]

but he was in on it.

[Jessica Camerato]

Turns out the joke was on everyone else who thought it was a real skit. And I feel like in that case, they. They kind of got us. Like, it's kind of pretty good. Why are they apologizing?

[Amin Elhassan]

But, Jessica. What? First of all, it's 2026. Why are we still falling for things on April 1st?

[Sponsor Voice]

They should have ended that statement with an 8. This was all in April Fools.

[Amin Elhassan]

We don't even mean this yet. Not an apology.

[Jessica Camerato]

April Fools, Real fan.

[Amin Elhassan]

Second of all, My first job in basketball was working game ops, and so we would do this stuff all the time. So let me tell you something. Listen, the thing where there's a fan of the other team and the mascot comes with a cake and then he trips.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, that's real, right?

[Amin Elhassan]

Nope. That guy works with the team. They bought a jersey from the other team just for him to have a cake mushed in his face. All of these things are made up. Hey, you know when there's like, hey, which one of these trivia questions is the answer? You know what we do right before we go on air? We tell the guy the answer.

[Dan Le Batard]

What about when they do the kiss cam? And the guy goes to kiss a girl and she says no, and so then she turns to the guy next to him and they kiss. That's real, right?

[Mike Ryan]

You like that one?

[Amin Elhassan]

Also manufactured. Here's one of my favorite ones, because Tom Havasrow, the great Tom Habitro, did not know this. When they do the loud meter, guys get louder.

[Sponsor Voice]

And you're lying now because the crowd.

[Dan Le Batard]

The crowd gets louder.

[Amin Elhassan]

That's not a meter. That's just the video.

[Mike Ryan]

Zaz, you like the cut kiss Cam?

[Sponsor Voice]

No, not at all.

[Dan Le Batard]

I would never be a part of that.

[Amin Elhassan]

You like to cut Kiss Cam?

[Dan Le Batard]

Never. I would never be a part of that.

[Amin Elhassan]

So when it comes to the mascots. Yeah, this is all. It's a secret society. They all know each other, right?

[Dan Le Batard]

What?

[Amin Elhassan]

And big group chat. The whole thing, probably the whole thing rests on, hey, when you invite me, hey, when we go to his birthday, whatever, Flight, hotel, and a nice appearance fee. So they all are incentivized to do it because, like, oh, yeah, my team's on the road. Hell, yeah, I'm gonna get on a flight, go to Washington, hang out.

[Dan Le Batard]

Okay, but you're saying that, like, as if the mascot is in charge of, like, the finances.

[Amin Elhassan]

No, no, they. Man, they. They are in charge. First of all, the mascots are incredibly well paid. Right? This.

[Mike Ryan]

The Denver. The Denver mascot makes like 600 grand a year.

[Amin Elhassan]

Dude, they're incredibly well paid.

[Mike Ryan]

You didn't know that?

[Dan Le Batard]

Why would I know that?

[Amin Elhassan]

Cause you know a lot of stuff. You got a big head.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah. When I worked with the Panthers, a guy that was like, Stanley C. Panther was also in charge of, like, some operations and logistics. They are so involved in the community. They go to all these events. Everyone just assumes, like, Denver's mascot just repels, and that's all he does on game days. He works, like, three days a week.

[Dan Le Batard]

I think I assumed he was an

[Jessica Camerato]

hourly employee, big cake behind him. And that's all they do.

[Amin Elhassan]

Harry the Hawk in Atlanta not only was, like, crazy pay, but he had his own separate mascot company. So if you wanted, like, the Chick Fil a cow to show up, and then cow and t. He cornered the

[Mike Ryan]

market on Atlanta mascots.

[Amin Elhassan]

All of them had to come through his company. You want to book mascots, you got to go through him.

[Dan Le Batard]

Sounds very Mafioso.

[Amin Elhassan]

I'm telling you, it's a secret society

[Mike Ryan]

mascot Mafia,

[Amin Elhassan]

Netflix document right there.

[Dan Le Batard]

So you're telling me, like, Bernie, when he makes these appearances, he's actually flying out to these other arenas in uniform?

[Jessica Camerato]

Who else would it be? I'm confused. You think they just.

[Amin Elhassan]

The uniform, they're renting a Bernie.

[Sponsor Voice]

You think every arena. Every arena has all the mascot suits to just put someone in it?

[Dan Le Batard]

I like the idea that it'd be.

[Jessica Camerato]

There's dozens of Otto the Oranges laying around.

[Dan Le Batard]

No, I like the idea that he would look like the Bobo mascot that you get in, like, Times Square and, you know, it's. It's like they're really dressed down.

[Mike Ryan]

There's a ponytail coming out of it.

[Amin Elhassan]

It's Ernie Little Gut coming out down the street.

[Dan Le Batard]

Right? I like that.

[Jessica Camerato]

I know, man.

[Amin Elhassan]

And you ask, like, they all have these budgets for these things, like Bernie's birthday or whatever. And so they know, hey, I'm going to take care of my people. Because it comes back around. And again, they know all.

[Dan Le Batard]

Each.

[Amin Elhassan]

All of them across sports. Baseball, football, hockey, everything.

[Dan Le Batard]

Wow.

[Sponsor Voice]

I love the idea of, like, some mascot, like, off duty, listening to our show right now and just feeling alone because they don't have a lot of friends. And Amin's telling you that they all hang out, and he's like, no, I think I don't hang out with any of the other mascots.

[Jessica Camerato]

They're probably like, I mean, shut up right away. The game.

[Mike Ryan]

The Atlanta guy, huh?

[Dan Le Batard]

Speaking of the Atlanta guy, Jess, I don't know if you saw this or heard this. So the Hawks played the Magic two nights ago. It was on Wednesday nights. The Hawks never lose, so they blew out the Magic first. Before I get into this, like, can the Hawks win a series?

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Dan Le Batard]

Like a real team?

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Absolutely. How they defend? They're versatile. They make threes. They're very well coached, contrary to the beliefs of Dan Lebatard. And, like, they've got some vets. They got everything. They got a little bit of everything. Not enough to be.

[Jessica Camerato]

They got Mike Bray.

[Amin Elhassan]

They got Mike Bray on the bench. That's right.

[Dan Le Batard]

I mean, they're like golden dirt. They are entrenched. They're the five seed now. They're not going to catch four, but they're.

[Amin Elhassan]

They're.

[Stu Gotz]

Cleveland's worried, though.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah.

[Dan Le Batard]

They're four games up. You know what I'm saying?

[Mike Ryan]

Cleveland worries a four, five.

[Dan Le Batard]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Amin Elhassan]

And by the way, if you play Detroit and who knows what Cade's going to look like in the second round? Like, you hope he's back and he's fine, but if he's not, like, like, yeah, man.

[Dan Le Batard]

Is that a big indictment on Trae

[Amin Elhassan]

Young that they are this much better after losing him? Yeah.

[Mike Ryan]

Yes.

[Amin Elhassan]

Okay, folks, listen up.

[Sponsor Voice]

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[Jessica Camerato]

K Pop Demon Hunters, Haja Boys breakfast meal and Hunt tricks meal have just dropped at McDonald's. They're calling this a battle for the fans. What do you say to that, Rumi? It's not a battle. So glad the Saja Boys could take breakfast and give our meal the rest of the day.

[Amin Elhassan]

It is an honor to share.

[Jessica Camerato]

No, it's our honor.

[Amin Elhassan]

It is our larger honor.

[Jessica Camerato]

No, really, stop. You can really feel the respect in this battle. Pick a meal to pick a side

[Sponsor Voice]

and participate in McDonald's while supplies last.

[Dan Le Batard]

Don LeBatard.

[Jessica Camerato]

I don't like smutty either. Stugats women stay home in the kitchen where they belong.

[Stu Gotz]

This is the Don lebatar show with the Stugats.

[Dan Le Batard]

A couple of nights ago. Hawks and Magic. Magic. And there was. You may remember the Hawks radio voice, Mike Ryan. You may remember right Years ago. It was the 2009. 2009 postseason where the Hawks played the Heat in the first round. And James Jones mixed it up with someone for the Hawks.

[Mike Ryan]

And this was like one of the worst seven game series of all time.

[Dan Le Batard]

Every game was a blowout.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah.

[Amin Elhassan]

NBA tv, Right.

[Dan Le Batard]

It was all NBA TV was a blowout.

[Mike Ryan]

It was a seven game series.

[Dan Le Batard]

I flew to Atlanta for game seven.

[Mike Ryan]

It was a bad game.

[Dan Le Batard]

Watch the Heat get smoked on a Sunday afternoon in game seven. I. I went to that game. It was awful.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah. And we were still trying to position, compete, but position for like the pie in the sky. Big three.

[Dan Le Batard]

Right, right. We were two years in front of the summer of 2010.

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah. And so Jermaine O' Neal got us.

[Dan Le Batard]

Right, right. Jermaine O' Neal didn't play in game seven. He had a concussion. So anyway, that was the series where there was a bit of a scuffle early in the series. And it was like game three or game four, something like that. Steve Holmes woman is the Atlanta Hawks radio voice. He's been their voice like 30 years. He's like an institution there. But he's kind of a crazy person. And you may remember back then, the Miami Heat have resorted to thuggery and just on and on. Oh, here it is now down low,

[Game Announcer]

it's going to be Al Horford. He drives. He goes up and get knocked out hard. Oh, my goodness. The Heat have resorted to thuggery and Al Horford slow to get up my hand. Miami, they're down by 19 and they have to resort to the street stuff. That should be a flagrant foul. These Miami Heat players are street thugs.

[Amin Elhassan]

Damn.

[Jessica Camerato]

Dan is so mad we're talking about this without him.

[Mike Ryan]

That sounds like the 1960s does, right?

[Jessica Camerato]

Can you replace Al Horford with a different player's name?

[Dan Le Batard]

One of the funnier parts of it is the way that he says the Miami heater down by 19. It feels like he's like, in today's game, you're down by 40.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah.

[Dan Le Batard]

You know, saying, they're down by 19, they're down by 40. It was like the Lakers game last night. Street stuff. Right, right. That's what 19 point the Lakers plus nine were like back then. So that is Steve Holman. And that is not an isolated, you know, occurrence, that type of call. So two nights ago, Jess Orlando was facing Atlanta and go, go, Batadzi of. Of Luka Doncic. I will f your entire family fame. Goga Batadzi committed a hard foul. And on someone from Atlanta and here was the call in the lane.

[Game Announcer]

Get it knocked away. But it goes right to Jonathan Kaminga. Now to Jock who goes up and got fouled hard. Jock Landale just got knocked down. A terrible dirty play by the Orlando Magic. This is what they do. They just knocked down Jock Landale and hurt him badly. Oh my goodness. Somebody should get thrown out of this game. What a dirty rotten team this Orlando Magic is. Oh my goodness gracious. Jock Landale got knocked down hard. Dyson Daniel wanted to go over and help him. Pray to God that Jack Landale is not hurt badly. Folks, that was a dirty rotten play by Orlando. I don't care what anybody says or anybody replays on this one. This is a dirty rotten team. They get down by 30 points and this is what they do. They are dirty rotten players. Every one of them on that team can't take to losing. The Hawks are going to be 40 against this team. They whine and complain on everything and then they go to dirty groton tactics. But that he has no business even being in the league. Gogo. But Dazzi should be thrown out of the game. Thrown out of the league for play like that. He is a no talent dirty rotten player. They're going to come over and look at this. They better throw him out on a flagrant two. There's no doubt that this should be a flagrant too. If they call anything else, it's wrong. The prior foul is under review for a potential flagrant foul. No kidding. Thank you very much, Ed Beloy. Mr. Obvious.

[Dan Le Batard]

This guy's go.

[Mike Ryan]

Dude. I love this guy.

[Dan Le Batard]

Awesome.

[Amin Elhassan]

No kidding.

[Jessica Camerato]

Someone under the age of 90 say dirty rotten. That's a. That is an old man's phrase.

[Dan Le Batard]

Like when he says Goga Batadzi should be thrown out the league. Like at that point it's. You question whether or not it's a real call. And yes, that is. That is a real call. That was the Atlanta Hawks radio two nights ago. By the way, Goka Batadzi, the player who. Jock Lawndale, the player who he hurt, got up and walked off under his own power.

[Game Announcer]

The prior fails under review for a potential flagrant foul. No kidding. Thank you very much.

[Jessica Camerato]

Much.

[Dan Le Batard]

Unbelievable.

[Amin Elhassan]

He called that Malloy. Captain Obvious. Could there have been a funnier ref name to say in that moment than Malloy?

[Dan Le Batard]

It's a good one.

[Amin Elhassan]

It's perfect. Oh my God. I do like also his adjustment, right? Like 20 years ago it was. They're down by 19 and that's like insurmountable. Now the new conversion rate is they're down by 30.

[Dan Le Batard]

Right, right. And. And it's because the magic are, are, are 04 against Atlanta this year. So they have to. They're a dirty rotten team.

[Mike Ryan]

Seven times he said. Dirty rotten.

[Game Announcer]

Yeah, they are dirty rotten players. Every one of them on that team can't take the losing. The Hawks are going to be 40 against this team. They whine.

[Amin Elhassan]

I love that. Every last one of them. And also the idea that, like, I don't care what anyone says, I don't care what you replay. Like, he's basically waiting for this to be played.

[Sponsor Voice]

He knows it's going to get clipped.

[Amin Elhassan]

Yeah.

[Dan Le Batard]

Like every, every player, like, oh, the Wagner brothers. I could see you saying they're, they're dirty. Desmond Bain, he's got a little bit of that. But there's not every one guy on the team is not dirty rotten.

[Amin Elhassan]

Anthony Black, you're dirty.

[Dan Le Batard]

Not one guy is not dirty rotten.

[Amin Elhassan]

You're dirty.

[Mike Ryan]

Dalen Suggs, get out of here.

[Dan Le Batard]

Jalen Suggs seems like a nice guy. Dirty rotten. Every one of them.

[Amin Elhassan]

Jess. I heard a rumor that Hershey is changing the recipe to Reese's. But the thing that shocked me was the headline said they're changing it back. And I said, I never knew they changed it to begin with.

[Jessica Camerato]

Well, we talked about this on the show because a few months ago, the Reese's heir, like the grandson of the guy that started Reese's, Jerry Reese, I don't remember his first name, honestly. Tommy Reese, he sent a letter or a LinkedIn post post accusing Hershey's of changing the recipe and basically like the, the equivalent of like watering down the recipe to the Reese's cups. And exactly like the chocolate's less chocolatey and the peanut butter is less peanut buttery. And then there was a whole backlash, outrage. So you know, everyone said, you know what? People including me said, I've been saying this for a while. This for real, this does not taste. This is not tasted right. Some of these Reese's do not taste good. In fact, I stopped eating them all together and I used to be a fan, especially this time of year when the eggs would come out. Because everyone knows that is the best Reese's shape.

[Dan Le Batard]

Now, is it also for the pieces?

[Jessica Camerato]

No, I think the pieces recipe is a newer concoction and has remained peanut buttery, hard coated and delicious.

[Amin Elhassan]

Damn.

[Jessica Camerato]

I have not noticed a quality change in pieces.

[Dan Le Batard]

No, it's not PC's, it's pieces.

[Jessica Camerato]

No, it's Reese's pieces.

[Dan Le Batard]

What are PC's?

[Amin Elhassan]

Reese's that's one step away from feces. This guy tagged everybody in the letter. Todd, you've built a career on the belief that a good story is a heart of any conversation.

[Mike Ryan]

This guy is in the chocolate industry circle, which I'm very dialed into, considered a kook.

[Dan Le Batard]

You have chocolate friends?

[Mike Ryan]

Yeah. Well, no, I read a Darren Rupert. Yes, I do.

[Jessica Camerato]

Wait, hold on now.

[Mike Ryan]

You've met Joel. No, like, Darren Revel. Like, said, like, this guy tries this every year, and he's finally gotten traction on this, even though I think, like, Darren Revell was one of the people that put it out there that, like,

[Jessica Camerato]

he's on the food and confection beat. So that would, that would make sense.

[Mike Ryan]

Apparently his. His family's had an ax to grind since they sold Reese's.

[Jessica Camerato]

Well, I mean, fair enough if they made the product crappier, but I saw a CBS success story zaz from this week, which now I'm like, this was on April 1st, so hopefully it wasn't a joke. And it said Hershey said it will use classic recipes for all Reese's products starting next year. A change that comes after the grandson of Reese's founder criticized the company for shifting to cheaper ingredients.

[Dan Le Batard]

So I'll tell you, I don't get stuff like this. You know, who, who was eating Reese's back, you know, before they changed recipe? Like, you know what, What? Let's change this. Everybody liked Reese's. Why do they change this stuff?

[Jessica Camerato]

Probably save money because they probably could. Yeah, exactly. It's as you sell the company and then the quality goes down. The. That's how it works in this.

[Mike Ryan]

Why use good stuff when you can do cheap stuff and then make more money? So part of the opposition stuff that I've seen is it's been changed for a very long time. Like with the. The information that he's using is dated because, like, he's using original recipes, stuff from when his family owned did, and he's just bitter that they sold it for what they did.

[Amin Elhassan]

So I'm looking at his LinkedIn, right? And I'm looking at, you know, this is how LinkedIn.

[Jessica Camerato]

His name is Brad, by the way.

[Amin Elhassan]

Brad Reese. And most. So you got. I've got just a smattering. You know how they have some suggested ones on the side. Reggie Grant, managing director at Alliance Networking. Lee Lipton, principal owner at Benny's on the Beach. Alexandria Barnett, international correspondent specializing in golf, boating, et cetera, et cetera. Right. Brad Reese, his thing is protecting Reese's brand integrity. That's his job. And then he signs off the letter with that. And then Also, grandson of H.B. reese, parentheses, who invented Reese's. Just in case you were lost on why this guy's opining here.

[Jessica Camerato]

I mean, hey, mean, if your grandfather invented one of the most iconic products in America and then you grew up one day and that product didn't taste good anymore, would you try to protect the family legacy? I mean, this is your last name.

[Amin Elhassan]

I count my money. Because the real.

[Jessica Camerato]

I don't know if you got that much money. I think that may be part of the problem. That's what Mike is saying. At least they sold low.

[Mike Ryan]

That's part of the. The narrative around that's what Mike's saying.

[Jessica Camerato]

I'm not saying that for the rest now.

[Amin Elhassan]

That sucks.

[Mike Ryan]

Imagine that's what my chocolate friends are telling me.

[Amin Elhassan]

I would. I went to college with the grandson of the Iams Emperor Dog food. But they sold it like, they sold it generations ago to Purina. And so his last name is Iams, but he's just a regular guy. But everyone thinks like, yo, is that Iams in the dog? Yeah, yeah. My family. Oh, my God. It's like, so when we got on the chopper, I'm like, nah, I drive a Corolla.

[Dan Le Batard]

You could check Jess out her weekly podcast with Michael Jr. The Echoes.

[Jessica Camerato]

Echoes.

[Dan Le Batard]

Great job, Jess. Good to see you.

[Amin Elhassan]

Oh, we didn't ask you. His mom, should she say something about what Jane Ivan's been saying?

[Jessica Camerato]

Oh, my God. I. I mean, I hope she. They're handling it in private. Seems like a.

[Amin Elhassan]

No. No issue. I'm not.

[Jessica Camerato]

Seems like something's going on.

[Amin Elhassan]

Sure. There's an issue. Something's going on. I'm just saying in her role as,

[Dan Le Batard]

like, if Notre Dame was still.

[Jessica Camerato]

If her team was still playing PR

[Amin Elhassan]

stand, like, she's the head coach of Notre Dame, the second biggest Catholic institution.

[Dan Le Batard]

If they were still playing, she would. Had to have said something at one of her availabilities. Right?

[Jessica Camerato]

Well, I'm sure someone would have asked her a question about it. My opinion on it, Amin, is that. Well, here's my question to you. First, do you think he's having some sort of, like, mental health?

[Amin Elhassan]

1,000%.

[Jessica Camerato]

Okay. I agree with you. I think some people think he's not. And they're like, he's just speaking his mind.

[Dan Le Batard]

He should be allowed to do we call those.

[Jessica Camerato]

Right. I think he's having some sort of mental health issue, it seems like. And if that's the case, I think she should. I respect that. I think she should handle that in private, but he's also, like, a grown adult man and has a wife and kids, so she's not like, the only family member in his life, it seems, but. But certainly feel bad for everyone in that situation. I've been following his career for, like, a long time because, you know, she was. He was. He went to high school in South Bend and practiced with the Notre Dame women's basketball team when he was younger and when he was drafted and when he was in college, he did interviews and talked about how he was really close with a lot of the players on the team, and he looked up to them and they were role models to him. And so to me, like, this whole thing, I know it's been kind of growing for a while, but it seems like it kind of came out of left field based on how I perceived him when he was in college and was doing a lot of interviews and media and was really had, like, super high trajectory from a basketball standpoint. So this whole thing has been kind of weird and seems like something is not right there.

[Dan Le Batard]

Again, the Echoes, her weekly Notre Dame podcast with Mike Golick Jr. Great job, Jess. Thanks.

[Jessica Camerato]

Bye.