Super Bowl Fun Times - Episode XXX

Summary

The Musers The Podcast

Super Bowl Fun Times — Episode XXX (February 4, 2026)

Hosts: George Dunham, Craig “Junior” Miller, Gordon Keith
Location: San Francisco, covering Super Bowl 60

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Episode Overview

This special roadshow episode takes listeners into the heart of Super Bowl week in San Francisco. The three hosts, veteran broadcasters who have covered over thirty Super Bowls together, share absurd, insightful, and nostalgic behind-the-scenes stories. In classic Musers fashion, they riff on the evolution of media coverage, legendary halftime acts, infamous parties, and the changing culture around the NFL’s marquee event, peppered with personal anecdotes and sharp banter.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Magic and Evolution of Covering the Super Bowl

• Super Bowl Nostalgia & Perspective:
  • Each host reflects on the amazement of having jobs that annually bring them to the Super Bowl, hitting home the “little kid” magic of experiencing the NFL’s biggest stage.
    • “If you had told any of us when we were kids that you’ll grow up and your job will take you to the Super Bowl every year, we wouldn’t have believed it.” – Craig (00:56)
    • “There’s still a part of me, a little kid in me, that every time we arrive at the media center… I can’t believe we’re at the Super Bowl.” – George (01:43)
• Changing Vibe Over Decades:
  • The Super Bowl has evolved from a modest sporting event into a global media spectacle and celebrity magnet, with key moments like the 1985 Bears and Michael Jackson’s halftime show in 1992 cited as turning points in cultural significance and commercial hype.
    • “Late 80s, early 90s is when the Super Bowl itself hit that stratosphere with media coverage.” – George (10:45)
    • “By the mid-80s, the Bears really took it to another level. … By the 90s, superstar halftime acts like Michael Jackson took it to another level.” – Craig (11:56)

2. Letter of the Week – Listener Email

• Listener reaction to previous episodes (esp. on relationships):
  • Email from listener Mike reflects on the difference between men and women in relationships, sparking more self-deprecating discussion and comedic Chris Rock references. (04:21)
• Audience Engagement:
  • Repeated encouragement for listener feedback: “What’s the cost to email us? Free.” – Gordon & Craig (06:43)

3. Anatomy of Super Bowl Week

• Timetable & Media Day / Opening Night:
  • The week starts with media day (now “Opening Night”), once informal and accessible but now a primetime TV event with heavily scripted player/coaches and diminished spontaneity.
    • “It was media day and very low key... You could just walk up to [players] and talk. Now, there’s 3,000–5,000 media members.” – Craig (17:02)
    • “Players now are coached to avoid controversy and steer everything back to football.” – Gordon (21:09)
  • Media day’s peak: International coverage, celebrity reporters from shows like MTV, Telemundo, The Tonight Show.
• The Decline of the Media Experience:
  • A sense of nostalgia and loss as media day and Radio Row have become more controlled, corporatized, and less vibrant for both the media and fans.
    • “It’s as if the media is tired of doing it… Does the NFL care it’s lost its special nature?” – George (19:49)
    • This year’s event: “That convention center was so dark and dank, it just didn’t seem like a Super Bowl event.” – George (21:00)
• Radio Row Antics, Rivalries & Celebrity Encounters:
  • Legendary dust-ups with “Nasty Nestor,” bizarre interviews, celebrity drops by Chrissy Teigen, Dick Vermeil, Jesse Jackson, and recurring awkward (often hilarious) celebrity moments.
    • “We were natural enemies [with Nasty Nestor] in this world.” – Gordon (22:54)
    • “I made legendary Rams coach Dick Vermeil cry… and I felt so awful. Nice man.” – Craig (26:16)
    • “Jesse Jackson interviewed Adrian Peterson for us.” – Gordon (27:16)
    • “You’re married to Jim Miller?”—Gordon’s infamous SI model gaffe. (28:19)
  • Celebrities now avoid Radio Row or are booked only for select, managed network stages, reflecting another cultural and media shift.
• Super Bowl Venue History & Rotating Cities Debate:
  • Discussion on the merits of “classic” host cities (New Orleans, Miami, LA, Phoenix) versus “one-off” venues (Minneapolis, Detroit, Indianapolis), and how novelty and city pride enter the rotation debate.
    • “Life is about novelty and new things.” – Gordon (36:06)
• Media Parties & Field Trips:
  • Media parties are legendary: free food and drink, musical acts (Gin Blossoms, B-52s, Dan Aykroyd), and over-the-top city-hosted functions.
    • “I may have had a few cocktails.” – George on media party shenanigans, with the others ribbing him as the last to leave (34:28)
    • Dan Aykroyd cameo in New Orleans; best parties cited as New Orleans, Miami, LA/Universal Studios
  • “Field trip” traditions: post-game detours to Grand Canyon, Alcatraz, Key West, and even “snuck across the border to Canada” with misadventures recounted in lovingly absurd detail.
    • Gordon’s infamous late night, bloody trek home from Key West (53:08)
    • The “family of five” Detroit blizzard incident (50:51)

4. Super Bowl Press Conferences & Halftime Shows

• Access to Superstar Halftime Acts:
  • From Paul McCartney to U2, Tom Petty, Rolling Stones—The Musers revel in being 20 feet away from music legends, sometimes asking offbeat questions (leading to mixed reception or even awkwardness; see the U2 “clean band” incident at 42:08).
  • Notable moment:
    • “[Paul McCartney]… the microphone comes to me and I say... which part of your body would you like to expose America to this year? … He goes, 'I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear you' … and I had to pass.” – Gordon (44:08)
  • Legendary pop culture moments (Michael Jackson’s two-minute stage freeze, Prince during a downpour):
    • “As he starts playing Purple Rain, it starts raining at the stadium.” – Craig (58:24)
• On-Field Experience & Ticket Stories:
  • George reflects on the challenge—and privilege—of buying Super Bowl tickets for his kids when the Panthers made it (56:03)
  • Emotional weight of seeing the “game’s magic” in person; media now often goes home pre-game as Radio Row is disassembled before kickoff.

5. The Super Bowl’s Place in American Culture

• Why the Super Bowl is the Ultimate Shared Holiday:
  • “It’s the biggest day in America. It feels bigger than Christmas or July 4th… Nothing else gets 100 million views.” – Craig (59:48)
  • Pre-game hype (“five-hour pregame shows”), the case for “Super Bowl Monday” as a national recovery holiday (60:19)
• Enduring Magic vs. Media Cynicism:
  • “It’s still fun to me, but it’s not… as cool as it once was.” – George (61:32)
  • “The novelty, it’s still pretty magical to me.” – Gordon (61:53)
• San Francisco Field Trips & Life on the Road:
  • Chat about Alcatraz: “I thought I could have survived as a prisoner there.” – Craig (62:49)
  • George’s (purely theoretical) confidence in surviving the fabled swim, and Gordon’s fascination with the Zodiac killer (63:04).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• George on Super Bowl nostalgia:

  • “There's still a part of me, a little kid in me, that every time we arrive at the media center... it brings out the kid fan in me.” (01:43)

• Craig on his first Super Bowl trip:

  • “I thought I had died and gone to heaven... my first morning in LA, I see Dick Van Dyke in the wild.” (08:46)

• Gordon, comedic as ever:

  • “If you had told me when I was a kid that I'd get to go to all these Super Bowls... I would've said, why did I keep that job that long?” (02:27)
  • On Radio Row’s madness: “You would hate it. You're waiting to do this dental surgery that you're gonna have to undergo. That's how uncomfortable it is.” (18:56)
  • On the shifting event scene: “Media members—insufferable pricks.” (03:40)

• On Taylor Swift & the Super Bowl hype:

  • “The Super Bowl wasn’t big until Taylor Swift got involved… Now she needs to do the halftime show.” – Gordon (13:00; 13:24)

• On busted interviews and press conference gaffes:

  • “You shut down our heroes [U2]. They wanted to end the press conference.” – George (42:45)
  • “I say, ‘Hey, Paul, pleasure to talk to you... have you given much thought to what part of your body you'd like to expose America to?’ … and Paul goes, ‘I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you.’ … I just passed the mic on and completely petered out.” – Gordon (44:08)

• On media critique and changing times:

  • “I do feel myself aging along with the Super Bowl... it’s still fun, but not as magical.” – George (61:32)
  • “The novelty—it’s still pretty magical to me.” – Gordon (61:53)

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Highlighted Segments & Timestamps

• Opening reflections on childhood dreams vs. Super Bowl reality (00:56–03:11)
• Listener Mail: Gender Differences & Relationships (04:21–06:30)
• Craig’s first Super Bowl, Michael Jackson Halftime Show (08:46–10:45)
• Super Bowl’s commercial/media explosion (1980s–1990s) (11:24–12:52)
• Taylor Swift Impact Discussion (13:00–14:17)
• Evolution of Media Day & Its Spectacle/Downsides (16:12–22:08)
• Radio Row Feuds and Awkward Celebrity Encounters (22:47–29:00)
• Field trip & party stories: Grand Canyon, Canada, Key West, media parties (49:13–55:32)
• Halftime Shows: Prince in Purple Rain, McCartney, U2 Anecdotes (58:24–44:51, non-chronological)
• Debate on Super Bowl cities/rotation (35:53–38:28)
• On-American Ritual: Pre-game Show and “Super Bowl Monday” (59:16–60:49)
• San Francisco musings & joking about local lore (62:07–63:53)

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Closing Thoughts

The Musers’ decades covering the Super Bowl are a lens on the event’s massive transformation—from humble games to media behemoth, from spontaneous fun to tightly managed spectacle. Their camaraderie survives the changes, and their blend of awe, cynicism, absurdity, and gratitude keeps the Super Bowl magical—if also a bit more corporate, self-aware, and ripe for podcast storytelling than ever.

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For New Listeners

If you’ve never heard The Musers, this episode is a pitch-perfect sampler: you get insider sports tales, hilarious media observations, vintage sports nostalgia, and the genuine chemistry of three broadcasters both in awe of, and bemused by, America’s mightiest football circus. It’s both a love letter to the Super Bowl and a wry look at how even the biggest traditions change over time.

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To contact or submit your letter to the Musers:
themuserspodmail.com (it’s free!)

Transcript

[A]

This Valentine's Day, celebrate the one you love the most with Hallmark cards at Walgreens. Valentine's Day is the best time to send your favorite person a reminder of just how much they mean to you. A Hallmark card is a super simple and beautiful way to say how grateful you are for the love you two share. Don't forget, Valentine's day is Saturday, February 14th. Visit Walgreens today to find a Hallmark card that shows just how much you love them. Because love lives here.

[B]

We'll live forever at the Super Bowl.

[C]

Welcome to the Musers the Podcast. This is episode xxx Super Bowl Fun Times.

[D]

Welcome to America's favorite new podcast, the Musers the Podcast. And this week, a very special super bowl edition. I'm Craig.

[B]

I'm George.

[C]

And I'm Gordon.

[D]

And this week we are on the road in San Francisco covering Super Bowl 60. Over the years, the three of us have covered a lot of Super Bowls together. For our radio gig and this episode of the podcast, we've got stories from Super Bowls past, the big week leading up to the main event, the parties, the press conferences, the games. We'll take you behind the scenes of America's biggest annual event. We started going to these about 35 years ago. We've gotten some wonderful trips out of these assignments. Miami, New Orleans, Los Angeles, New York City, Tampa, San Diego. Got a lot to say about this incredible event. If you had told any of us when we were kids that you will grow up and your job will take you to the super bowl every year, we wouldn't have believed it.

[B]

No way. And there's still part of me, a little kid in me, that every time we arrive at the media center and we see the banners from all 60 Super Bowls, from the ones we watched as kids into our adulthood, it brings out the kid fan in me that, oh my God, we're at the Super Bowl. I can't believe it. And I do think about that. When I was watching my favorite team, the Cowboys, say in the 1978 Super Bowl, Super Bowl 12, I remember thinking, how do you even go to a Super Bowl? How do you get tickets to go to a Super Bowl? And the fact that, yeah, we've been able to go to a bunch of them still is really special to me.

[C]

If you had told me when I was a kid that I'd get to go to all these Super Bowls, that my job would take me there, I would have said, why did I keep that job that long? Me being the 1 non sports fan among us. But I did love the Cowboys when I was a little kid because my brother and my dad loved the Cowboys so much. So, yeah, I could see the magic of it. And I could only imagine you guys being huge sports fans and then get to actually go to it. And I do love the experience of being in a town where something big is about to happen at the end of the week. The whole lead up, just the. The bubbling excitement that runs through a city that is magical.

[B]

Yes. And there is. We've talked about it through the years on a radio show that the media as a whole, as time goes by, and I'm afraid I'm starting to fall victim to this. You just get a little. Okay, I've seen that and done that before. And here a city puts on a media party for you, and they bring out all this food and entertainment and media members will go to and go, that sucked.

[D]

Media members.

[C]

Insufferable pricks.

[B]

They just rolled out the red carpet for you and gave you all the drinks you wanted. You could have passed out on their alcohol, but that party sucked. It probably cost them $750,000 just to get started to host that party.

[D]

Yes. So we've got lots of stories from media parties over the years. Halftime shows, games, press conferences. We'll get to all of that here in this episode. But first we have to get to our letter of the week. And congratulations to Mike. He responded last week, the episode that we did about women, and we got so much response to that episode.

[B]

Even at home, we got response to.

[C]

That, oh, no, Giorgio got in trouble.

[D]

And basically every man that we heard from agreed with everything we said. And every woman that we heard from disagreed with everything we said. Said, yeah, it's tough. This is from Mike. He said, I love the episode. Agree with you on so much. I'm 56, and looking back on my dating life, I've come to the conclusion that what attracts women the most is humor and even more confidence. Those two things will get you more dates than anything else. I'm a lucky man. I've been married to a wonderful woman for 23 years. But the differences between men and women can still be a roadblock, even in our marriage. Now, I often tell her, men are pretty simple and not very smart. If you want us to do something, tell us. Don't send us on a treasure hunt using clues from some vague statement you made 10 years ago in passing. He said, I was laughing when you all were talking about how women can sometimes make the situations much larger than they are. I thought about an old Chris Rock bit. Chris hey, baby. How's work? It's not good. This one co worker, she's trying to destroy me. Bitch, you fold clothes at Dillard's. This ain't Dynasty.

[B]

How could there be today's climate that I don't find that humorous? Man, that's funny. I got hit with this this week as my wife's a part of a. A book club and they go out.

[C]

Oh, a drinking club.

[B]

They really do read and they talk about the books, but they go to a dinner once a month and she got back from that and said how was was fine. Oh, who all was there? So she. Well, I just gave you one bullet point. How many more bullet points do you want to this?

[D]

Oh, no.

[B]

Okay, all right, fair enough. She reversed the whip.

[D]

She heard the podcast.

[B]

Yeah, I told her to stop listening.

[D]

And all of your complaints.

[B]

A lot more fun that way.

[D]

If you'd like to react to anything you hear us say on any of these episodes, you can email us the muserspodmail.com themuserspodmail.com and what's the cost to email us free?

[C]

It's free. Oh, that's free. Okay. Wow.

[D]

The cost to listen to this podcast is free.

[B]

Free.

[D]

It is, yes. All right, all right, let's get into our topic this week.

[C]

That's why we're losing money.

[B]

We don't have a very good model.

[D]

Maybe that's it. We're not businessmen.

[C]

Think this out.

[D]

We're broadcasters.

[B]

The muser is the bankruptcy. That's what this is.

[D]

All right, we're in San Francisco. A rare musers. The podcast roadshow.

[B]

That's right.

[C]

First one.

[D]

Second. We did one from California for Cowboys training camp back in July.

[C]

Oh, yes, yes, yes.

[D]

So it's our second travel budget and.

[B]

That'S two trips to California.

[C]

I know it.

[D]

Another reason we're going bankrupt. Yes, we are covering the Super Bowl, America's biggest annual event. It's a week long deal for our radio gig. They send all the shows out here. We get here on a Sunday and we stay the whole week and there's something to do every day. So we thought we'd kind of take you behind the scenes through the week of the super bowl leading up to the game and some of our stories and experiences and what it's like and how it's changed over the years. And my first Super bowl was 1992 at our old radio gig where Georgie and I were before our current gig started. And I was the low guy in the totem pole. But the perk of being low guy in totem pole was that I covered all the games. And as a reward for covering all those games during the regular season, I got to go to playoff games. And in 92, I got to go to the Super Bowl. It was Cowboys, Bills, the first Cowboys, triplets, Aikman, Irvin, Emmett, Super Bowl. And it was my first trip to the big game and it was in Pasadena. So they had everybody stay in Santa Monica. I could not believe it because just a few years before I was a college kid and now I'm in Los Angeles. My second trip out there, I had gone as a child, first trip as an adult to la, staying at Santa Monica, very close to the Santa Monica Pier. I thought I had died and gone to heaven.

[C]

Oh, yeah.

[D]

First morning I took a walk down on the boardwalk and I see this group of older men coming towards me, about eight of them. And there was one figure in the middle that everyone was kind of guarding. And as that group got closer, I realized that the man in the middle was Dick Van Dyke. And at my first morning in la, and I see Dick Van Dyke in the wild. Legend, biggest TV and movie stars from the 60s and 70s. And those were his bodyguards, I guess, and maybe a couple of friends. He was out first.

[C]

Van Dyke need eight bodyguards or seven bodyguards.

[D]

Yeah, I mean, maybe he was out in the wild in public.

[C]

Who wants to do anything bad to Dick Van Dyke?

[D]

And I just remember that week being really magical. The media party, which we'll talk about here in a little bit, was at Universal Studios theme park.

[B]

Oh, that's great.

[D]

Media day was at Dodgers Stadium. It was my first time to ever go to Dodger Stadium. And that game, in and of itself was very memorable in a benchmark game because it was the first super bowl halftime show that went really big with Michael Jackson. I got to see Michael Jackson perform.

[C]

Oh, that's the one where he shot up out of the stage and stood there for like two full minutes as everyone was just going nuts. And he just let that moment build and build and build. That was iconic.

[D]

It really was. And imagine me being in the Rose bowl, this iconic stadium, watching the team that I grew up cheering for, the Cowboys playing in the biggest game in the world, and Michael Jackson the biggest performer in the world. And back then, that was when still not a ton of media covered the event. So our seats were at the 50 yard line and. And these days, you know, they stick the media in the upper corner of the end zone. You get the worst seats in the house. But back then I got good seats. So I couldn't have had a better first experience.

[B]

Boy, that is just the perfect setting. La. And that's about the time. As big as the super bowl became in the 70s, and that's where the NFL just really started to become America's game. I would say late 80s, early 90s is when the super bowl itself, you know, know, took hit that stratosphere with media coverage. Yeah. That media day you read wasn't like MTV there and it was just, I mean, all the media outlets were there on what used to be media day. Now it's opening night, and I think that's about when all that started.

[C]

When did super bowl commercials become the thing?

[D]

I would say the 80s.

[C]

80S.

[B]

Yeah, mid-80s.

[D]

Yep.

[B]

Remember the year the Bears went. That was 85ish is when it really became a big deal. And you. You heard about how much a Super bowl commercial would cost.

[C]

Right.

[D]

You know, that's a good one. The 85 bears, they kind of took the game to a different level because they were so mainstream popular.

[C]

Yeah. And with that quarterback with McMahon and his sunglasses.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

The fridge bridge everywhere. Huge. Yeah.

[D]

I just remember even though that game was terrible, the buildup to them being in the super bowl and the Super Bowl Shuffle and all of that, you know, the Cowboys and Steelers took it to a certain level in the 70s, and then Montana and the 49ers maybe another level. But by the mid-80s, the Bears really took it to, you know, a level three or four above where it had been. And then you're right. By the time the 90s rolled around and when they started getting really big superstar halftime acts like Michael Jackson in 92, that took the. The event to another level. It became much more about sporting event.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[C]

More than a sporting event then.

[B]

And don't you think that's about the time when it became a destination for the celeb, whether it was a singer or an actor, that's when they started arriving at the super bowl and going to all the big super bowl parties. And that's really, really when the whole scene changed.

[C]

To me, the super bowl wasn't big until Taylor Swift got involved. Didn't she go to the game to watch Travis?

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[D]

So it wasn't big impact until a few years ago, in your mind.

[C]

Oh, yes. That's only when it got big, you.

[B]

Know, to the NFL's magic that they've just created over the last 50 years. In particular, she added to it. Sure, she really did. With numbers and interest. People watching football games and the super bowl, that never really had an interest.

[C]

Before and she will do a halftime show at some point.

[B]

I would think so, yes.

[C]

She's got to.

[D]

Yeah, she will.

[C]

Someone that huge and with now an interest in football, she needs to do it while he's.

[B]

Yeah, he's about to retire.

[D]

See, I think that's what she's waiting for. I think she's waiting for him to retire because she doesn't want to be.

[C]

To upstage.

[D]

Upstaging him.

[C]

His footballness.

[D]

Yeah. If he still is playing. She wants him to be the centerpiece.

[C]

And she can't play it when he's not in the super bowl because then that would look also weird. Well, he didn't make it. They had an early exit. And she's playing the Super Bowl.

[B]

True. Yeah.

[C]

And she can't play it when he's playing in the super bowl because she doesn't want to upstage him.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

I bet they ain't making it back.

[D]

No, probably not.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

But I bet the year after he retires, she does it then, so.

[B]

Yeah. Maybe next year will be Tay Tay's Super Bowl.

[C]

Yes. Yes. Then it'll be a true Super Bowl.

[A]

This Valentine's Day, celebrate the one you love the most with Hallmark cards at Walgreens. Valentine's Day is the best time to send your favorite person a reminder of just how much they mean to you. A Hallmark card is a super simple and beautiful way to say how grateful you are for the love you two share. Don't forget Valentine's day is Saturday, February 14th. Visit Walgreens today to find a Hallmark card that shows just how much you love them. Because love lives here.

[B]

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[D]

All right, let's take everybody through the week. What super bowl week is like. It starts traditionally on Monday or early in the week. Back in the day, I believe it may have been on Tuesday, but the first big event is media day or what is now opening night, which is confusing.

[C]

They shouldn't call it opening night. Why did they call it opening night?

[B]

To take it the prime time, to make it a TV event.

[C]

So they broadcast it on their network, the NFL Network, NFL Network, espn.

[B]

And yeah, as we're going to explain what happened this year. But it used to be a big deal and they thought, hey, instead of just having these interviews happen during the day, let's take it to primetime TV and see what happens.

[C]

So the original idea is that they make the players available to all the media so you can get your football stories.

[D]

Exactly. It was media day and it was very low key and it was usually at the stadium. Or like that first one I went to was Dodgers Stadium. They wanted to have it somewhere cool. It was during the day, usually a nice weather city so you could be outdoors. And I remember that first one at Dodger Stadium, the players were just sitting in the stands and you would just walk up to them and maybe they had a little placard for the big players like Aikman or Emmett, but you still had relatively easy access. There weren't a hundred reporters around them. You could pretty much, coaches were sitting up there and you could just go sit down next to one of them and talk. And I think at its peak, media day slash, opening night may have issued 5,000 credentials or 3,000 to 5,000 a bit. Back then there were 500 of us, something like that. It wasn't a huge event, but it really started to grow when, as George mentioned, all those outlets like MTV and the Tonight show and all these talk shows and they started sending maybe celebrity reporters. And it just kind of caught on that, oh yeah, we can go here and not just talk football. We can ask these guys about their dating habits, about life, about music, whatever it is. And somewhere around the early to mid-90s, it really started to take off and become a thing.

[B]

And from around the world, you would see the top TV show in Japan would show up, Telemundo.

[C]

And Telemundo's from Japan.

[B]

Well, no, I was talking about some other parts of the earth. So, yeah, it became an international event. And that's, again, it's about in that time in the 90s, it's when it started to be more than just, you know, talking about football.

[C]

Yeah. And as we bring dear podcast listener along with us, as if they are right beside us as we walk through this week, you would hate it. You would be standing right beside us and you're with your little recorder and you're waiting to interview a player, and the people in front of you are going. And you have your bit that you have to do because we all got to do bits out here. No one asks really football questions anymore. And you're just all nervous, you're sweaty. You're going up to interview the player, and then someone will jump right in front of you. And then you have to wait more, and you're waiting to do this dental surgery that you're gonna have to undergo. That's how uncomfortable it is. It's all uncomfortable to me.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Do you guys get excited talking to the player and, like, have no nervousness and, like. Yeah, I'm always scared it's gonna go really sideways.

[B]

I've always enjoyed the spectacle of what became opening night because it was a, you know, a thing that celebrities would show up to. Some of the top names in entertainment, you know, some of the top shows would show up, and it just seemed like such a spectacle. And we'll talk about. We've lost that somehow, slowly. And I wonder if that's in any way a concern for the NFL that it went from being such a, hey, this is a big event. It starts the week to. It's just fizzled down to where it's almost as if the media is tired of doing it. And maybe it's not as big to the fans because with social media and podcasting, we have so much media and content during an NFL season that it's not. It doesn't have that special nature to it that it used to.

[D]

Yeah, we've gone from hosting this event in the stadium where the game is going to be played to then a smaller arena, but still a good size NBA or NHL arena, to last night here in San Francisco, a small convention center that was dimly lit and sparsely attended.

[B]

So depressing this year, that convention center was so dark and dank and just didn't seem like a Super bowl event. No, it's not the Super Bowl.

[C]

Another thing that has changed over the years is the players are usually coached pretty well to avoid any controversy.

[D]

Yes.

[C]

And back in the old days, I remember that you really could catch a player off guard and they would just answer and talk about anything that you asked them. And now they have the directive, they obviously have a coaching session beforehand says, hey, whatever questions you get, if it's about politics, you steer it right back to football. You make sure you give generic answers, basically make sure you don't give anyone content.

[B]

Right.

[C]

That's our goal, is to get out of this without there being a story.

[B]

Yeah, well, and don't you think athletes now, some of them are. Are content creators of their own? You know, they're. They have podcasts or they have some social network that they like to, you know, put content out on, and that's what they're going to put it on. They're not going to give it to some media member.

[C]

Yeah, they're not going to give you anything juicy.

[B]

Something entertaining. Anyway. Yeah.

[D]

So the week usually kicks off with that media day or opening night. And then for the week, we are stationed on Radio Row. So somewhere in the host city Convention center, usually there is this hub for all the media, and Radio Row is a giant convention center room, and it's set up with a bunch of tables and radio stations from around the country camp there and broadcast there all week long. And that has been the scene for some drama for us in particular over the years. We ward for many years with a radio guy from Baltimore. In fact, it may still be Gordo on your Wikipedia page, Nasty Nestor controversy.

[C]

I think it still is. Somebody keeps putting that up there.

[D]

You and Nasty Nestor got into it a few times.

[C]

Dude from Baltimore, man, he just. He hated us. He hated our whole station, particularly me. But, yeah, he hated all of us. And I would go up to him with a wireless mic and try to talk to him on the air, and he would just either stonewall me or he would just grab the mic and yell about 5F bombs in a row. It was anything he could do to thwart us, and he just could not stand us. We were natural enemies in this world.

[B]

He was a piece of work. And in his defense, he must have arrived at every super bowl thinking, oh, gosh, here come these guys again.

[C]

Yes, because we approached them every year trying to bury the hatchet, trying to make peace, and it never worked out.

[B]

He wanted.

[C]

He wanted no peace.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

So much so that the NFL finally had to step in. And they told us not to get close to one another, didn't they? Or they had some sort of mandate that we couldn't talk to him anymore or something.

[C]

And that dude assaulted me. And they were still acting like it was. Well, both of you need to. I swear, they'd seem like they took his side.

[D]

I thought they did, too.

[C]

He grabbed me around the throat and Latrell spreewelled me as if I was pj. Carlos Samo.

[D]

It's not all drama like that on Radio Row. It's a place where celebrities are paraded through for the whole week, and they're trying to get interviews with all these radio stations. So over the years, on our radio show, we've been able to interview Sports Illustrated swimsuit models. We had Chrissy Teigen on a couple of times. Football hall of Famers, you know, we've had tons of them over the years. Celebrities, TV stars. It's really interesting to see who they'll bring through.

[B]

And it'll. It heats up as the week goes on. But even. Even that element, if you compare from our first super bowl that Craig and I went to when the Cowboys were in Atlanta trying to go back to back against the Buffalo Bills. That was your second Super Bowls. My first. And we walked into that radio row, and I remember just thinking, this is the craziest thing I've ever seen. Shows right on top of one another. Celebrities from entertainment, hall of Famers walking around, and it was, you know, Mean Joe Green and Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, all these guys from our childhood, current.

[C]

Pros coming back through hawking boner pills. You used to see them in Super Bowls. Now you see them at the Radio row.

[B]

They were hawking something or something. Even back then, they were just walking around, and it was the NFL's way of saying, hey, you know, here's some content for you. We didn't even call it content back then, but that's really guarded now. So much so that later this week, we're going to go talk to a current player, and we have to go to him. He's not even coming to the media center. That's starting to change, too. And I wonder if that's a good thing for the NFL.

[D]

Yeah, that's a good question. I remember some interviews from Radio row. It was on Radio Row where I made legendary Rams coach Dick Vermeil cry.

[C]

Yeah, you did. That was so uncomfortable. I wanted. I really wanted no part of you. For a good few months after that, I was so offended.

[D]

This audio from one of his press conferences where he got choked up talking about his wife Carol.

[C]

And we always laughed about it on the.

[D]

Yeah. What the team meant to him, because in the background, it sounded like somebody was playing ping pong. So we played the audio for him, and I said, I've always wanted to ask you, were you and Carol playing ping pong? And he goes, no, I was just thinking about all the players that I would never see again. And he starts crying, and I felt so awful. Nice, man.

[C]

Big joke out of it. So heartless.

[B]

We talked to Jesse Jackson on Radio Row.

[C]

Yeah. That was a great interview. And I appreciated him sitting in.

[B]

He helped us out to help us.

[C]

Out when we interviewed Adrian Peterson, one.

[D]

Of my favorite football players of all time. Adrian Peterson and I, for weeks, had been looking forward to this interview and meeting him and getting to talk to him. And Jesse Jackson comes over almost right when the interview started. And Gordo goes, oh, here, give. Give the reverend a headphone. So he puts this microphone. This microphone on. He starts interviewing Adrian Peterson. He totally hijacked the interview. I didn't get to ask any questions. Jesse Jackson did.

[C]

Jesse Jackson interviewed Adrian Pet Peterson for us.

[D]

And then afterwards, I tried to take a picture with Adrian Peterson, but Jesse got in that picture, and whoever was taking it cut me out.

[C]

Yeah, I did. I only got half of your face. It was mainly a picture of Adrian and Jesse.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Two big participants.

[B]

How many times you get it? How many opportunities you get to talk to Jesse?

[C]

Jesse Jackson is bigger than Adrian Peterson. Ooh.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Absolutely.

[D]

Not in the world of sports.

[C]

In the world of sports, even.

[D]

No, I don't think so. In the world.

[C]

Everybody's world.

[D]

In the world, yes, but not in the world of football.

[C]

I know, but if you are going to interview one of those two, it's got to be Jesse J.

[D]

For me, it would be Adrien Peterson.

[C]

You're crazy. Also, and you went on that whole rant about how you were praising Adrian Peterson for his parenting and how he handles it. I thought you were off base on that.

[D]

Another awkward moment on Radio Row was when Gorda was interviewing SI supermodel Marissa Miller.

[C]

Yeah.

[D]

And he said, now you're married to former NFL punter Jim Miller. And then her PR person standing behind her but facing Gordo, just starts shaking his head no.

[C]

They were waving off a plane that was coming down to land, waving his.

[D]

Hands, saying, no, no, no. And she was like, we divorced several years ago, and her current husband was standing right.

[B]

Oh, jeez.

[D]

So we've had a lot of colorful moments on radio row.

[B]

Yeah. Got to tell Joe Theisman, he wasn't that great. And all sorts of great moments on radio.

[C]

Always been nice to us when we see him. He has always have to criticize him.

[B]

Yeah, I did call him Thieman, but yes.

[C]

Won't let it go. You.

[D]

You.

[C]

It was at the super bowl where you betrayed me on that Phil Sims Boomerason deal.

[B]

I betrayed myself on that.

[C]

Okay, So I.

[B]

The first time I. It was after the super bowl, and Phil Sims was calling it on television, and Boomer Siason was calling it on radio, and we were trying to do interviews after the super bowl, and here comes Boomer Esiason, and I said, hey, nice job on TV today, Phil. And he said, I was on radio and I'm Boomer. And I wasn't trying to be a smart ass.

[C]

I thought you thought you were doing a bit.

[B]

I thought it was Phil Sims. And it was years later.

[C]

I'm an idiot. I don't know these players. I mean, I'm vaguely aware of them, but so I don't know who I'm looking at or whatever. And I had the wireless, and you're like, hey, go over there. That's. That's. I don't know which one it was.

[B]

I can't remember.

[C]

You said it was. I think it was Phil Sims. And you told me to go up and say, say, hey, Boomer. And I did, and he corrected me, and he was pissed at me. I didn't know it wasn't him.

[B]

They kind of look alike. They kind of do.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

Both played in the 80s.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

What are you gonna do?

[C]

Total jerk.

[D]

And, yeah, Radio Row has also changed over the years. You still have the tables for all the radio stations, but now on the perimeter, you have all these massive sets for the TV networks and shows which were never here before. Like, as we're doing this podcast, we're staring as we're sitting right next to the giant stage for the Pat McAfee Show.

[C]

Oh, yeah, that's George's friend.

[B]

That's my guy. Yeah.

[C]

Our fellow podcast pioneers.

[B]

I love Pat.

[D]

Next door to that is where Chris Sims does his pro football talk live broadcast. And you've got NBC and FanDuel and all these other, you know, podcast or TV network entities, and they now almost take up more space than the radio shows.

[C]

Chris Sims is different than Phil Sims, right?

[D]

Yeah, that's his son.

[B]

Oh, really? Yes. Okay. At what point did they stop fan access to Radio Row? Because, remember, that was a Big deal.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

And that first one that I went to in Atlanta, there were just fans walking just right next to us, and it was just a madhouse, and I kind of missed that. Was it. Was it 911 when that started changing and maybe that New Orleans Super Bowl?

[D]

Yes, I think so. It may have actually been before that, but. So fans weren't allowed at all for a long time, but then they started letting them back in, but in a controlled way. Member fans could come in and file around the perimeter. I don't think you needed tickets for that. You just needed to stand in line.

[C]

And for those of our listeners who don't remember what 911 is. Go ahead, George. Kind of reset.

[B]

I think most remember that terrible attack on our nation on September 11, 2001.

[C]

Gordon.

[D]

Okay, I just.

[B]

I don't think that needs an explanation.

[C]

Just wanted to make sure.

[B]

If you're like 13 years old, I think you've heard about it by now. So that's his way of making a subtle 911 joke.

[C]

No, there are no jokes. I'm just saying that that changed the world.

[B]

It did.

[C]

Not only the world, but also Radio Row fans.

[B]

Access to Radio Row. That's what we're talking about.

[D]

So that's a little bit about Radio Row now, midweek super bowl week, one of the great perks of being a media member and covering the event is getting to go to the media party. And usually it's a pretty great evening. You take buses. They will bus the media out to some location. And it depends where you are, of course. Whatever city is hosting, they want to really dress up or build up what they're all about. The best media parties, I think, are in New Orleans because you have so much incredible Cajun food. And the media parties usually just roll out the red carpet for the media, which in the beginning, it was for the media only. But again, somewhere there in the 90s, early aughts, it started being not just for the media, but for any VIP. And instead of 500 or a thousand media members, now it's grown to 5,000 or 10,000 people. Yeah, that are there. Lots of people can get invites or passes, but it's usually pretty spectacular. And they've been hosted at really incredible venues over the years. The food is always second to none. It's usually a really cool evening.

[B]

It's amazing. And we've seen some. Some really good music. We got to see the Gin Blossoms one year.

[C]

Yeah, they played the media Party.

[B]

Yeah, that was fun.

[D]

B52s.

[B]

The B52s at a media Party. There was also when we were in Detroit, I don't know if you guys remember this or not. There was just. There was a couple of local bands that were there, and I went up to one of them and I said, hey, I'm with the NFL. Because we showed up and some of our traveling party was not into it. And I was like, come on, this is great. We're in Motown. Let's have some fun. And I went up to the band and I said, hey, I'm with the NFL. And they want me to do a number, you know, just. And so I did it with the band.

[C]

Were you there when I dedicated on stage?

[B]

Yeah. I said, hey, this goes out to all my friends at the Ticket who said we weren't gonna have any fun tonight. And we did. Just my imagination.

[D]

I don't remember that.

[B]

I may have had a few cocktails.

[C]

Yeah, guaranteed you had a few cocktails. You always get ripped at the media party. And we can't convince you to go home with us. It's. It's total.

[B]

No, man, I'm not going anywhere.

[C]

It's total wife and kids begging dad to cut it off and please go home.

[B]

Well, live fore at the super bowl.

[C]

There was one of those media parties where Dan Aykroyd got up on stage with the band. I think that was in New Orleans.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

Yes, I remember that. It's also not just unlimited food. It's unlimited alcohol. To your point about George, it's free.

[C]

It is free. You make sure that they pay for that freeness, too. You want to bankrupt them.

[B]

Let's run this bill up here for this media party. Yeah.

[D]

New Orleans media parties are always the best. Miami media parties are very good. That California LA party that was at Universal Studios theme park was great. They're all. They're all pretty cool. And the city really puts its best foot forward this year.

[B]

San Francisco has EA Sports is hosting this one, so that's promising for pizza games.

[D]

Sometimes it's at a museum, sometimes I think in New York. Wasn't it on a dock outside? Yeah, it was at the big warehouse thing on the Lower east side. Yeah, yeah, the piers.

[C]

That was New York.

[D]

Yeah, that was New York. That was spectacular because you had the buildings in the background and the water. Yeah, it's a lot of fun.

[B]

Think of all the cities we've gotten to go to. New York, Detroit, Louisiana, Miami. And should we cut it down to just like five cities?

[D]

Yes. That's not going to happen.

[B]

New Orleans being one of those.

[C]

I'm so against that. I like it being in a bunch of different cities. I think that's when media members bitch a lot, is when it's at some kind of lesser known city that doesn't have as much going on. And I always feel bad for that city.

[B]

Media members bitching, yeah, imagine that.

[D]

So, Gordo, you're kind of on to something. And that, for instance, our one trip to Minneapolis, I loved. I thought that was a great super bowl trip. Even though it was 20 below. We would never have gone to Detroit, but we got to go there for a Super Bowl, Right? That was great. We saw a Red Wings game and.

[C]

Dipped into Canada for a while. And that's where you killed a family of five.

[D]

Yeah, we'll talk about that here in a little bit. But I think I in general agree with George. It should probably always be in either Miami, New Orleans, Louisiana, Phoenix, maybe Atlanta or Tampa. You know, five warm weather cities where you're getting good weather, they know how to do it, they have the infrastructure.

[C]

But life is about novelty and new things. And we wanted to see a bunch of different cities. And yes, you just mentioned all those great experiences we had in those little bit off cities like the Twin Cities or Detroit. I mean, those were great, great experiences even. Would you say Phoenix should be in those five?

[D]

Yeah, I think so. Phoenix does it, right?

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

Indianapolis. That was kind of a dude.

[B]

That was cool.

[C]

We got to see the Indianapolis Speedway. We got to see David Letterman's childhood home.

[D]

True.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

I got to tour that home because I just went up and knocked on the door and said, hey, where David Letterman grew up. I said, yeah. I said, well, can I look at it? Well, yeah, me and my roommate were watching something, but okay.

[D]

I can't believe they let you in.

[C]

I know it. I just walked all through it and everything. Walked through the garage and saw where David's dad had painted something on the garage there in the 40s.

[B]

Whoa.

[C]

I know. It was really cool. And that I never would have gone there if it wasn't for the super bowl being in Indianapolis.

[B]

See what the super bowl has done for you?

[C]

Yes. It lets me see boyhood garages.

[D]

And usually those one off Super Bowls in those cities are because that team just built a new stadium and they've toss them a bone.

[B]

Does that mean we're going to Buffalo in a few years?

[D]

I guess so. Maybe Chicago. Chicago builds that new version of Soldier Field or whatever they're doing this year, San Francisco, next year is back to la and the year after that is back to Atlantis. So no real New venues anytime soon.

[C]

Okay. Why does Atlanta get it so much?

[B]

It seems they've done well when they've had it. They got a great stadium.

[C]

But once again, you talk about warm weather settings and Atlanta, we got snowed in worse than any other than the Dallas one, which was the other biggest terrible ice storm.

[D]

That's right. That's a good question. Because the weather's just as iffy as Dallas, and Dallas will never get it.

[C]

Again, which is amazing to me that Dallas has not gotten the super bowl again.

[B]

It was such a terrible experience from the weather to the seat controversy.

[C]

But Jerry can't control the weather.

[B]

They can't control that. And I, you know, if the Cowboys need to drive that and I don't have this answer, I don't know if it's that important to them.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

I wonder if it is a Jerry thing where Jerry doesn't want it back or something.

[D]

That could be.

[B]

Yeah. Because he knows his team's not going to be there, so they're not going to. I don't know why he.

[C]

But I wish it was back in Dallas again. I do think hosting a Super bowl is. Is good for a city, important for a city. I think that, you know, and that's why they put on those very big fancy media parties for us, is to influence all the media to talk nicely about the city.

[B]

Sure. I can be bought.

[C]

Yes, I can be bought, too. Not with free drinks, Georgia.

[B]

And three margaritas and I'm good.

[D]

Another big part of super bowl week, the press conferences that we and the media get to attend. And, oh, boy, a lot of times it's with the players, coaches, NFL executives, maybe the media outlet that's covering the event. Like this year, it's NBC. So there'll be a press conference with Tirico and Collinsworth.

[C]

Yeah. Got no interest in all the ones that you just mentioned. But the next one you're going to mention is the one that I think is the greatest.

[D]

Yes. They also do every year a press conference with the halftime musical act. And so over the years, we have attended most of these until they started cutting our station off for reasons that we'll get into. But that has been a thrill to be in a smaller room with Paul McCartney or the Rolling Stones or U2 or Tom Petty or whoever. It's been Madonna, all these huge acts over the years, to be in relatively intimate confines with them has been, I think, very special.

[B]

Oh, yeah. When we were there for the YouTube press conference that Gordon rudely interrupted.

[C]

It's called asking a question, which is why we were there.

[B]

If you would have told us in, you know, high school and college, someday you'll be in the same room as bono. Just about 20ft. I never would have believed that. And yeah, that one went terribly awry.

[C]

It didn't go awry. It went perfectly. And everyone was very underwhelmed with you two, as they should have been.

[D]

No, they weren't.

[C]

You guys were the only guys were excited to see them there.

[D]

They were underwhelmed with your question.

[C]

No, they weren't.

[D]

With your attempt at humor.

[C]

No, it was just. And I think you too. The only reason they were ticked by anything that I did was just because they felt like, you know, they didn't like not being the biggest celebrity there. Let me just put it that way. Let me just put it really.

[B]

That's the vibe they got from you and that's why they hated you so much. This guy thinks he's bigger than us. Where are you too?

[C]

I complimented them. I started off my question with a compliment. I said that you're such a great, beautiful. What? Clean, Clean band.

[D]

And Bono said, don't put that on Adam.

[C]

Yes.

[D]

And then you had to try to one up because he was making fun of Adam, you know, having a little bit of a pass.

[B]

He got laughter.

[D]

He got laughter because Adam has a little bit of a past their bass player with drinking and drugs and whatever. So he said, clean, don't put that on Adam. So he got a laugh. And then Gordo had to one up Bono and said, what, Adam doesn't shower? And the whole room went silent.

[C]

No, they loved it.

[B]

Including Bono.

[D]

The whole room went silent and Bono just went and cleared his throat and.

[B]

It was so awkward and the smile left his face and we all just wanted to die right there. I couldn't believe it. You shut down our heroes. They wanted to end the press conference.

[C]

I just love that here your heroes were there in the room and I'm the one that got the question to them.

[B]

Oh, that's the other thing. Shouldn't we have been able to say just hi? You know, that's all I really had for.

[C]

Oh, you guys would have blown that. You so got shake voice.

[D]

We probably would have.

[B]

We would have girls give us that chance.

[D]

Yeah. So over the years, the Ticket and mainly Gordo would always ask our other colleague Corby. They would always ask these off the beaten path questions and they would usually get them in. And for about 10 years in a row, the Ticket had a great string of asking these superstars funny questions, or.

[C]

Including Paul McCartney, which was my greatest moment, probably in my life, was when I got to Talk with Paul McCartney again.

[B]

The super bowl gave you that chance.

[C]

I know. And I had.

[B]

I think you owe your life to the Super Bowl.

[C]

I don't know. It may have even been the first question. It was one of the first few questions to Paul, and it was the super bowl, right after the nipple gate. Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

When. When that wardrobe malfunction entered the vernacular.

[B]

I was at that super bowl with my family, my young kids.

[C]

And you were very offended.

[B]

Very offended.

[D]

Did you shield their eyes?

[C]

Could not believe that they had done that.

[B]

And we had a streaker at that game, too.

[C]

But go ahead, W. And so, yeah, the microphone comes to me and I say, hey, Paul, pleasure to talk to you. Whatever. And I said, with what happened last year, at last year's super bowl performance, have you given much thought to what part of your body you'd like to expose America to? Something like that? And it got a laugh from the media.

[B]

Yeah, it was great.

[C]

And I thought, oh, this is a great moment. This is awesome. And then Paul goes, I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you.

[B]

Could you say it again?

[C]

He couldn't hear me because the monitors weren't facing him. And then I'm panicked because you don't repeat a punchline. You can't get away with that. And so I said, oh, don't worry about it.

[D]

Oh, you did? Yes.

[C]

I don't think I said anything.

[B]

I love you.

[C]

I didn't repeat it. And I just. I passed the mic on and I completely petered out.

[B]

You Talked to Paul McCartney?

[C]

Yes, Paul was looking right at me. I was the only person in the world that he was looking at at that very moment.

[B]

Yeah, I chickened out at all the music press conferences. The one with the media, that's the other thing. They'll bring in the network team and I've got this tape somewhere. I got to sit down with Madden, John Madden, for about five minutes, and then all the other rappers came over. But that was awesome because, again, go back to high school me. When Madden burst on the scenes, I just thought he was the greatest thing I'd ever seen on tv, doing a football game. And I never imagined that I'd get to have a conversation with him.

[C]

Wasn't it one of the broadcaster press conferences where I forced you into a conflict with Terry Bradshaw?

[B]

Yeah, probably. Yes. Yeah.

[C]

He was sitting down at a table. Terry was sitting at a table, you know, talking to other people, interviewing him, because I guess he was part of the crew that was going to be doing the super bowl halftime. And so I went up to Terry and said, george is right next to me. I said, yeah, hey, Terry, this guy is George. He's my partner and everything. He doesn't think you're that good.

[D]

What a jerky. Why would you do that?

[B]

I was just gonna leave because I.

[C]

Wanted you guys to clear the air. I wanted y' all to get along and kind of mend that fence. And this was an opportunity for y' all to do that. So I really provided y' all with an opportunity.

[B]

I haven't told y' all this yet. I just got this update this week when I was talking to a friend of mine who knows Terry Bradshaw, and my friend brought up to him that he knows me, and he said, george Dunham, the ticket. Those guys hate me.

[D]

Oh, no. See, and that's sad because I don't. I don't hate Terry.

[B]

I like him. I just don't want him doing highlights.

[C]

It's his job, though.

[B]

Well, you. You've come around on that. He can't do it.

[C]

Well, I thought you were always being very unfair to him.

[B]

Nine seconds behind.

[C]

Then I accidentally stumbled into him trying to do highlights, and I was like, oh, man. George may have a point, but I still side with Terry. As long as he has someone that's willing to employ him and he wants.

[B]

To do that job, I don't want him to get fired. I just want to let Kurt Menifee do the highlights and let Terry say, yeah, I used to play for the Steelers.

[C]

He's got a little bit more to add than that.

[D]

Mic drop.

[B]

You ready? Let's do it.

[D]

Hosted by former Navy SEAL Mike Ridland.

[C]

It's unfiltered.

[B]

You know, when you go to the.

[C]

Sound of the gun, bam, you're gone.

[B]

It's weird.

[D]

I mean, I've had so many near death experiences. It's raw. I love this country. I offered my life to serve this nation and protect its people.

[C]

The question, you know, what's the meaning of life? And to me, it just boils down one single word, which is purpose.

[D]

Mic drop. Follow and listen on your favorite platform. So that's kind of what the week is like. It's media day or opening night. It's Radio Row. It's the media party, the press conferences. And of the 30 or so super Bowls we've covered, we've stayed for the game for about 20 of those the last 10 years or so, we started going home because they tear down Radio Row. Over the weekend. So on Monday morning, very oddly, I've always found this strange.

[C]

I don't get it.

[D]

There's no place for radio shows to do their radio show unless you find a local station. So in the. In the day, we used to go to the game and then broadcast from the site on Monday morning from Radio Row, and we'd be one of the few stations there. And they were like, well, if there are only three stations, let's tear the thing down. So we've started going home on the Friday, and we watched the game from home. But for the 20 years or so that we stayed for the game, the three of us would always make a point to take some kind of a weekend field trip. And we took some great field trips over the year. One year when we were in Phoenix, we drove three hours north and went to the Grand Canyon.

[C]

Ah, so great. The majesty, the beauty. How did they make that thing? When did they build that? Was that the 80s?

[D]

It took like three years to do it.

[B]

It was a big dig that they had to do. Yeah, that's where I think we've talked about this on the podcast where Gordon and I almost died. I didn't because of you.

[C]

Almost died.

[B]

You were going with me.

[C]

It looked like you were trying to get a closer look, so I was trying to help you.

[D]

It was an icy observational platform, and George was looking over the edge and Gordo grabbed him and tried to fake push him over the edge of the.

[B]

Grand Canyon, and I slipped, but I reached around and grabbed a hold of your jacket because if I was going over the cliff, you were going with me.

[C]

That's just so. That's so weird of you that you want to do that. Why would you want your last act on Earth to be to kill another human?

[B]

You started it, I finished it.

[D]

One of my favorite field trips we ever took was at super bowl in Detroit. Gordo, you've alluded to this. A little while ago, we went into Canada. We were so close to Canada, we.

[C]

Snuck across the border into Canada.

[D]

Snuck across the border. Someone had recommended this cute little town and restaurant. We go there, we had a great meal, and as we're driving back, a blizzard hits. I remember it was a white out. And at one point I. I was driving and I think maybe I strayed a little bit to the middle of the highway and another car coming toward us. You know, the lights pop up very suddenly and it takes evasive action and goes, I think, off the road into a ditch.

[C]

You just look in the rearview mirror and you just See these swerving red tail lights going. And then finally they disappeared over into a culvert. It was like a station wagon. Family of five.

[D]

We don't know that it was a family of five.

[C]

I remember the wife was reading Bible verses to the kids.

[D]

You couldn't see that.

[B]

An add on. We did have to. As we went to Canada, we went underneath a lake or a river. What was that? It was a tunnel that went under some waterway, I think it was, that freaked me out.

[D]

Both. Maybe a river off of one of the Great Lakes.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

But it was a long tunnel.

[B]

It was.

[C]

That was freaky, kind of leaking in places. Caulk gun.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

One of our very first field trips. And only Gordo and I went on this. I don't know why George didn't go, but it was.

[C]

He was drunk.

[D]

You remember that Early Super Bowl.

[B]

Details.

[D]

Early super bowl in Miami. And you and I took a road trip to Key West.

[C]

Yeah. A seedy road trip.

[D]

An overnight road trip to Kiwi west that Friday or that Saturday is what it was.

[C]

Okay, so is this the one where we had a co worker that was glazed over at a strip bar?

[D]

Yes.

[C]

And we look over and he's got kind of a half erect nipple in his mouth from some woman who looked like she just recently given birth. And yeah, it was a lot of depressing visuals from that trip. And that, that was also the one where I think that we were at a bar and I was ready because I did that same thing back when I was drinking where. When I. When I hit the point where I just want to go home. I just want to go home.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

And you guys were out disappearing and so I said, well, fine, I'm just going to take a cab back home. And I couldn't find a cab. And so I got a rickshaw, some dude in a pedal rickshaw. And so I tell him my hotel and he says okay, and starts taking me. And then I'm, you know, after about 10 minutes in the back of this rickshaw, I say I need to check, see how much money I got. This is before people had, you know, take credit cards on rickshaws.

[B]

Sure.

[C]

Now all rickshaws have credit cards.

[B]

Right?

[C]

Did not say that sentence.

[B]

But.

[C]

But I fished through my wallet and I only had like 11 bucks or something. And I say to the dude, I said, hey, just to let you know that I only have $11, so just take me as far as $11 goes and then I'll just walk the rest. And he locked him up right there. Apparently we hit 11. I mean, what is. What is the coincidence there, right, that we were right at the $11 mark, and. And so I had to walk the rest of the way.

[D]

Keep in mind, he's blasted and I'm blasted.

[C]

That's why I'm wanting to go bed, is because I. I'm. I'm sauced. And I asked the dude, I said, well, where's the hotel? And he pointed up here and. And said, you know, just keep following this. And I followed it. And I get to the hotel, and they said, I look at this. Doesn't look familiar, and go to the front desk, say, yeah, I'm staying at this place. You know, what's this? And they said, oh, you're on the other one. That's on the other side of the island.

[B]

Oh, my gosh.

[C]

And so I had to walk. And meanwhile, it's like two in the morning and I can't see.

[B]

It's so unsafe.

[C]

I know it. And I remember I was walking. I was getting so tired walking. And at some point I see this jetty that kind of went out into the ocean. And so I walk to the end of this jetty. And these are like big jagged rocks that you have to crawl over when I'm sauced. And only the light of the moon is guiding me and about. There's just waves crashing up. Big, huge, dramatic waves.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And I thought I was just, this is it. I just might as well just quietly slip under the surf and just. Just let all this be over with. This horrible. No, good night.

[D]

And you fell and cut yourself.

[C]

I did. I cut myself. And so I showed up into our hotel lobby, and I smell like fish and I'm bleeding everywhere.

[D]

He comes back into our room, like, at 4am and he's soaking wet and bloody.

[C]

Soaking wet.

[B]

Bloody.

[C]

Smelled like aquatic life.

[D]

He had told me five hours earlier that he was going back to the hotel because he was tired.

[C]

Yeah, because I was tired.

[B]

Well, I'm home.

[C]

Meanwhile, he got to stay out and drink the whole time, have fun. And he was already back in bed and cozy by the time that I rolled in. Like the walking wounded.

[D]

Yeah. So we've had some great weekend field trips when we stay for the game and when we have stayed for the game, it's always great. It's always special to be in the stadium for the super bowl because it's hard to describe the energy, the electricity, just the hugeness of the event. It's. It's tremendous.

[B]

Yeah. I remember this is when I was in the stands, the one I went to with my family. It's the one in Houston, the Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake Super Bowl.

[C]

And it wasn't that the one that you fired your mouth off about? Yeah, I thought it was. Your kids for some reason were Carolina Panther fans.

[B]

Yeah, they're Carolina Panther fans. And they made the playoffs. They had a good record.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

And they said, well, if the Super Bowl's in Houston, we live in Dallas. So if they make the super bowl, will you take us? I went, yeah, sure, why not? What are the chances the Panthers are going to go to the Super Bowl? I'll be damned if they didn't beat the Eagles and wind up in the Super Bowl. And that was difficult, too, to find tickets to the super bowl for, I won't say a reasonable price, but even at the time, this is 2004 and I believe the tickets were. I got them for 750 each with. I think at the time that was face value. And I thought I'd gotten a great deal for four tickets.

[C]

Is this the only time you've bought.

[B]

Tickets to the Super Bowl? Yes. And we didn't take our youngest at the time because he was only three. And I've told him, if the Cowboys ever go to a Super Bowl, I'll take you. Well, he's 25 now.

[C]

You decided to make a real safe comment this time.

[B]

So I'm pretty safe there. Unless the Cowboys eventually go. But being there at the game and here the Patriots, this team of greatness, about to win another one. And I remember looking at their sideline, I think the Panthers missed a late field goal. And so the Panthers. And so the Patriots won. And just watching their team empty out onto the field, it was. I just never forget that. It was like, wow. And we were like the third row, we were in the end zone, three kids crying. Yeah, they were pretty upset. They thought that Brady got a few calls that he didn't deserve and all that, but yeah, just the energy and inside the stadium. And that's what makes the halftime show so awesome, that it is a big time performer. Now, I like the marching band as much as the next guy, but I think it's great that the NFL went to that in the 90s with big time performers.

[C]

Yeah. Because for the price of a ticket to see an amazing game, you know, the height of football, you also get oftentimes the concert of your lifetime.

[D]

Yeah. George and I were in the house that Miami super bowl where Prince was the halftime show and maybe the greatest super bowl halftime show ever. And as he starts playing Purple Rain, it starts raining at the stadium.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

That was just. I'll never forget that.

[B]

Yeah. And everyone was into it. It's like, that is wild that you go from the. Our biggest game, our country's biggest game. I don't know if it's the world's biggest game, but, you know, so something may have happened late second quarter. And then you go to the energy of a concert.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

Like, oh my God, there's Prince. And the whole crowd was just going insane.

[D]

Yeah. It's so much fun to go. I kind of miss that we don't go to the games anymore. It's also nice to go home and watch it on tv. The super bowl on TV is its own experience because of the commercials. And so you miss that when you're at the game. But there's nothing like being at the game.

[B]

My brother said something to me, interesting this week when we were talking about all of us going out to the Super Bowl. He said, you know, my favorite part is the pregame show.

[D]

Oh, okay.

[B]

And you think about. The pregame show has become a pretty incredible spectacle. Usually the President is interviewed and there's really well done features that are part of it.

[D]

It's five hours long.

[B]

It's probably overkill that it's five hours long. But there's really some good stuff in there.

[D]

There's music. There'll be some big name acts that pepper the pregame show too.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[D]

It's. It's a whole day. It's the biggest day in America. Like it feels like it's bigger than Christmas or July 4th. It's definitely the biggest thing that we all watch together. Nothing else is going to get 100 million views. No award show, no President's speech, and nothing else will get that. And it's such a day long event. And that's why so many people think that the Monday after the super bowl should be an American holiday because nobody goes to work anyway.

[B]

Yeah. So many people call in sick.

[C]

What would it be called? Super Bowl Monday.

[B]

Sure.

[C]

And then of course, you would have Super Bowl Monday sales because we'd turn that into a shopping day or what we should do.

[D]

Especially if they're going to go to an 18 game NFL season. Just make President's Day, February 20th or whatever. Make that the Monday after the Super Bowl.

[B]

Yeah, there you go.

[D]

So there's a natural holiday that follows the Super Bowl.

[C]

But that would be weird, wouldn't it, to have February 20th so early in the month.

[D]

No. You move the super bowl later to the Sunday before President's Day. Or does that overshadow our presidents? If we do that, should they get the weekend all to themselves?

[C]

Wait, is President's Day for all presidents or is it just for like three presidents?

[D]

It started off just for Lincoln and Washington, a combination of their birthdays. But then I think it became for all presidents.

[B]

Presidents. Yeah.

[C]

I think Abe market holiday anyway would.

[B]

Want us to have a Super Bowl Monday.

[C]

Abe Lincoln, you talk about a Panthers fan. He was a huge Carolina Panthers fan.

[D]

All right, anything else you guys want to say about the super bowl and covering it all these years and this this week. That's always so much fun.

[B]

Yeah. I do feel myself aging along with the super bowl. That it's. It's still fun to me, but it's not partly because of me, partly because of how just the week has evolved. It's not as cool as it once was.

[D]

Not as magical.

[B]

Yeah. And I guess that's just natural with everything. Yeah.

[C]

The novelty, it's still pretty magical to me and I love that. I'm here in San Francisco this week and I'm gonna start trying to see some of these sites. Although San Francisco's kind of getting to the point where area we're better be.

[B]

Careful staying where you go.

[C]

Yeah, well, that's perfect.

[B]

All you care about is the zodiac killer anyway.

[C]

Well, I just. Yeah, that. That is true. So I'm gonna get on Amazon today and try to one hour delivery a kevlar vest and then maybe I'll head out walking.

[D]

It is in parts a very rough city. Yeah, no doubt about that.

[C]

Just some people that are not. Not doing so well.

[D]

It's also a very beautiful city. The Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate park and Fisherman's Wharf. Yeah. When we were here 10 years ago, our field trip was to Alcatraz and that was great. Yeah, I love touring Alcatraz and I thought I could have survived as a prisoner there.

[C]

No.

[D]

Maybe even survive the swim.

[B]

There's no doubt I could make it from.

[C]

George has a weird claim about thinking he can do the Alcatraz swimming on a makeshift raft like those guys just swimming. You wouldn't even bother with the raft like they did.

[B]

Yeah. Hey, they have the Alcatraz. Yeah, they do open water swim every year and everyone makes it. Most people make it.

[C]

So why don't you try to do that?

[B]

Because I'm just BS and there's no way I'm not as good a swimmer as I used to be. But my brother in law and my niece have done it. They've made that swim and they put them on a barge just outside the prison and off they go and they swim to the bay.

[C]

I don't get how they keep the.

[B]

Sharks, but all these years we've said, oh, there's no way prisoners could have escaped.

[C]

Well, yeah, if you got thousand people a year doing that silly swim, why can those prisoners do.

[B]

I don't know.

[C]

I don't know. I need to study up on Alcatraz too, okay?

[B]

See if you can survive there.

[C]

Alcatraz and the Zodiac killer, the two things that make San Francisco great.

[D]

All right. I hope you learn a lot about both while we're out here this week in San Francisco. That is this week's very special roadshow edition of the Musers, the podcast from the City by the Bay here for Super Bowl 60. Thanks to our producer, Peter Welfman and thank you all for listening. Follow us or subscribe to our podcast on Apple or Spotify. Review us us if you would like to and join us next week for the Musers, the podcast.

[C]

I'm sorry, they do a.

[D]

It's okay, guys.

[C]

Hey, thanks for listening. Don't forget, if you have a letter to submit, it can go to themuserspodgmail.com. you can also follow the guys on all the different social medias and we will be back as we are each, each and every Wednesday. The Musers. The podcast is a tired head production. It's the biggest game on the planet and nobody breaks it down like Jim Rome.

[D]

Super Bowl Run. Who do you think will be the last one standing this year? Fearless debate and the best callers in sports.

[B]

I don't care what you say. Defense wins Super Bowl.

[D]

That defense absolutely is Super bowl bowl caliber. The quarterbacking sure as hell wasn't. He's the spitfire of sports smack. A lot to get to and I'm not sure you're gonna like all of it.

[C]

Honestly, I don't even care if you like all of it or not.

[D]

I have a job to do.

[C]

The Jim Rome Show.

[D]

Get up in here, follow and listen.

[C]

On your favorite platform.