The Tony Kornheiser Show

Episode: “Never Go Full Red”

Date: December 29, 2025
Host: Tony Kornheiser
Main Guests: Michael Wilbon, Ryan McGee

Episode Overview

This episode blends classic Tony Kornheiser: a spirited mix of sports commentary, tech-age anxieties, generational grievances, and old friends debating the biggest trends and smallest indignities of modern life. Tony opens with exasperation over the wave of forced digital adoption (“Big Brother is here, and I’m afraid of it”), moves into stories about winter golf (and heated hand-warmers), and transitions into lively conversations on college football, the NFL, and a deep-dive into recent NCAA and NASCAR drama with Michael Wilbon and Ryan McGee. The show is punctuated with nostalgia, life reflections, and the familiar camaraderie of Tony’s inner circle.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Tech & the Aging Curve: Tony Wages War on Digital Everything

• [00:00-04:45] Tony’s Tech Troubles

  • Tony rails against rising digital-only requirements: “The ability to say no, to say no to Apple. No, it’s gone. You don’t have it. You have to play the game their way. That’s Big Brother. I am [afraid].” (Tony, 00:52)
  • He is distressed that the government now mandates tax payments electronically, fearing for older Americans: “How can the government disenfranchise, I don’t know, 10, 15% of its people?... They’re not going to be able to pay taxes and then they’re going to get fined.” (Tony, 01:31)
  • Ongoing struggles with AOL’s imminent closure and the deluge of junk email.
  • His son plays tech-support, describing in detail (with some humor) the process of downloading and setting up new email options.

• [03:36-04:53] Tony’s Son’s Take

  • Tony’s son jokes: “I would like to publish our series of text messages over the Christmas break because I have learned a level of patience I did not know was possible.” (Tony’s Son, 03:36)

Memorable Quote:

“They just reach into your phone, which is the same as reaching into your life, and they change it.”
— Tony Kornheiser, 04:53

2. Winter Golf & New Gadgets: “Never Go Full Red”

• [05:16–12:20] Golf Talk and Hand-Warmer Innovation
  • Tony recounts braving icy, windy DC golf rounds during the holiday (“Ice balls were falling on us... you couldn’t putt because the ice balls redirected the putt.” Tony, 06:01).
  • Discovers and is amazed by a Columbia-branded battery-powered hand-warmer (“game changer”). After some haggling, buys it using in-store credit: “I may sell a bunch of these for Del Mar. I may want my name on this. What’s on it now? G Tech. No, I’m not getting anything.” (Tony, 11:27)
  • The title quip: you can set the device to “full red” (maximum heat), but Tony refuses: “You never go full red.”

Memorable Exchange:

Tony: “If... full red, I said to Steve, how long does it — full red lasts about four hours. OK. In the winter, that’s all I’m going to go. But I didn’t want to go full red.” (09:46)

3. Aging, Nostalgia, and High School Friends

• [14:06–17:15] Email Reunions
  • Tony shares a heartfelt story about reconnecting with high school classmates through email, quoting “In My Life” by the Beatles, reflecting on memory and mortality:
    • “When you get old, you can isolate these small things in your life... Some are dead, some are living. In my life, I’ve loved them all. So I’m gonna tear up here, which I do very... Makes me think I’m alive, which is good.” (Tony, 16:20)

4. Sports Segment I: Northwestern & Chicago Bears

• [19:00–26:12] Michael Wilbon on Northwestern’s Bowl Win & Bears-49ers
  • Wilbon hails Northwestern’s “pretty fulfilling season.” Frustration that some close games didn’t break their way, but proud of overall performance.
  • The Bears’ near-win against San Francisco is dissected:
    • “They went toe-to-toe with the Niners. It was astounding to watch... Let me not be one of those crazy college football fans and forget what I’m watching, forget who I’m watching.” (Wilbon, 21:34)
    • Tony: “They are legit... every game against good teams, they’re in it till the end. Our friend David Israel... first game in NFL history that was tied at 7, 14, 21, 28 and 35.” (Tony, 20:02)
  • Wilbon discusses the Bears' offensive explosion, the lack of defensive stars, and the agony of possibly facing Green Bay in the playoffs again.

Memorable Moment:

“Green Bay is to the Bears what Villanova was. Look, they’ve only played one playoff game in history... The Bears were the champion... Who do they meet in the NFC Championship... Aaron Rodgers and the Packers. And that’s Aaron Rodgers’ only trip to the Super Bowl.”
— Michael Wilbon, 25:33

5. Sports Segment II: NFL Contenders and Playoff Scenarios

• [26:12–33:38] Rapid Review of NFL Playoff Picture
  • Tony and Wilbon analyze Buffalo’s rollercoaster, Josh Allen’s injury, the AFC playoff logjam, and root for Buffalo out of sentimental attachment.
    • “If you could put any team in the AFC into the Super Bowl, would you put Buffalo in this year?... Yeah, I root for Buffalo.” (Tony & Wilbon, 28:16–28:36)
  • Ground-level stories from “The Shack” at Columbia golf club.
  • Focus on crucial upcoming games: Carolina/Tampa Bay, San Francisco/Seattle, Baltimore/Pittsburgh.
  • Deep-cut analysis of Cleveland and Pittsburgh: “I’ve spent more motion on Pittsburgh and Cleveland rooting against Aaron Rodgers than I’m going to spend tonight rooting for the Bears. And it was true.” (Wilbon, 31:45)

6. Sports Segment III: College Football Playoff and Michigan’s Coach

Featuring Ryan McGee

• [34:41–43:48] College Football Playoff Surprises & Expansion

  • No major surprises except home teams unexpectedly losing early.
  • College football's dominance by Big Ten and SEC is debated. McGee advocates “giving a shot” to Group of Five schools. Tony gripes about Miami's selection over Notre Dame:
    • “To me, Tulane and James Madison could not beat Texas and Notre Dame... But I actually think I’m in the minority.” (Tony, 36:13)
    • “What I worry about, about college football is the fact that there’s almost 140 teams... At least being able to, if you’re Appalachian State, if you’re Coastal Carolina, if you’re San Diego State: recruiting on, if you come here, we could make the playoffs... And one day somebody’s going to win that first-round game and everybody’s going to go crazy and it’s going to be great.” (McGee, 36:41–38:07)
  • The process of playoff selection is scrutinized (mock committees, committee chair’s media role).
  • Picks for this round: McGee is fascinated by Indiana (“I keep picking against them and I keep waiting on them to wake up... but they are that good.” (Ryan, 40:11–41:34)), sees Georgia as the most dangerous, and is watching Alabama/Indiana’s Rose Bowl squarely.

• [43:48–44:45] Michigan’s New Head Coach: Kyle Whittingham

  • McGee touts Whittingham as a perfect “reset button” for Michigan post-scandal: “But I’m crazy about him... Michigan could use a big old dose of no nonsense right now.” (McGee, 42:48)
  • Tony frames Whittingham as a stopgap for institutional integrity: “They need somebody who’s not going to do that [scandal]... to be the University of Michigan. There’s no list where the top three public schools aren’t Michigan, Berkeley, and Virginia.” (Tony, 43:37)

7. NASCAR Lawsuit: The Jordan Angle

• [44:45–49:07] Michael Jordan Sues NASCAR: Why It Matters
  • Ryan McGee details the origins and importance of the lawsuit: Jordan & Denny Hamlin sued NASCAR over franchise/ownership equity for racing teams.
    • “Their argument was, we need something. We need more equity in what we’re building here... Now the teams have something they can sell, a piece of paper that says, this is what I own. I have a guaranteed starting spot...” (Ryan, 46:34–48:07)
  • NASCAR’s old model clashed with Jordan’s NBA/ownership background; settlement came after it became clear NASCAR risked losing.
  • The awkwardness ahead: “What I want to know when we get to Daytona is can all of these hurt feelings be mended? Because this is a very small community and it’s going to be awkward.” (Ryan, 48:54)

8. Listener Mail & Life Observations

[49:53–58:02]

• Tony and crew read email on:
  • Generational tech/email woes (“demographics of AOL users must mirror those of the podcast: between 65 and dead” listener Neil Ayervase).
  • Fierce regional pride and sports rivalries (Missouri-Kansas feud).
  • Wedding updates, potato-cooking tips, and listener anecdotes about car AI.
  • Tony commiserates on tech advances: “That’s one of the reasons I’m afraid to get a new car, because the technology is so great and leaves me so far behind.” (Tony, 56:44)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You never go full red.” (Tony, 09:46 – on overusing his heated golf hand-warmer)
• “They just reach into your phone, which is the same as reaching into your life, and they change it.” (Tony, 04:53)
• “I’m with you. I’m totally with you. I don’t understand.” (Tony, 04:53)
• “When you get old, you can isolate these small things in your life... Some are dead, some are living. In my life, I’ve loved them all.” (Tony, 16:20)
• “They went up and down the field like a video game.” (Wilbon, 24:45 – describing the Bears-49ers game)
• “If you could put any team in the AFC into the Super Bowl, would you put Buffalo in this year?... Yeah, I root for Buffalo.” (Tony & Wilbon, 28:16–28:36)
• “We need more equity in what we’re building here... and all the race teams went to NASCAR... Can we do something to help us build equity?” (Ryan, 46:34)
• “I have turn by turn. I can call up and say, could you please give me turn by turn directions?” (Tony, 56:45)

Important Timestamps

• 00:52 – Tony’s “Big Brother” digital angst
• 04:53 – “They just reach into your phone...” quote
• 06:01 – “Ice balls” and miserable golf
• 09:46 – “Never go full red” – buying heated golf muff
• 16:20 – Tony tears up recalling friends: “In my life, I’ve loved them all.”
• 20:02–26:12 – Bears-49ers retrospective, NFL wide-open year
• 28:36 – Wilbon’s “I root for Buffalo” sentimentality
• 34:41–38:07 – Ryan McGee on the College Football Playoff, inclusion, and expansion
• 46:34–48:07 – NASCAR, Michael Jordan, and the franchise equity lawsuit
• 49:53–58:02 – Listener email: tech woes, rivalries, and personal stories

Language and Tone

Tony’s voice—part Luddite, part wise sage, always self-deprecating and gruffly affectionate—is strong throughout. The episode oscillates between irreverence, nostalgia, armchair coaching, old-man-yells-at-clouds resignation, and true warmth for community and friends. Wilbon and McGee bring expert sports analysis and friendly ribbing. The banter is familiar, quick, and layered with memories.

Conclusion

“Never Go Full Red” embodies everything the Tony Kornheiser Show is known for—a place where sports, technology, life gripes, and generational divides intertwine against a backdrop of long-running friendships and deep affection for both the past and present.

If you love sports, cringe/laugh at digital adaptation, or just want to eavesdrop on some of the sharpest (and curmudgeonly) voices in the business, this episode is a perfect slice of Tony’s world.