The Favorites - March Madness and Gambling Talk with Stanford Steve

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Herd with Colin Cowherd – "The Favorites - March Madness and Gambling Talk with Stanford Steve"

Release Date: March 20, 2025

Introduction

In this engaging episode of The Herd with Colin Cowherd, hosts Chad Millman and Simon Hunter welcome their esteemed guest, Stanford Steve, a renowned ESPN producer and seasoned gambling enthusiast. With over 15 years of experience in sports media and a deep-rooted passion for gambling, Stanford Steve brings invaluable insights into the intricacies of the NCAA March Madness tournament and the evolving landscape of sports betting.

March Madness Analysis

Stanford Steve dives deep into the 2025 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, sharing his perspectives on the current favorites and potential dark horses.

• Duke’s Performance and Arizona Showdown

  Stanford Steve (04:24): “I honestly think Arizona beats Duke because when you look at what Arizona brings to the table, they're better and better.”

  Steve highlights Arizona's improving performance and their tactical advantages over traditional powerhouses like Duke, emphasizing Arizona's guard play and strategic depth.

• Realistic Championship Contenders

  Stanford Steve (12:16): “I have five teams in Duke's bracket that I believe can win the national title and one is hanging on by a whisper.”

  He identifies five potential champions within Duke’s bracket, underscoring the unpredictability and competitiveness of the tournament.

Team Selections and Controversy

The discussion shifts to the NCAA selection committee's decisions, with Stanford Steve offering critical viewpoints on seeding and team placements.

• Critique of the Selection Process

  Stanford Steve (16:07): “I think they're bad. I, I really do.”

  Steve expresses frustration with the committee’s inability to accurately seed teams, citing examples like Auburn's unfavorable path and questionable lower-seeded teams advancing.

• Impact of Conference Strength

  Stanford Steve (18:12): “The SEC is the best conference ever with 14 teams.”

  He praises the Southeastern Conference (SEC) for its dominance and depth, yet laments how even strong teams can suffer early exits due to flawed seeding.

Gambling Strategies

Stanford Steve shares his expertise on sports betting, particularly his methodologies for March Madness wagering.

• Calcuttas and Team Investments

  Stanford Steve (24:42): “Our biggest thing is we basically have the percentages, but we don't know the big. We don't know the total number yet because you don't know what you spend until, you know.”

  He explains his approach to Calcuttas—buying teams he believes will advance—and how careful selection has helped him avoid costly upsets.

• Avoiding Upsets for Successful Betting

  Stanford Steve (22:09): “We're here for the madness. And last year, not that it wasn't a great tournament, we just didn't have the madness like we wanted. So this year I'm. I'm really looking forward to it.”

  Reflecting on past tournaments, Steve emphasizes the importance of selecting teams with consistent performance to maximize betting returns.

Social Media Impact

The conversation addresses the role of social media in sports betting, highlighting both opportunities and challenges.

• Navigating Negative Feedback

  Stanford Steve (56:12): “No, no, no, no one says thank you when you win or congrats. Like, no.”

  He discusses the lack of positive reinforcement on social media platforms and how it affects bettors, advocating for a focused and resilient mindset.

• Social Media as a Double-Edged Sword

  Stanford Steve (30:58): “The social media thing, I mean, you guys deal with it constantly. It's. It's just thankful. Ultimate thankless job because, you know.”

  Steve warns against relying solely on social media for feedback, stressing the importance of personal analysis over online opinions.

Personal Stories and Experiences

Stanford Steve opens up about his personal journey from a top high school football recruit to a successful media personality, offering inspirational anecdotes and lessons learned.

• Transition from Football to Media

  Stanford Steve (36:27): “I decided to go to Stanford because My birthday is January 1st. Grew up watching the Rose Bowl on my birthday my whole life.”

  He recounts his decision to attend Stanford University, driven by personal aspirations and the legacy of playing in prestigious events like the Rose Bowl.

• Interactions with Nick Saban

  Stanford Steve (47:55): “Whenever he's talking about college football. And then, like, we're at conference room, whether we're on a zoom. And I'm just constantly just taking notes, writing everything down because again, it's so thought out, it's so smart and it's super interesting.”

  Steve shares memorable interactions with Alabama’s legendary coach Nick Saban, highlighting his strategic brilliance and leadership qualities.

Advice and Takeaways

The hosts and Stanford Steve provide valuable advice for both aspiring bettors and those navigating major life decisions, such as college selections.

• Responsible Betting Practices

  Stanford Steve (26:42): “The rule number one is you can't bet money you don't have. That's the rule number one in game.”

  Emphasizing responsible gambling, Steve advises bettors to only wager funds they can afford to lose, advocating for financial discipline.

• Navigating College Decisions

  Chad Millman (42:48): “It's big boy stuff, man. You got it, you, you, there's no, there's no other way than to, than look it in the eye.”

  Drawing from his and Stanford Steve’s experiences, Chad underscores the importance of making informed and heartfelt decisions when choosing a college.

Concluding Remarks

As the episode wraps up, Stanford Steve and the hosts reflect on the delicate balance between passion for sports, responsible gambling, and making pivotal life choices.

• Final Thoughts on Betting and Social Media

  Stanford Steve (56:12): “Use it as you do and use it to your advantage because there are some really good things on there and connecting with people they haven't seen in a while or checking out or reading an article.”

  Steve encourages leveraging social media positively while maintaining personal integrity and focus in betting strategies.

Notable Quotes

• Stanford Steve (04:24): “I honestly think Arizona beats Duke because when you look at what Arizona brings to the table, they're better and better.”
• Stanford Steve (16:07): “I think they're bad. I, I really do.”
• Stanford Steve (26:42): “The rule number one is you can't bet money you don't have. That's the rule number one in game.”
• Stanford Steve (56:12): “No, no, no, no one says thank you when you win or congrats. Like, no.”

Conclusion

This episode of The Herd with Colin Cowherd offers a comprehensive exploration of the 2025 March Madness tournament, enriched by Stanford Steve's seasoned expertise in sports betting and media. From dissecting team performances and selection controversies to sharing personal narratives and responsible gambling advice, listeners gain a multifaceted understanding of both the excitement and challenges that come with the ultimate college basketball showdown.

For those interested in sports, betting strategies, and insightful discussions on major sporting events, this episode serves as an invaluable resource and an engaging listen.

Transcript

[NCAA March Madness Announcer]

The 2025 NCAA March Madness Men's Tournament is back and this time it is bringing all the feels. The biggest event in college sports is here with games happening all day long and you don't want to miss a second of the heart pumping action. Catch all the clutch shots, big time plays, upsets, Cinderellas, blue Bloods and more. Tune in to the NCAA Men's Division 1 Basketball Championship March 18 through April 7 on TBS, CBS, TNT, TruTV and Stream on Max.

[Mel Reid]

This is Mel Reed, LPGA Tour winner and six time Lady Jupine Tour winner.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

And Kyra K. Dixon, NBC Sports reporter.

[Mel Reid]

And host and we've got a new podcast, Quiet Please with Mel and Kira.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

We are bringing you spicy takes on sports and pop culture. Some interviews with incredible people who have figured out how to make golf their superpower.

[Mel Reid]

An iHeart wins sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

Presented by Elf Beauty, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

What's up everyone? Julius Rippinks here along with former NHL player Nate Thompson.

[Nate Thompson]

We're doing a new podcast together. Here we go.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

The name Energy Line with Nate and jsb.

[Nate Thompson]

Each week we'll get together and talk about hockey life. All topics are fair game, right?

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Exactly. And you'll never know who will drop by to join us.

[Nate Thompson]

Julie is pretty well connected. She has text threads going that you wouldn't believe.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Country Festival Announcer]

Tickets are on sale now y'all for our 2025 I Heart Country Festival presented by Capital One happening Saturday, May 3rd at the Moody center in Austin, Texas. Don't miss your chance to see Brooks and Dunn Thomas Rhett, Rascal Flatt, Cole Swindell, Sam Hutt, Megan Maroney, Bailey Zimmerman, Nate Smith. Tickets are on sale.

[Chad Millman]

Ticketmaster.com welcome to the Favorites, the podcast presented by Beth 365. We are part of the Voluum Podcast Network. I am Chad Millman of the Action Network. I am live from my Tommy John home studio. I'm joined as always by my co host, my companion, my compadre, my bff Professional Better Simon Hunter.

[Simon Hunter]

Hello Simon Chad, how we doing brother?

[Chad Millman]

Listen dude, I'm in the middle of an epic, epic travel streak. I have been gone for three to four days of every week and just about every weekend since the super bowl. Got home late last night after visiting Penn State University over the weekend with my son, we're narrowing down the college choices. We're getting down to the end. I am going to ask my guest because he's intimately familiar with all of the places that my son has left. I'm going to want to get his opinion on it. But the NCAA tournament is underway. You and I have a very special guest. He's, he's, honestly, he's an inspiration to a lot of the people on our production staff, some of whom he's actually worked with very closely, including myself. He's always been an incredible producer. One of the legendary ESPN producers. He became a beloved media personality. Not television, not audio. All around media personality. Always been a passionate gambler. I've known the guy for 15 years, going back to my ESPN days. You've seen him on SportsCenter with SVP College Game Day. Our OG listeners are going to know him very well from not just the behind the Bets podcast from my ESPN days. He also co hosted the spinoff podcast with Chris Felica. Behind the the College Years, a gambling content pioneer. It's Stanford. Steve. Stanford. Welcome to the show, brother.

[Stanford Steve]

Hello, fellas. Pleasure. Welcome, Chad. It's been too long. I was so pumped to see at the Super Bowl.

[Chad Millman]

It was nice.

[Stanford Steve]

It's, it's the best part. You know, I think everybody that has to deal with the super bowl finds their pockets. And everybody has gotten to the point where, you know, you, it's like, you know, Kyle Brandt did the best thing about seeing people at the Super Bowl. I thought it was tremendous. Just the three questions that are asked. But people know what to expect when you've done so many of them. And, you know, I'm not the concert going guy. I'm not going to, you know, I just have zero interest. And the best times I've had are, you know, a little small private party or just telling guys, hey, I'm at this hotel bar. Let's, let's meet there. And those are the best times because you go to these shows, you can't hear a word anyone's saying. And you want to talk to people because you haven't seen them. And social media is a great connection, but you're not getting what you can get. And then you see things on social media that people are posting. You're like, yeah, I'd love to ask about that. And that's the time to do it. So it was great to catch up with you and it's been too long. I, you know, people talk about, you know, it's, it's, it's always like, how did you go from producer to tv? And your name is the first one that comes up because you gave. You gave the bear and I of a little on ramp to the highway that I didn't know what was podcasts and you did. And your vision has always been just incredible to me. Going back when you come in in studio every week with ESPN the Magazine with Scott and Ryan, us developer friendship there and I mean you literally had us on and like, yeah, here, go, go do your own. And not knowing what the platform was and then to. To hear people react and then Bear and I get to get to interact with the people we did and get people to listen. It was. I'll never forget it. It was. I can't believe it. It's been 15 years.

[Chad Millman]

So nice you to say. I wasn't even expecting that.

[Stanford Steve]

No, man, I try and say out of sight, out of mind. It's not true. People always remember certain things. Maybe certain people remember want to remember certain things. But no, man, I'll never forget the opportunity you. You gave us. And it's turned into an unbelievable run. This past year, college football was most fun I've ever had with the playoff and traveling, going to Bloomington for the first time among the top things. So it's a pleasure to meet you guys. Appreciate what you guys do, what you've built. It's really, really incredible in this, you know, podcasting and gambling. It feels like it's never going to end. And there's got to be a roof at some point. But how early you started at Chad is. Is still something I'm amazed by. And the belief that you had in yourself and in establishing a crew is really, really cool to see because we've seen plenty go by the wayside and. And here we are.

[Chad Millman]

Dude, I got a feeling. Matt Mitchell and Gifford, who used to work with you at espn, yeah, they're probably going to cut all that out.

[Stanford Steve]

But editing purposes, I get it.

[Chad Millman]

Listen, the behind the bets, the, the college years, that was the most natural evolution. Simon, you would not know this because you did not care about me before you DM me on Twitter. But the podcast that.

[Stanford Steve]

How old is Simon?

[Chad Millman]

Simon. Simon's 35.

[Simon Hunter]

35.

[Stanford Steve]

Okay.

[Simon Hunter]

Yeah. So Chad, Chad knows the deal. I. I live the lifestyle I was living in Vegas. Degenerate gambler. So Versillo and SVP did make my cut, though. So I didn't listen to gambling stuff because I don't want to with my head. Yeah, you know, I'm a know it all, especially back in those days. But yeah, when I was a runner, living in my car, running from across Vegas, long days, lots of SVP and we're still. And the random gems of Stanford Steve. Just humble in for one or two seconds. And you know, that is Stanford Steve. I'm sure you've heard this. Everyone's favorite character on any show is the guy that talks for maybe one or two minutes. Right? So I hit the point of like, I liked svp, I liked Dracula. But anytime I got to hear a Stanford Steve story, especially your glory days of college, I'm just like, fuck, this guy is the man. So, yeah, obviously seeing what you started out as, where you're at now, man, it's, it's pretty epic how you've taken that little niche and made into a huge, huge career, man. You're the man.

[Stanford Steve]

Yeah, Chad. Chad created that niche. So again, I thank you. Serious. I'm telling you because it was, it was, man. Because I mean, I would, I would even. I would still get shit from. From radio producer like, what are you doing? I'm like, I'm going to tape a podcast. They're like, what? Like you're talking. I'm like, yeah. And turned into what it did. But yeah, behind the Bats, man. Holy cow, that was long.

[Chad Millman]

We were doing that show from across. Yeah, the studio.

[Stanford Steve]

Yeah.

[Chad Millman]

With SVP and Rosillo and you and Felica crushed that. You used to come on behind the Bats and we would do an episode, a segment on behind the Bats, just about college football. And at some point, like, you guys just didn't need me doing it. And you could go for so long. It was also just the most classic natural off ramp transition because of Saved by the Bell, the college years for the old heads. The perfect name. Carry on, gentlemen. And it was fucking great.

[Stanford Steve]

Yeah. I mean, now you're a star. You hated college football and you just wanted to talk NFL and. That's right. And it couldn't have worked out better because I could care less about the NFL and I love college football. So that was that. Would you Nailed it out of the park.

[Chad Millman]

That's called complimentary football right there, Stanford. That's what that is.

[Stanford Steve]

Are we going to talk about. Are we going to talk about which is what is the right side at all? Remember those arguments?

[Chad Millman]

Well, the right side is the winning side. That's. That's the bottom line. Let me do a little business right here. As a reminder, the favorites podcast is presented by bet365 and it is now live in my home state of Illinois, baby. New bet 365 customers, including those in Illinois, get $150 in bonus bets when you bet $5. Sign up using promo code FAVORITES, deposit $10. Place a bet for $5. Get $150 in bonus bets. Those bonus bets can be used on spreads, totals, player props, futures and more. Whatever the moment, it's Never ordinary. At BET365, especially in Illinois, must be 21 or older and present in Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, Louisiana, North Carolina, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia or 18 and older in Kentucky. Gambling problem. Call 1-800- GAMBLER or 1-800-BITS OFF in Iowa. Terms conditions, restrictions apply. Speaking of Illinois, before we dive in, another reminder. Officially RSVP for our free Favorites live show in Chicago. This is a big event. Elite 8 March Madness games on Saturday, March 29th at Joe's on Weed. It's on Weed street, folks. Free event, free drinks, free live show with college basketball betting experts Stuckey and three Man Weave. Overall, good times. RSVP to reserve your spot, click the link in this episode's description or just Google Favorites. Live event Chicago. Be sure to RSV Pete. All right, Stanford, we know you're a Duke guy. Not a Duke grad, but a Duke fan. Like, there's a long list of teams in the past you could see winning the tournament. And right now, like Florida came on strong. Yeah, obviously Auburn struggled at the end of the season. Duke has basically three guys who will be first round picks. How many teams do you think can realistically win it all right now?

[Stanford Steve]

Ooh, I'm glad you asked. I got my list right here. Duke's region, the east actually has the most. I make a list every Valentine's Day of teams that could think can win the national title. Then it changes when the bracket comes out because I get it and you guys know the deal with gambling people and like all they want is picks. They want picks. They want picks. And it's really, really hard because I still think the bracket dictates how I feel. And until I see it and see the matchups and all that, I don't really have a great feel. But that gives you more clarity because you start to see paths and things like that. So I have five teams in Duke's bracket that I believe can win the national title and one is hanging on by a whisper. But I can't give up on them because again, the hardest thing we do in this world, we do. We do things as far as, you know, picks. And all that is forgetting what a team looked like the last time we saw him. And it's. It's the hardest. I think it's the hardest thing with NBA betting when you start getting the series. I think it's the hardest thing with college football after a team plays a big game, say, on the road. Because if you, if you focus in on how bad a team look and they played bad, you're just setting yourself up and it's. It's really hard to do. You gotta. You gotta clear the table and assess things in a basis of here. And. And with the tournament in that bracket, I have Duke, Arizona, byu. Wisconsin is the team that's hanging on by a thread. And Alabama. Wisconsin was a team I really like getting better all year. And then you go to the Big Ten title game. They play their worst game of the year and lose. And now you look at their draw. Now they got to go to Denver. They played Sunday afternoon. Teams that have played in Big Ten title games don't have a great history in the NCAA tournament. And so you go to Denver, all right. You got to play a Montana team who's not bad at all. Watch them through the season. Actually think they could do pretty well and cover that number. But Wisconsin's that team. And then BYU and Alabama are the two teams. I'm so bummed they're in the same bracket, just like Florida and St. John's I'm sure we'll get to. But BYU and Alabama were two teams. I thought all year they got to get out of the conference and get to tournament play because of what they bring to the table as far as matchups, size, length, style of play, all that. I love what BYU and Alabama bring to the table, and that one was tough. I keep going back and forth who's going to the Final Four out of that. And I honestly think Arizona beats Duke because when you look at what Arizona brings to the table, they're better and better. They're getting, you know, the. The Akron pick is getting more popular and more popular, but it seems like the line keeps going up, which I don't like at all. I think it's up to 13 wherever you're. You're getting numbers from. But Arizona played Duke already this year. They lost in Tucson. Low scoring game. It was after Duke got beat by Kentucky. I think Duke really, really needed it. And Tommy Lloyd was still figuring out their lineup. And now you look at what Arizona did in the Big 12 tournament, which is super impressive to me. I love the way their guards play. And you have the ultimate Caleb love factor. Yeah. If he's bad they're not going to win. But if he's good. Kids brought a team to the national championship three years ago. So I look at Arizona as super dangerous in that bracket, being really, really tough. Everybody's just saying Duke's got a path because, you know, they get Mississippi State and the winner of Mississippi State and Baylor. But I think it's more tricky than that. Those teams aren't going to be afraid. They're going to get everybody's best shot. You don't know what Cooper is going to look like. And I just, I feel like it's a tougher than draw. And then you factor in another thing that I always look at. And when we got off the air Last night at 2:00am, 9 million over 9 million brackets [e-mail] 40% had Duke winning like that.

[Chad Millman]

That then it's an auto fake.

[Stanford Steve]

I don't want any part of that. You got zero.

[Chad Millman]

I sometimes I feel. Simon, tell me if you feel the same way. I mean, you're a professional, better. But obviously college basketball isn't where you make your money. I've always felt like the bracket, the, the people creating the seatings, the selection committee, either they have an ear for what gamblers don't want to see or they are so unself aware they fuck every team that gamblers really want to believe in. And I feel like I saw it all over the brackets this year, even with Auburn, like Auburn's the number one overall seed. They gotta go to Kentucky. And then they potentially have to play Louisville, which is essentially a home game in Lexington for Louisville in the second round if Louisville wins its opening round game against Creighton. Like, what the fuck is up with the selection committee? When you look at this Stanford, do you feel like they have an ear for what gamblers are thinking or do you think they're just bad at this?

[Stanford Steve]

I think they're bad. I, I really do. You look at some of the spreads. I mean, like I said, I love byu. And that VCU game is brutal because VCU is a great defensive team. Now, VCU's only played two tournament teams and, you know, they got to go to Denver, as I pointed out, after playing Sunday afternoon too, which, you know, likes byu, but then the lines in the twos, I think. And then you just look at the 12, 5 Colorado State's favored over Michigan. And now, like, it's, it's, it's brutal the way they do it. And you know, I always held back that it was done the right way. But this year I just, I Can't with the North Carolina thing. Like, you know, bracket. What's the site? Bracket matrix, 111 brackets, all, you know, bracketologist, computers, the whole thing. 111 out of 111 had West Virginia and in North Carolina out. And, you know, and then you see the selection show with the vice chair now, because Bubba was the AD of Carolina.

[Chad Millman]

Like Bubba, who got $70,000 bonus because.

[Stanford Steve]

North Carolina, I couldn't, I can't get there now. And I, I, I think it's a shame because this being the brand and, you know, Indiana factors into it, too, because immediately I saw Carolina and I'm like, well, Boise State's out and they're just going to go with the names. And then you see Texas and it's like, whoa. So it's, it's brutal because I always want the little guys to go and I get. The SEC is the best conference ever with 14 teams. And I watch it as much as anybody. But, like, you're just, you know, I still, you know, you look at team like Drake, if they didn't win their conference tournament, I thought they deserved to be in. They're like 30 and 4. You know, at some point, I want teams that are capable and it's only going to get worse. Heard people talking, like, the out of conference games that, all right, they want to get quad one wins. You know, all the shoe companies do the preseason scheduling, like out of conference preseason. That's all done. Shoe column. Maui has a Nike school, Under Armour, Adidas. Like, they control all that, so the little guys can't even get in on that. And then, like, I look at everyone's picking High Point, right? Because they're playing Purdue. It's pretty basic why everyone's picking High Point. They see a good record, they see Purdue forget that they went to the national title game last year. And just think about years previous where Painter has failed, who I think is still an excellent coach. High Point hasn't played a quad one game in two years. How do you equate. How do you equate that? Like, it's just, you know, going off on a whim, and I'm sure they'll win and people will be happy and say, I told you so, but I can't, I can't get there doing that when I look at what I watch and, you know, I mean, it's the ultimate dice. Dice. The ultimate dice roll, this tournament. And, you know, coaches are judged on what they do in this thing. And I think it's tough. You go to a guy like Rick Barnes, you know I think the world of them, the way, the way he's recruited the different schools that he's won at and he's got one final four but if you look close, there's plenty of Sweet 16 and Elite Eights in there. Like I think the world I wanted Houston and Tennessee to go to the final four and now they're in the same bracket. So it's always handcuffs when it comes to committee. But yeah, I think they could be better.

[Chad Millman]

Simon, you get all this second hand intel from all the people you know that are professional betters. Does it ever make you want to go all in on college basketball like for an extra two months, just extend your season. Do you see opportunities there? We've never actually talked about this.

[Simon Hunter]

No. But I guess, I guess it's because it's. It doesn't line up well with football where like my hardest months really are that December, January, February stretch. And then when I'm done with that I'm so burned out. It's like am I really about to learn? A thousand college kids names are probably all gonna be gone within the next year or two and just a lot to take on. But college is a thing where you can someone like me that's further away from it. I feel like I do make more money than the guys who are locked in on it and they are so into it where I can pick their picks and I don't overthink it. Like me and you joked about last year. You we said it Yukon felt like free money and we bet that heavy and we wrote it all the way to the finals. And sometimes it really is that simple right there that those unique years of great coaching, great team, great team chemistry. Don't overthink it. Where this year I feel like snare versus keeps talking about a little bit where they're. It's open. Like every team that is the best, there's a weakness to it. There is a reason you can talk yourself into them failing. So these are my favorite type years where last year me and you had fun because we made a ton of money betting. Yukon, I want the madness. Like that's what we're here for. We're here for the madness. And last year, not that it wasn't a great tournament, we just didn't have the madness like we wanted. So this year I'm. I'm really looking forward to it. I feel like we're gonna have a really crazy open field. I don't know if Stanford Steve has the same view.

[Stanford Steve]

Totally. Like I said I have plenty of teams that, I mean each region has at least three teams I believe that can win a national title. Now I'm more optimistic for, for certain teams and don't look at the path. But I just think about what I watch when I see that team. You know, everyone talks about, you know, the St. John's Florida bracket, right. I mean Florida could not be more impressive. And the, how good the SEC was. They won every game in the tournament by double digit points. And they played, let's see, I'm trying to think who they played. A 10 seed in Arkansas or. No, that was Auburn. I forgot who they played. Oh, they beat Missouri. They're a six seat. Then they beat Alabama's a two seed and they beat Tennessee who's a two seed, all by double digits. Like I get it. I kind of want them to lose. So the odds would, the odds would help. But you, that's what you get here. And are you guys familiar with the, with the Calcuttas and all that were the auctions for the team?

[Chad Millman]

Of course.

[Stanford Steve]

I can't wait. I think UConn went for close to 40k in ours last year and it was warranted. Like I, we were in on it for a while and I'm just like, man, this is because you, you, you have to win the tournament there where I like this year more where I could pick some teams off at a cheaper price that can, hey, all I need is them to get to sweet 16 and we made money on this team. So that's why we have ours in a couple days. I can't wait. But it's more open, there's more options and we've done an unbelievable job of avoiding the monster upsets. A couple years ago, Illinois was the most expensive team. They lost in the second round to Loyola. Like that. That hurts, man. Auburn was red hot. Won the SEC tournament last year. Big highest price, four seed by far. Loose Dale in the first round. We've done a good job of that. Avoiding that. So I, that's another factor in the whole gambling thing that if you know, you know it, you're fascinated by it. It's super fun when it goes well. But yeah, we've done a good job of avoiding the catastrophe.

[Chad Millman]

You, when you do your Calcuttas and I'll explain it sort of as generally as I can so people understand, it's basically you're buying teams that you think are going to win the entire tournament and you're basically going all in on those teams. But you can invest in sort of three, four different Teams, depending on the number of people in the Calcutta and the size of the pool that you want it to be, etc. Etc. When you are playing in a Calcutta, do you go in with a couple people that you're pooling your money?

[Stanford Steve]

Oh, yeah.

[Chad Millman]

Okay.

[Stanford Steve]

Yeah. Our biggest thing is we basically have the percentages, but we don't know the big. We don't know the total number yet because you don't know what you spend until, you know. So it's, you know, that year with Illinois, we got out on Illinois, they were, they ended up going for high 20s, I would say. And I think we got, I think we were in at like 19, and they were like the first one seat because you do it backwards. Like, you get the 11 and 14 seed in a region, I think you get 12 and 15, 15, how we do it. But then once you get to, you know, the top four seeds, it's every team's its own. So, you know, a couple years ago, oh, who did we have? Oral Roberts. When they made the run, like, we, I think we spent 2,500. And they got to the lead eight like we were. And the way they do it is you don't know the payouts for each round because you don't know how much money is in the pot. But once you know that, you know, a first round win, a second round win are, are 1% of the pot, and then it doubles and it keeps doubling and it's, you know, you, you, those sweets. To get to the Sweet 16 is enormous. To get to the lead eight is even bigger. And obviously the final four and title game are, are monstrous, but it's, it's a super, super fun. And we got to, you know, we've been together five years, I think now, since I moved here. So it's super, super fun. If you get a chance and you want to take a different way of looking at the tournament, it's totally different because it also gives you betting chances. You know, if you, you know, it's sort of a, you know, the opposite of a happiness hedge where, you know, you could do that. So. And then if you don't get the team that you really wanted, you can go bet them, you know, if you want it, if you're, if you're really that confident and there's discrepancies on your team or something like that. So it, it creates a whole nother viewpoint of the tournament, which I find super, super cool.

[Chad Millman]

You know what? I don't know that I've ever asked you this or if I did. I can't remember the answer. You're from Connecticut. Like, how did you get into betting?

[Stanford Steve]

Being around people that we're doing it and weren't supposed to, you know, a lot of relatives and. And Chad, it's funny, I get asked, you know, you guys get all questions, all the. You know, is betting ever gonna stop the advertising, the whole thing? I just think people are so much more better off now because, you know, I've seen and heard horror stories of, you know, local bookies. Right. And you see these people, and they're just betting on credit. So, yeah, they're gonna run if they're down. You know, the rule number one is you can't bet money you don't have. That's that. That's rule number one in game. You're only asking for trouble if you do that. And with the apps now, your monies are like, it's already there, you know? Yeah, I want. You want 100 bucks on a game. They're taking it right then. And then you get. You get it on the other end, just like going to a book in a sports book at any of the places. And there's no more betting with credit. So I think the. The way. Yeah, if. If you. If you have direct access to the account where that app is set up, you could run into some issues. But as far as just. Just wheeling and. And trying to play catch up, it's kind of. It's kind of not a. You're not able to do it on these apps because the money's up front. So seeing that and. And. And everybody being infatuated with the parlays now, I get it. It's way healthier than the stuff that I grew up around where it was going against rule number one. And it was people betting money that they didn't have and being allowed to because they were betting on credit with. With a guy.

[Chad Millman]

Was that just like family friends, family buddies in the neighborhood?

[Stanford Steve]

Yep. Yep. The old slips back in the day. You remember the slips?

[Chad Millman]

Yeah, for sure.

[Stanford Steve]

You know, those slips were going around high school like. Like hotcakes, man. You get your hand on a slip and somebody's booking it, and then somebody hits one and they don't have them. Like, it's. It all started then, man. All.

[Chad Millman]

Listen, back in the day, this is semi. Before Simon's time. Maybe not, but parlay cards were the big thing. And parlay cards would just fly through the high schools.

[Stanford Steve]

Yep.

[Chad Millman]

And that's how it got a lot of people into betting. Like, Simon, you live sort of on the cusp of all this because, you know, Stanford and I are a little bit older than you.

[Simon Hunter]

A little bit. But, like, Delaware, my old, my memories of Delaware is going to a pizzeria and filling out a parlay card at the pizzeria while waiting to get my slice. And it's like, you know, that was at 17, 18, like, we drive down from Jersey to Delaware to get a slice and make a bet. And yeah, the, the thing Steve's talking about, like, cracks me up. The thing about, like, my bookie, especially when I was young, is not only the credit thing, but, like having to meet up with that bookie to give cash to.

[Stanford Steve]

Yep.

[Simon Hunter]

And having that conversation and be like, I'm 100 short. And then give me that look of like, it's no problem, like, he knows he's got you down the road anyway.

[Stanford Steve]

You got my number.

[Simon Hunter]

Exactly.

[Stanford Steve]

And the other thing too, Chad, is people don't, like, like from 12 to 1 on an NFL Sunday, like, everybody knew where the guy was and you had to call. And that's when, you know, there were. They didn't usually have. What do we call it? Total phone where you could, you know, call waiting. It was just like, I'm trying to call. It's busy, it's busy, it's busy. He's got the phone off the hook. And so like, you had to make the call and, and, and to your point, sound like you had to go meet up and like, was there going to be a conversation or, you know, like, it's just, you know, everybody had their weeks. Right. All right, we close. You know, the NFL is always. Are. Are. Do you give Monday night as the. As to end the week? And, and, you know, uncles, another words I live by. Monday Night Football. If this game was at Sunday at 1:00, would you be betting it? And it's like, probably not because. But everybody's down and they're trying to chase. Let's throw down and lose even more.

[Chad Millman]

Truth is, it's not on Sunday at 1:00. It's on Monday at 8:15.

[Stanford Steve]

Yeah.

[Chad Millman]

So I think I might.

[Stanford Steve]

Yep, exactly. So. Oh, God. Yeah.

[Chad Millman]

A buddy of mine just wrote, his name is Alan Loeb and he has been on the show before. He's a very successful screenwriter. He wrote the movie 21. He wrote the movie Wall Street 2. He's written 1012 movies that a lot of folks have seen, has continued to produce a lot. He just wrote a story about his gambling addictions and actually was really thoughtful about why he believes Legalized sports betting is better, even though there are constant commercials now. And this has been a crazy week about sweepstakes or about the, you know, Commodities and Futures Trading Commission and whether or not they're going to continue to allow the prediction markets like Robinhood and Kelshi to allow full basically buying and selling of teams in March Madness. Um, that it's still better because of what you just pointed out, Stanford, which is, oh, you're not betting on credit, right? You're not. If you're digging yourself into a hole. It's a different conversation than when you're digging yourself into a hole.

[Simon Hunter]

Now, young kids don't know. I know guys who, especially my runner days, chad, like between 2010 and 2012, I can tell you a handful of guys that owed money and became priest or joined the military or just, you know, completely disappeared, move to Argentina. You don't hear those stories as much as you did back then because guys would get up to 20k, 30k debt and they don't have a dollar to their name. So like Steve's talking about. I'm getting all these funny memories thinking back to these crazy characters I knew, it's like, yeah, I haven't seen Jimmy in a couple of weeks. Oh, that dude's a fucking priest now. Dude, he's gone. It's like, what? Yeah, he's a priest now. And it's like, those are the things I think back to of those days of credit, man. Guys were just on the run.

[Chad Millman]

Fellas, before we witness any legendary buzzer beaters, Cinderella stories or diaper dandies, this NCAA tournament, it all starts with all of us staying cool, calm and collected this march. And the best way to do that, staying truly comfortable. The kind of flexible, breathable comfort only possible through our sponsor, Tommy John, before the confetti of a better life can fall before the first chords of a one shining moment montage can play. We must strive for best in class underwear and the best casual essentials money can buy. So box out underperforming undergarments and crash the boards of comfort with Tommy John. Simon, why will you be wearing Tommy John in 2025?

[Simon Hunter]

Because comfort is king. Chad.

[Chad Millman]

Right now you can shop tommyjohn.com favorites and get 25% off your first order. Save [e-mail] favorites that's tommyjohn.com favorites hey.

[Mel Reid]

This is Mel Reid, LPGA Tour winner and six time Ladies European Tour winner.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

And Kyra K. Dixon, NBC Sports reporter and host.

[Mel Reid]

You forgot to say warmer. Miss America by the way. And we've got Nipole Podcast. Quiet Please with Mel and Kira.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

We are bringing you spicy takes on sports and pop culture, some golf haps and interviews with incredible people who have figured out how to make golf their superpower.

[Mel Reid]

Or just people we like, plus tales from the road and everything in between. By the way, golf isn't just for the dads, Brads and chads.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

Yeah, it's actually life's cheat code. And we're not going to be quiet about it on or off the course. We're bringing on some of our friends, like Michelle. Michelle We, Heather McMahon, Amanda Baliotis.

[Mel Reid]

So if you want to keep up with us, and here is yap, tune into our new podcast, listen to Quiet.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

Please with Mel and Kira, an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Iheart Women's Sports, it's Julie Stewart Banks. I'm doing a new podcast from iHeart Podcasts and the National Hockey League, and I'm paired up with one of my favorite players, the always quick, quotable Nate Thompson.

[Nate Thompson]

I wore nine NHL sweaters and I have story after story to share. And believe it or not, I have plenty to say, and not just about hockey.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Believe me, he does. Energy Line with Nate. And JSB is the name of the podcast and it's gonna be, well, it's gonna be quite the ride. We're officially linemates, Nate. We're the Energy Line.

[Nate Thompson]

We'll have plenty of folks join us, current players, some of my former teammates, hall of Famers, and wait till you see some of the connections that Julie has. She has quite the Rolodex.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Okay, we'll lean into Nate's playing experience and tap into our interests away from hockey and try to do what energy lines are supposed to do, provide an emotional boost. How do you feel about all that, Nate?

[Nate Thompson]

I'm vibing, Julie. I'm ready to roll.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Chad Millman]

Stanford. For those who might not know your full backstory, your nickname is Stanford because you played football at Stanford. I don't think people realize how big of a recruit you were. Remind me, like, where were you ranked when you were coming out of high school? Because I also believe you had an offer to Notre Dame. I think you and I talked about this once, but give me sort of the context for your football all star hood and where else you could have gone.

[Stanford Steve]

I'm trying to remember the name of the magazine, but this was pre Internet.

[Chad Millman]

Athlon. Was it Athlon?

[Stanford Steve]

No, it wasn't Athlon. It was like a blue chip illustrator or one of the parade.

[Chad Millman]

Was it parade?

[Stanford Steve]

No, I didn't make the parade team though. Oh, gosh. What was the name of it? Anyway, I'm on my visit to Stanford and Moserisin was the guy who recruited me and comes running out of his office like he knew that I was there. I was there with my brother on my visit and he's like, look, look, look, look. And I'm like, what? He's like, they ranked you number one. I'm like, what? And it was like, number one player in the country. I'm like, what the hell is this? I'm like, okay, so I, I, to make it quick, like I could have went anywhere. You know, whatever people throw around. Five star, the whole thing, like went on these visits, went to camp at Notre Dame. Holtz was still there, but that staff was in flux. A lot of miscommunication. Mac Brown was at North Carolina. You know, Nebraska was really good. Tom Osborne was there. Best guy in our league the year before went to Nebraska, Tony Ortiz. So there was that connection. Spurrier came to the high school Heisman thing was, which was a Tri State area team that I made with through msg. That was something I'll never forget. Eddie George won it that year. And then they, they selected 15 guys in the area and Spurrier. So I saw my highlight film was like, hey. He's like, you want it? We're playing the national championship. You want to come? I'm like, what? Like, literally the Monday morning after my visit to Stanford, I'm like, I'm like driving home and I'm like looking at flights to Arizona and like just had lunch with Tiger woods at Stanford. Like, it was a complete, complete shit show. And to be 17 years old in that time, you know, you start, you know, coaches could call once a week and you're talking to all these coaches and you're building relationships. Hey, how are you? You know, how'd you play last week? How's school going? Like, and you start building relationships and then you got to tell these guys no. And as a 17 year old kid, like, it was super, super scary. And I remember just wanting to get the list down because I wanted to be done and decided before Christmas. And it was super frantic scary and, you know, not knowing, like you know, we see kids getting nil deals now, and I just think about, like, nil. I couldn't handle that. Like, I couldn't even figure out where I wanted to go to school. So, yeah, it was best of the best treat. Wreck royalties on visits and ultimately decided to go to Stanford because My birthday is January 1st. Grew up watching the Rose bowl on my birthday my whole life. And there was always a dream to play on my birthday and to go to a school, like, see Stanford. Like, I still put it up against any campus in the world and to be able to get that education because I really, you know, my dad passed away when I was going to my junior year of high school. Wanted to go out and prove myself. Like, I got some growing up to do here and was able to do that and ended up playing in the Rose bowl against Rondane in Wisconsin on my 23rd birthday, which was my final game. And then took an interject Internet startup job that summer in August and was broken out of a job by Thanksgiving. That was. That was a. That was a treat and a lesson to learn really quickly. And I mean, I. I say all the time now with kids in college, like, you got to have a plan, man. It's not the cool thing to do when you're in college, but, like, when. When people are. Are done helping you pick classes and all that, like, it's just you and your. Whatever support system you got, and if you don't have it or have a plan, that. That's the roughest transition, I think, in a lifetime because you're getting handed things. I mean, as a. As a scholarship football player, you're getting handed things that you're so taken for granted, and then to be punched in the face, you know, living in Palo Al, we're in Menlo park, no check. And I was never a guy that was like, yeah, you know, speaking of betting with credit. Yeah, I got. I got. I got rent next month. Like, I got. I was like, I'll never forget, like, Monday, took the job in, like, Labor Day, August 2020. No, I mean August 2000. And Monday before Thanksgiving, like, call my mom. Like, mom, I'm. I'm out of a job. Like, we got bought out. And, like, it was done. Like, you never heard those stories of the Internet. So, like, I had guys that got in, like, late 90s, got in with Google. Who? Yahoo, like, whoever, like, off and running, like, set in five years after being graduated, and I'm broke, without a job, not even four months out of college. So it was pretty Eye opening, but I wouldn't trade it in. People ask me all the time, would you have rather gone? I could have went to any SEC school, but the friends and things I was able to do at Stanford, I'll never trade in for anything.

[Chad Millman]

Do you remember the name of the company?

[Stanford Steve]

I don't.

[Chad Millman]

What were you. What were you doing?

[Stanford Steve]

It was some, like, Internet sale. I have no idea. I just. I didn't even know what I was doing. It was just, you know, a couple guys and were like, hey, let's do this. So. Yeah.

[Chad Millman]

I know that era. It's interesting you say that. You know, we were talking before I came on about colleges and like, I'm just going through this whole process with my kid right now, who's narrowing it down. It's coming down to Maryland, Penn State, and Indiana was sort of the third tier. And wherever we've gone, he's met with the people who run the programs that he's interested in. And every time we're done, he's like, he loves the school he just met with just at Penn State. But I think part of it is he feels badly saying no to people who have been so nice to him about saying, hey, come here, and this is what we can do. And not like, he's being recruited like an athlete. It's a completely different thing. But when you're 17 years old, you. I can see it. I can see how hard it is if someone is being kind to you to say no to them. It's brutal.

[Stanford Steve]

Yeah. And, and I, I, it's, it's tough. I mean, I got three little girls and I, I'm looking at kids, you know, I go to high school games all the time. And in this area, it's, it's loaded. I mean, I watched the tournament and noticed how many kids are from the dmv. Anyway, went and had lunch with a kid two weeks ago who's in college, journalism, communications, the whole thing. And we're talking and I'm just, you know, the, the idea of how to get on air obviously comes up. And like, when I'm taught, when he asked me a question, he's looking at me in the eye and I'm looking at him, asking him. Like, he's not even making eye contact. I'm like, dude, you gotta, this has gotta change. Like, put the phone down. And like, the, the. There's, there's nothing more important still in my like than face to face conversations. Like, even if it is on a zoom, like we're looking at each other, you know, you know, expressions, the whole thing. So it's, it's, it's really, really hard. I think it's a lot because I, I hate to say it, but I go back to Covid with kids now, like you don't know what they were going through. I mean, nobody was, I mean, you know, somebody posted the other day, you know, five years ago today we were told to stand six feet apart. I kind of wish those times came back for a couple minutes a day, you know, so it's, it's, it, there's, it's been such a whirlwind and everybody was a different age just five years ago. And then to come out of it, it's, it's pretty fascinating to see how people have adapted and changed. And I just, I'm constantly, you know, with my kids, like, look when you're talking to me, look me in the eye. And I feel like the phones and in social media and people just swiping left and right and scrolling up and down. It's all we do where it takes away from face to face conversations and we need more of that. And to get to your point about the 17 year olds making college decisions, it's big boy stuff, man. You got it, you, and there's, there's no, no other way than to, than look it in the eye. And I, I, I still say brushing your teeth every day in the morning, like look at yourself in the mirror, you happy with what you got? Because that's the, that's how you start your day. And yeah, it's a lot, but as long as you take them on face first, I say all the time you're going to be better off because it's one giant step you don't realize you're taking, but it's only going to help you as you know, we get older and you got to make more decisions. You learn a lot about yourself in those times and it's part of growing up.

[Chad Millman]

I, so it's, it's so funny because you say it's a big boy decision. I'm driving home with him yesterday from state college and I so want to, I said to him, I'm not going to say anything. This has to be your decision. I would love to be making the decision for him right now. I would love to tell him exactly what to do and exactly why he should do it and exactly what are the most important reasons to do exactly what I think he should do. I can't say a word and it's driving me nuts because Simon, you know, I Want to tell people what to do.

[Simon Hunter]

Yeah. You gotta let him make his own path, though, and, you know, make the right and wrong decisions. And like you just said, whatever school he chooses, you know the deal, Chad, he might hit you up in a year and be like, I hate this place. I want to come home, or I want to come back to a different school. And that's just the way it is with college. And, you know, I know plenty of people that, you know, I had a weird run where, like, people I knew were graduating. We went through that major recession in 08 and 09. And, you know, talking to those people that basically went through this, they're way off. Better now than people that graduated in 2012, 2013, that never experienced that low, that survival. You know, I. I do think it's weird to even talk about, but I do think a big part of life is failing. Like, how you deal with failure really is all it is. Like, I know plenty of guys who failed. Kind of woe was me and gave up in life, and they kind of tread the wall the rest of your life. I know other guys who failed and have gone on to do incredible things because they pushed through adversity. So I'm with you, Chad. It's. It's a tough decision, what he's making right now, but it's like one of a thousand tough decisions he's about to make going forward. And that's the craziest part. Once you got out of high school, it's like you're done with the kid, man. Every decision you make is a major decision on your life going forward. So that is tough.

[Chad Millman]

Look, Stanford went from playing in the Rose bowl to being out of work within a year, and now he's on college game day. Right? That is a freaking journey. Stanford. When you're on game day, everyone seems to just stop when Nick Saban is talking. I thought he was a revelation on game day. And the McAfee Saban interplay is amazing. But what is it like with Saban on set, in production meetings? Like, what do you glean when you're listening to him talk? Because he's. He captures something that is really sort of profound whenever he's talking about college football.

[Stanford Steve]

Well, it's. There's a lot of pieces. First thing is experience. Like, he's experienced so much and failing. He talks about his failures all the time and how he responded to him and his support system. But he's just so smart, man. God, like, because he's, you know, whether it's. Whether it's recruiting the best players in the country or being in the biggest situations of a national championship game. And the way he goes about things, like everything's just thought out and, and he, he doesn't, he doesn't jump the gun on anything. He always has something in his pocket to, to give you. And you know, this year, like, first time I think we were together was, was Ireland and you know, he's, you know, milling around and he's doing his thing and you know, he's got the computer going and you know, he's got the glasses and you know, it's like, hey, you know, coach, I'm, you know, whatever, and I'm here, whatever you need. And you know, it's, it's a process of, you know, it's Nick Saban, man. Like, he's got an army of ways he does things and, you know, he's got a, he's got a circle that's pretty, pretty strong and not anybody is just jumping in that circle. So there's a sense of trust. There's calls that you're on as far as the show where, hey, I'm bringing this to the table. But the one thing that was just eye opening, I found myself like, anytime he talks, it's just, it's silent. Whether we're in the conference room, whether we're on a zoom. And I'm just constantly just taking notes, writing everything down because again, it's so thought out, it's so smart and it's super interesting. And his stories are just out of this world. He had us to his house when we went to game day in Tuscaloosa. We just sat around dinner table and he just told store like it was amazing from his, his rise in coaching to try and recruit players to losing players, best players. He lost, like, just incredible. And then for him to come on the air and we had plenty of back and forth where we really had fun. And then I was like, you know how you talk to an older person? You're like, are they really listening to me? And then, you know, we had the exchange at Cal where I was talking about I dated a girl from Cal. And that literally was from a five minute conversation in the middle of the Cal hotel the night before when he was like, you ever come over here and hang out when you're at Stanford? I was like, yeah, my girlfriend actually here I was, I was here a lot. And from that he took it the next morning when I took my shot at the cow fans and we have great relationship. We sat next. So like that playoff thing was nuts. Like, we, we did Notre Dame Friday night and we were at Columbus the next morning for game day. Then we did Orange Bowl. They flew us to, to the Cotton bowl. And I'm on a private jet sitting next to Nick Saban, watching the end of the Orange bowl and I'm like, somebody please take a picture of this. And like, having coffee with Reese the next morning, getting ready for the combo show. I'm like, dude, we'll never forget that night at for as long as we live watching, like Nixon losing his mind on quarterback play. Like the game's getting tight. Throw the ball away, you're holding on the ball too long. Like, him being a fan watching the game is just a real person under there too, which you never saw, you know, at the press conferences and him going off on his players and the tangents on Lane Kiffin when he was assistant coach. Like, it's, it's been really, really cool. And he's just an unbelievable, unbelievable person.

[Mel Reid]

Hey, this is Mel Reed, LPGA Tour winner and six time ladies European Tour winner.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

And Kira K. Dixon, NBC sports reporter and host.

[Mel Reid]

You forgot to say warmer. Miss America, by the way. And we've got a new podcast, Quiet Please with Mel and Kira.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

We are bringing you spicy takes on sports and pop culture, some golf haps and interviews with incredible people who have figured out how to make golf their.

[Mel Reid]

Superpower or just people we like. Plus tales from the road and everything in between. By the way, golf isn't just for the dads, brads and chads.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

Yeah, it's actually life's cheat code and we're not going to be quiet about it on or off the course. We're bringing on some of our friends like Michelle We, Heather McMahon, Amanda Baliotis.

[Mel Reid]

So if you want to keep up with us, and here is yap, tune into our new podcast, listen to Quiet.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

Please with Mel and Kira, an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Iheart Women's Sports, it's Julie Stewart Banks. I'm doing a new podcast from iHeart Podcasts and the National Hockey League. And I'm paired up with one of my favorite players, the always qu quotable Nate Thompson.

[Nate Thompson]

I wore nine NHL sweaters and I have story after story to share. And believe it or not, I have plenty to say. And not just about hockey.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Believe me, he does Energy line with Nate And JSB is the name of the podcast and it's gonna be, well, it's gonna be quite the ride. We're officially linemates, Nate. We're the Energy Line.

[Nate Thompson]

We'll have plenty of folks join us. Current players, some of my former teammates, hall of Famers. And wait till you see some of the connections that Julie has. She has quite the Rolodex.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Okay. We'll lean into Nate's playing experience and tap into our interests away from hockey and try to do what energy lines are supposed to do, provide an emotional boost. How do you feel about all that, Nate?

[Nate Thompson]

I'm vibing, Julie. I'm ready to roll.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Chad Millman]

People watching Game day, people watching SportsCenter with you and Scott, those will never be the things. The on air things are never the things that you're going to remember from any of your highlights. It's always going to be the shit that happens behind the scenes. Not all of it is going to be private jet watching the end of an orange Bowl. That is like the extreme.

[Stanford Steve]

Yep.

[Chad Millman]

That's also what makes this business so much fun, is like these moments that you capture that are completely off camera.

[Stanford Steve]

Yep. Yeah. And, and going back to that point, Chad, about like being part of the process and, and Simon talking about these decisions and how they get bigger and bigger, like, you know, I don't have a job and I'm trying to get like, figured out. I had a communications degree. Hey, let's try and pursue this. And like two weeks in to get a part time job as a production assistant at ESPN Radio, I'm like, all right, well, I'm not going to make a lot of money. But you know what, when I hear, you know, get a, get a Friday night or Saturday night, we're out with the guys and the boys and we're BSing and they're bitching about having to, you know, go back to cutting lawns and everything. Like, I was super fired up to go to work every single day. Like, I'm watching games and cutting highlights and, you know, trying to get put on one of the regular shows to bring content to that. Like, I, I could care less about what I was making, but I was fired up to go to work every single day. And that's another choice you make. Like, you want to be happy. And, you know, there's different. You know, money's not everything all the time. But like I said, looking in that Mirror, brush your teeth every morning. If you're happy with that person, go for it. And if you're not, you got to do something about it. But that's things and decisions you got to make.

[Chad Millman]

How do you manage now? Simon and I deal with this all the time. Sports betting content from the time you and I started doing it, you know, 2011, 12, 13, when we were doing the shows together, I was coming on with you and Scott and Ryan 2 now has evolved so aggressively that you're front and center with so much of it. And some of the highest profile shows on television, forget about just sports television, but like Game Day and SportsCenter with SVP, like, those are massive shows, right? How do you now manage people coming after you for sports betting when you're wrong? How has that changed? How has the conversation changed as all of this has evolved?

[Stanford Steve]

Huh? Well, no one, no one, no one says thank you when you win or congrats. Like, no. Like, no, it's silence. It's silence. And it actually helped me last year. I think I was under like 8 or 10, under 500 last year on game day, and it took me like two weeks where I was like, this social media thing, you can have it. Like, I'm. And my rule number one is like, now we're going to be in March Madness. Like, the last thing I'm doing while these games are going on is going on social media. Like, I cannot, like just the grown in negativity a tweet that somebody sends that they're never, ever going to say to your face in person. Never. They'll never, they'll never do it. But they'll hide behind their screen name and write whatever they want to you. So that actually helped me because I was. I mean, I talked to plenty of people and they live by it. Like, they do it. I mean, I'm. I'm on set with other Sports center shows and. And like, we go to break and boom, they're checking their phone to see what people are saying about what they just said about their team or their player, their coach, whatever. Like, I, I don't. I don't need that. Because guys do it when they wake up in the morning and they check and you're on tv. No one's saying. No one's saying anything good. They're not. They're just. They're picking apart what you're saying. And I think that totally messes with people's heads because they, they read it and, and they act like that those are the only people watching the show, you know what I mean? Like, we're, you know, tv. There's still plenty of people that are watching the TV and aren't on social media. So having a bad year, picking games actually was the best thing because it made me not go on it. Like, it made me focus more on watching tape and watching games and reading, which I think is still a huge part. I'm still a guy that prints out NCAA tournament capsules on every team, reads those and goes through with a highlighter. Like, that's what I'm doing my time. I'm not going on and seeing what somebody's saying or listening to this breakdown. Like, I got my own way of going about things. It's been super successful and I'm going to stick to it. But this day and age, it's really, really hard for people to put their phones down, man. And. And like I said, the gambling, Twitter, gambling, social media, there's never congratulations on there. So don't, don't do it. Because you think you're gonna get that. It's just like starting in the vegan sports meeting when you think you're gonna make money because you're not gonna. You're not gonna do that. So, like, again, it's been a blessing in disguise. But the social media thing, I mean, you guys deal with it constantly. It's. It's just thankful. Ultimate thankless job because, you know, we'll get in March Madness. And it's like, all right, pick the upset. And it's like, okay, as soon as I pick the upset, the team that I'm picking against that fan base thinks their team sucks. And, like, a lot of times I'll have had that team, like the last three games. It's like, where were you the last three games when we just hit. We just hit three in a row on your team. I just don't like the matchup. I'm sorry, I don't. I don't hate your team. And then to go to all these colleges with game day and get the interactions with people is just hilarious because then it's like, oh, you know, really enjoy your work this. And it's like, oh, you know, face to face conversations are pretty real. And there is something. So it's, It's. It's a different world that, like, as you said, Chad, than when we started. And I just say, be careful. Like, it. Not, not. Don't, don't go. Scott says all the time, Twitter is not the place to go for positive feedback. It's pretty simple and, you know, use it. Use it as you do and use it to your advantage because there are some really good things on there and connecting with people they haven't seen in a while or checking out or reading an article. There's plenty of good stuff you can.

[Chad Millman]

Come here for positive feedback. Stanford Simon and I will always give it to you. Thanks for coming on the show, brother. As a reminder, the Favorites podcast is presented by bet365 and is now live in my home state of Illinois. New bet365 customers, including those in Illinois, get $150 in bonus bets when you bet $5. Sign up using promo code Favorites Deposit $10 Place a bet for $5 to get $150 in bonus bets. Those bonus bets can be used on spreads, totals, player props, futures and more. Whatever the moment, it's Never Ordinary at BET365, especially in Illinois. Must be 21 or older and present in Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, Louisiana, North Carolina, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia or 18 and older in Kentucky. Gambling problem. Call 1-800- GAMBLER or 1-800-BITS OFF in Iowa. Terms conditions restrictions apply. Thank you very much to Stanford Steve for coming on the show. He is a total pro and a good friend. Simon and I will return with our next episode of the Favorites on the Action Network YouTube page to discuss MLB Opening Day Tuesday 1:30pm Eastern. Download a Spotify Apple Pods wherever you get your pods Rate Review Subscribe Leave us 5 stars. Say whatever you want. Feedback as a gift. Until next time. Love you. Action Network reminds you please gamble responsibly. If you or someone you care about has a gambling problem, help is available 247 at 1-800-GAMBLER.

[Mel Reid]

This is Mel Reid, LPGA Tour winner and six time Ladies European Tour winner.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

And Kyra K. Dixon, NBC Sports reporter and host.

[Mel Reid]

And we've got a new podcast, Quiet Please with Mel and Kira.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

We are bringing you spicy takes on sports and pop culture. Some interviews with incredible people who have figured out how to make golf their.

[Mel Reid]

Superpower and iheart Wins Sports Production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on iheartradio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Kyra K. Dixon]

Presented by Elf Beauty, founding partner of iheart Women's Sports.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

What's up everyone? Julie swearbinks here along with former NHL player Nate Thompson.

[Nate Thompson]

We're doing a new podcast together. Here we go.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

The Name Energy Line with Nate and jsb.

[Nate Thompson]

Each week we'll get together and talk about hockey life. All topics are fair game, right?

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Exactly. And you'll never know who will drop by to join us.

[Nate Thompson]

Julie is pretty well connected. She has text threads going that you wouldn't believe.

[Julie Stewart-Binks]

Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

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