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

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.

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).

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)

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)

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.

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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