Casual Diehard

Casual Diehard

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Casual Diehard episodes

  • We Can Pod It Out 43: Eight Days A Week

    Editor’s note: It’s only Wednesday? How many days are in this week?

    In bus bingo: the Q67, seen yesterday coming southbound from Maspeth.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit willetspen.substack.com
    10 min
  • We Can Pod It Out 42: I'll Follow The Sun

    Iowa offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz, son of Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz, and frequent Willets Pod punching bag, has a challenge to keep his job beyond 2023: score 25 points per game. Can he do it?

    Let’s take another angle on this, and check out how Iowa did the last time they faced each of these opponents…

    Utah State — 48-7 (h), 2002: Nate Kaeding was Iowa’s leading scorer with two field goals and six extra points, of which four were actually scored by the offense (all by different players), plus a blocked punt and a fumble return. This Iowa team had Dallas Clark, and he did not score in this game. 

    @ Iowa State — 7-10 (h), 2022: Leshon Williams ran 14 times for 34 yards and the Hawkeyes’ only score of last year’s El Assico.

    Western Michigan — 59-3 (h), 2013: Sure, seems like a cupcake. This was Iowa’s only win, ever, against the Broncos, who came to Kinnick Stadium and scored victories in 2000 and 2007.

    @ Penn State — 23-20 (h), 2021: Caleb Shudak hit two field goals and PATs after two (2) Spencer Petra’s passing TDs to pace Iowa with eight points. 

    Michigan State – 49-7 (h), 2020: The pandemic year sure was weird, as Iowa scored nothing but touchdowns, including two apiece by co-leading scorers Tyler Goodson and Mekhi Sargent, each with a pair of single-digit yard scoring runs. There were also return touchdowns by Charlie Jones on a punt and Riley Moss on an interception. It’s still Iowa.

    Purdue – 24-3 (a), 2022: Iowa scored three offensive touchdowns against the Boilermakers last year, but this would still be below target for Brian Ferentz. You have to ask if that’s really fair, and then ask, who cares?

    @ Wisconsin – 24-10 (h), 2022: Another game in which the Hawkeyes’ victorious performance of a year ago would be below Brian’s standards. Sure, Iowa only had 146 yards of total offense and 11 first downs against Wisconsin last year, and capitalized on three turnovers, but… uh…

    Minnesota – 13-10 (a), 2022: All Brian Ferentz does is lead winning offenses, and all Iowa asks for is more… than one touchdown (on a one-yard QB sneak) and two field goals. The Hawkeyes had 280 yards of offense and fumbled three times in Minneapolis in November, but didn’t lose any of them, and collected two Gophers turnovers.

    @ Northwestern – 33-13 (h), 2022: Kicker Drew Stevens was responsible for 15 of those points (four field goals, three extra points)... at home… against 2022 Northwestern.

    Rutgers – 27-20 (a), 2022: How did Iowa get its 27 points in New Jersey last year? Interception return, fumble return, field goal, two-yard touchdown run, field goal. A fat 277 yards of offense… and a 3-0 turnover margin.

    Illinois – 6-9 (a), 2022: This game had no touchdowns. How did Iowa lose a game with no touchdowns in it?

    @ Nebraska – 17-24 (h), 2022: Iowa was down 24-0 in the third quarter before getting on the scoreboard. The Hawkeyes had 274 yards of offense in this game.

    That’s a total of 330 points — 27.5 per game. All Iowa has to do is match what it did against each of its 2023 opponents the last time they faced them, and Brian keeps his job. And that’s with a six-point game against Illinois allowed in there. And, for some reason, Iowa-Northwestern this year will be at Wrigley Field, it was announced this morning.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit willetspen.substack.com
    9 min
  • We Can Pod It Out 41: Baby's In Black

    Editor’s note: This has been my favorite Beatles song (maybe?) for a long time. It depends on how you mean “favorite.” I don’t know if it’s my No. 1 overall, but it’s definitely the song that I like the most relative to how the general population rates it (in a way, I like that this is the “Seaver” episode of WCPIO). And since everything British is the same, now for something a little different, me getting all flublunged around Grand Central. —Jesse



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit willetspen.substack.com
    8 min
  • The Mental Gymnastics for Female Sports Fans

    Content warning: Discussion and photos of sexual assault and domestic violence

    By Chrystal O’Keefe

    This is not my first time writing about this topic. I’ve covered sexual assault and domestic violence within baseball ad nauseam. Being a woman and sports fan can be exhausting, because it’s clear the players or organizations don’t care about you.

    The industry is already oversaturated with stereotypical cis white men, who will shove their opinions down your throat while claiming to be the victim of the same. Women, people of color, the LGTBQIA+ community, and non-binary members don’t often feel welcome within the confines of “America’s favorite pastime.” It is harder for anyone that doesn’t fit in the square box of what is ideal for the sport. We can’t even bring an average-sized purse into most ballparks, let alone get meaningful roles in the industry. 

    That’s all pretty common knowledge to many. Yet the unwelcoming feeling is more complex than not feeling accepted. 

    Let’s go back in time a little, to a time when Trevor Bauer was making a big deal about his free agency as if he was LeBron James (see: actually good). Women everywhere were warning the masses about how this guy was trouble. No one wanted to heed that warning, and Bauer padded his pocket and moved to sunny California. After no time at all, claims were made of sexual assault and battery, that Bauer punched a woman in the head, knocking her into a state of unconsciousness before anally raping her. While the “rough sex” was initially consensual, being knocked out and raped was not, as an unconscious person is unable to say yes or no. Bauer was under investigation, and though he didn’t face any charges, Major League Baseball deemed a suspension necessary based on their evidence. The suspension was shortened and the Dodgers made the decision to wash their hands of Bauer.

    While I don’t see any team desperate enough to want that baggage, he is still up for grabs. Aroldis Chapman, also known for a then-record domestic violence suspension, was just signed by the Royals. Chapman is a player I had to do a lot of mental gymnastics for. I felt dirty watching him in the 2016 World Series. I donated to domestic violence organizations anytime he qualified for a save or had a particularly good game while on the Cubs. 

    As a survivor of both sexual assault and domestic violence, and a proud bisexual woman, it takes a lot of strength to continue covering this sport. I try not to be hurt by players that refuse to wear a rainbow flag on their uniform for one game in June, but at the end of the day, they don’t feel as though I should have rights based on my sexual preferences. League-wide, I cover teams that actively pay players that have been accused of horrific things. 

    My main coverage, and the team I typically watch the most are the White Sox. They’ve been in hot water before with Omar Vizquel and firing a trainer after he was outed as gay. Lest we forget Daryl Boston, the White Sox first base coach. His time with the Mets was less than pleasant. 

    Hiring their old alcoholic manager almost felt like a slow news day after the most recent story about Mike Clevinger broke. Like Bauer, women continued to warn the masses about Clevinger. The investigation stems from allegations made by a woman, Olivia Finestead, who accused Clevinger of physical and emotional abuse toward his three children and their two mothers, herself included. 

    Finestead has been in touch with MLB investigators since last summer, when Clevinger was a member of the San Diego Padres, but mentioned her accusations in a series of stories on her Instagram account last month. Finestead has accused Clevinger of "several acts of domestic violence and child abuse," including throwing "chew spit on a screaming infant child" and strangling her. The latter accusation was posted with a series of photos that alleged to be the result of violent acts committed by Clevinger.

     

    The White Sox claim to have not known about the investigation upon signing him in November. They will also refrain from comment until MLB's investigative process has reached its conclusion. Fans have roasted the Sox on social media, from calls to remove Clevinger from the team, to firing the entire front office for their lack of due diligence.

    Women are tired of not being listened to. Marginalized members of society that just want to sit down and mindlessly enjoy a baseball game should be able to do so without feeling unsafe and not welcomed. Women and BIPOC should be able to cover the sport at any capacity without being undermined and having it be “revoluntiary” to finally have managers, umpires, or even broadcast crews with more than one person that fits in that category. It’s time to normalize these groups and be more accepting. It’s also time to start listening to women and survivors, and stop paying millions to pieces of shit that don’t deserve the blessings bestowed upon them just because they have a sick slider. 

    Editor’s note: Here’s the ice cream commercial from the start of the podcast.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit willetspen.substack.com
    1 hr 4 min

About Casual Diehard

From the publisher's feed

Friends talking sports, having a good time and trying not to let it damage our already perilous mental health.