Dave 'Softy' Mahler and Dick Fain

The whole show is finally back together as Dick has returned from Hawaii. The Huskies are at home tonight for the first of the final two games of the regular season, and despite some fans' hysteria about the Cal loss, they're in a pretty good position. Fans aren't rational. They're prone ot overreaction. Let's all calm down and see what happens next. One man who's obviously still confident in the team is head coach Mike Hopkins. He talks with us about lessons learned from the loss to Cal. Chuck and Buck asked this morning whether fans want the Hawks to acquire Ndamukong Suh, and the results weren't positive. Maybe if they can get him on a really cheap deal, and there was a guarantee he wouldn't be a headache. Frank Clark has been confusing Dick in recent weeks with his constant tweeting about money, but lots of athletes are all about the money. It's not too surprising.

It's been a decade since we've done this, but we're bringing it back. Put Up or Shut Up returns. Sixteen contestants will put up a prize. Each contestant will get four teams in the tournament, and the one with the winning team wins all of the prizes. Petros Papadakis joins Softy following another tough week in LA sports. LeBron has basically given up on life, and Bryce Harper spurned the Dodgers. He also discusses Chris Petersen named one of the top 25 coaches, and says the real reason the Pac-12 is down perceptually is USC. Textimonials react to the first two hours of the show.

We talked about it a bit last hour with Petros; LeBron knows the Lakers are going nowhere this year, and he's clearly become disinterested. Laker fans aren't having any of it, and he's never been in a situation like that in his life. Things might be tough, but they've been tough for plenty of other players who have never seemed to give up to the degree that LeBron has this season. Speaking of disinterest, are you disinterested in the M's now that we're a few weeks into Spring Training? There just doesn't seem to be much chatter about them, and not a lot of excitement. We'll get a better idea of how to feel when we see them play real baseball in two weeks. There's still a contingent of fans who expect to see Russell Wilson throw more if he's making big money. Why? The team has been successful in seasons where he's thrown less. Don't ruin a good thing. Brandon Roy was on the show yesterday, but Dick hasn't had a chance to hear the interview yet. In case you missed it, we run part of it back and discuss. Donald Watts gives thoughts on the Dawgs as the try to find their rhythm again tonight against the Beavers.

With Dick still in Maui for one more day, Mike Gastineau sits in once again. It's been over a year since we've had Brandon Roy on the show. A lot of Husky alum weren't thrilled when the school let Lorenzo Romar go in favor of Mike Hopkins. Softy gets B-Roy's thoughts on the decision then and now, plus who on the current team he'd choose to play with, expectations in the tournament for the Dawgs, and more. Jon Rothstein floated the idea of Gonzaga becoming the 13th member of the Pac-12, likely for basketball only. Is there any chance that could actually happen?

Usually we do Fun with Audio a little later in the show, but today' we've got so much going on we've decided to move it up. We've got reaction on the Lakers from both Stephen A. Smith and Snoop Dogg, Antonio Brown saying he doesn't need football, and more. Jon Wilner reacts to Jon Rothstein's idea of bringing Gonzaga into the Pac-12 for basketball. Textimonials react to the first two hours of the show, plus, the Carolina Hurricanes are going to wear throwback Hartford Whalers jerseys. Is there any way a team could possibly get away with this without infuriating the old fanbase?

The 2019 MLS season is underway after the Sounders defeated FC Cincinnati on Saturday night. Brian Schmetzer, head coach of said Sounders is back with us to talk about the win, the return of Jordan Morris, and this weekend's match against the Colorado Rapids. Rumors continue to swirl about Jimmy Lake taking a head coaching job somewhere else, but here he remains. He tells us why he's still on Montlake, and what the 2019 Husky defense is going to look like. Kyler Murray is tall! Okay, he's taller than people thought by an inch or so, which supposedly eased some concerns about him, but Charley Casserly says not so fast. New concerns seem to be popping up that have nothing to do with his height. We hear from him about what he's heard after Murray's interviews at The Combine. Could he have just had an off day? Every Tuesday at 6:20 we check in with NHL Seattle senior adviser Dave Tippett for the latest on the development of the team, his thoughts on the happenings in the NHL, hockey history, and lessons on the game as we gear up for the new team's arrival in 2021.

With Dick Fain out, Mike Gastineau sits in, and it is the perfect day for him to be in too with the release of the New Yorker article quoting them on their feelings about Howard Schultz. Softy even gets in a few words we can't use on air in the piece. The Dawgs win yesterday, but not by much. Was this their wake up game, because maybe Thursday's wasn't? Still though, the team is a long way above where they've been for years. The Pac-12 on the other hand, is still the worst it has ever been. The Combine took place over the weekend. Does anybody really care. According to Softy's poll, the answer is yes, maybe 10 percent of people care. Everyone else, not so much.

It's a new Mariners season, and Ichiro is on the roster once again. Okay, it's not completely unreasonable for him to be there when the team plays in Japan later this month, especially with the three extra spots, but once they come back to the States? If the team wants to invest so heavily in young talent, let them play. Don't waste a roster spot on someone who won't be here in the future. More than anything though, it's about perception. This, plus the Dustin Ackley signing just give the optics of "the same old Mariners". Frank Clark got the franchise tag today, but will the Seahawks get a permanent deal done with him before the 2019 season starts? Former agent Joel Corry answers this, plus discussion of Russell Wilson's future, KJ Wright, and more. Textimonials flood in at 49451 with a chance to ask Mike Gastineau anything.

Softy and Gas appeared in a New Yorker article today talking about Howard Schultz. I'm sure it isn't hard to guess which way they leaned. It's hard to support someone who sold out the city so quickly. John Canzano writes for The Oregonian. He's done great work uncovering all of the Pac-12 dirt recently (as if there wasn't enough already). So where does the Pac-12 go from here? Jordan Morris has been out over a year, but made his triumphant return to the Sounders saturday night against Cincinnati, scoring two goals in the season opener. He re-lives the weekend, and talks about how much it means to be back on the team. Softy called him Jordan Miller during the interview, and hears from Brian Schmetzer, which leads to a conversation about awkward on air moments at KJR.

Chuck Powell steps in today to fill in for Dick Fain who is still on vacation. The Dawgs suffered a painful loss to the worst team in the Pac-12, and possibly the worst team in the Power 5. It's telling when even the coach calls out the team for not being tough enough. The team finally cracks the top 25, and started to buy the hype. Maybe this is a good wake up call for them. Bryce Harper is a day into his time in Philly and he's already trying to recruit Le'Veon Bell to the Eagles. That town loves a hero, and he's doing his best to become one already. Unfortunately for him though, it won't work. These big contracts never work. Mariners starting pitcher Marco Gonzaales calls in from Spring Training. How did he feel about all of the off-season moves as a veteran who wants to win? Some mock drafts have the Seahawks taking a tight end as their first pick. That seems unlikely. They're more likely to go after a defensive end.