Adam Cheek's Sports Week

It's always great to catch up with Phil Martelli Jr., and I sat down with VCU Rams basketball's head coach to preview the upcoming 2026-27 season a week prior to the home opener.

I asked Coach about managing the offseason turnover -- losing Terrence Hill Jr. but retaining seven of the 14 roster members -- and how veteran players like Brandon Jennings and Michael Bell have moved into leadership roles and improved since last season. We also talked about the new roster additions and what he's seen from the team through several exhibitions before the season.

Coach and I also talk about everything the Rams accomplished last season and how he hopes to build on that this year, and how his coaching has evolved for his second year in Black and Gold. I also had to ask Coach about some of his favorite Richmond spots and how much he's looking forward to the Siegel Center atmosphere this year.

Watch the episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/IP-ioqZggC8?si=hNY2Zg9I80-HjcaM

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco

I got the chance to talk with Denny Hamlin for an extensive Richmond Magazine feature article; this episode is in partnership with the publication, featuring an extended version of the interview.

Denny Hamlin is a Chesterfield native, a 64-time NASCAR Cup Series winner, a 20-year veteran of the series and co-owner of 23XI Racing with Michael Jordan; I have covered stock car racing for a decade and he has become more and more a face of the sport. I talked with him about coming to Richmond Raceway, where he's won five times in Cup, and his racing origins in Virginia.

We also talked about continuing his quest for his first NASCAR Cup Series title despite coming up short in the past, and how he's continued competing at an elite level well into his mid-forties. Denny also took me through his mindset after a tragic offseason, how he refocused for 2026 and much more.

You can read this story online here or find copies of Richmond Magazine's October 2026 issue, featuring this interview, in stores now!

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco

After VCU men's basketball made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament under head coach Phil Martelli Jr. in his first year, the Rams retained seven players and aim to make an even deeper March Madness run -- and I sat down with the Richmond Times-Dispatch's Zach Joachim and WVCW Sports' Ben Rekosh to talk all things Black and Gold hoops before the 2026-27 season gets underway.

With about 25 years of covering VCU sports between us, Zach, Ben and I sat down after the Black and Gold game/scrimmage in early October to get some early reactions and preview things. VCU brought back the likes of Nyk Lewis, Lazar Djokovic, Brandon Jennings and others; we talk about the roster, some of the new players, bringing back the staff, how the team looked and much more.

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco

As many of you know, I used to do a lot of radio work at VCU (sports and otherwise). Included in the latter was the show Cinemania, which I did with my friends Brandon Shillingford, Landon Roberts and Sam Goodrich. So I reunited the group for this episode of the Sports Movie Showcase!

We talk all things Challengers, released in 2024 and starring Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O'Connor. The movie is about much more than just tennis, so we get into tennis as a metaphor and what it means in the larger structure of Luca Guadagnino's arguably most-accessible film.

The four of us also talk about the performances, the incredible Reznor/Ross score and how the tennis scenes are executed, right down to the insane ball POV shots during the final match. Plus, we talk about how well it portrays the love triangle between the three main characters.

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco

As has become yearly tradition, so great to catch up with Marc "Cheats" Cheatham -- of The Black Baseball Mixtape -- to talk MLB and postseason baseball! We break down the wild-card matchups first, discussing if my Cubs can make a run against the Padres, if the Braves are being somewhat slept on and if the Chicago White Sox can keep their dream season alive.

We also talk about the marquee Yankees-Red Sox rivalry series matchup in the American League, as well as how underwhelming the AL has been all year compared to the National League. Cheats and I also get into how difficult it will be for any teams to get past the Rays, Dodgers and Brewers and if anyone *can* do that.

In addition to playoff baseball, Cheats and I also talk about our favorite storylines and moments from the 2026 MLB season, along with our thoughts on the first year of CarMax Park in Richmond -- from the Flying Squirrels' playoff run to the new ballpark as a whole.

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco

It's been a minute since I last talked with any Richmond-area musicians, but I got to sit down with Eric Sites -- frontman of Virginia band Madly Backwards -- and talk about a ton of different stuff!

Eric takes me through his history with music and explains what he calls "denim jacket rock," along with how he's seen the Richmond music scene evolve and some of his favorite places to play in the city.

We also dive deep into how much we love Warren Zevon, as well as Zevon's influences on Eric's music, and what Madly Backwards has coming up in the near future. Eric's also a huge fan of the Flying Squirrels, Kickers and Ivy, so we talk about RVA sports a bit too.

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco

I have no idea if anyone will actually listen to this, but on my drive home from Richmond International Airport at like 1am, I figured I'd yap about my trip to Seattle because why not (also I was half delirious from the delayed flight at that point).

I visited the city for the main reason of attending the Seattle Seahawks' home opener (and the kickoff to the 2026 NFL season, hence the sports focus here). As a Hawks fan who missed their visits to DC and Carolina last year, I decided to be with my fellow 12s in the loudest house in the league as their Super Bowl LX defense begins -- and it was one of the single most incredible experiences and easily my favorite sporting event I've ever been to.

Along with Lumen Field, I also caught a Mariners game at T-Mobile Park, which is my fifth ballpark visited and a really neat ballpark; Jacob deGrom and Logan Gilbert pitched spectacularly until some similarly spectacular offense kicked the game into gear. I also briefly talked about my visits to the Space Needle and the Museum of Pop Culture, which were also incredibly cool.

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco

As the podcast crosses the 100-hours-recorded (!) mark, I'm joined once again by Alex Soderstrom and his girlfriend Karah to talk about The Game Plan, released in 2007 and starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

We talk about the dynamic between The Rock and Madison Pettis in the movie, along with how it stands with some of the other sports comedies of the mid-to-late 2000s (and how there used to be more comedies overall). We also go over The Rock's career and how it's evolved, along with how football plays into the film's plot and how it's surprisingly funny at times.

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco 

After spending 2005-2011 in Major League Baseball, closer Chris Ray opened Center of the Universe Brewing near Ashland. I got the chance to visit COTU and sit down with the MLB veteran to talk about his career and post-baseball focus.

Chris became a World Series champion in 2010 with the San Francisco Giants, but spent most of his career with the Orioles; I talked with him about his path through baseball up to getting drafted by Baltimore, along with what his first times out on the field at Camden Yards were like, his path to recovery from Tommy John surgery and how he strategized closing out games.

In 2010, Ray was part of the trade that sent Bengie Molina to the Rangers and sparked "will he get a ring" conversations when the two teams faced off in the World Series, so I also asked him about that and what the playoff run was like. We also talk about when he realized his career was winding down and how he got into brewing beer, along with how he and his brother worked towards opening Center of the Universe Brewing nearly 15 years ago.

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco

The second of two "from the archives" episodes this summer -- a throwback interview I did back in 2022 with actor Forrest Vickery, who played Billy "Coma" Johnson in the 2016 Richard Linklater baseball film Everybody Wants Some!!.

This was part of a series I wanted to do with actors from the cast, sort of an oral history of the movie, but never got around to publishing. I also interviewed Temple Baker in 2022, which I posted last month; I also talked with Will Brittain more recently in the spring about making the film.

Forrest takes me behind the scenes about getting the role as Coma and how the production unfolded, including his background in baseball; working with a cast that included Glen Powell, Zoey Deutch and Wyatt Russell; how Linklater brought a 1980s Texas college town to life; and some of his favorite memories from the production.

EWS!! is one of my favorite baseball movies, so I continue to hope putting this together in the coming months!

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Original intro/outro music created by Christina von Claparede-Crola and Justin Paciocco