Distant Replay

With the Super Bowl on the horizon, we decided to focus our attention on a classic matchup that took place more than 30 years ago in Miami.   It's Super Bowl XXIII between the San Francisco 49ers and the Cincinnati Bengals, which pitted an upstart Cincy squad led by league MVP Boomer Esiason. They squared off against Joe Montana, Bill Walsh, Jerry Rice and the well oiled San Francisco machine that dominated the NFL for much of the 80s.    Both teams steamrolled into the Super Bowl, especially the 49ers who only went 10-6 during the regular season and crushed the Bears, 28-3, in the NFC Championship Game.   In this episode we discuss   - Did everything cool in the 80s happen in Miami? - An Elvis Presley impersonator during halftime - Bill Walsh's last game - Peak Jerry Rice - Bad luck Bengals - A drug bust the night before the game - Jerry Seeman is back!  - Jim Breech and his size 5 shoe - Lewis Billups and his crucial missed opportunity - John Taylor sold cars for Reggie Jackson? - much, much more   It's a look back to better times for Cincinnati fans and a game that had a lot less offense than you would have expected.    If you want to watch this game in its entirety as it aired on NBC, visit our website here: https://distantreplaypodcast.com/ep-61-super-bowl-xxiii-san-francisco-49ers-vs-cincinnati-bengals/

Most people will remember Darren Sharper from his 14-year run as a safety with the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, and the New Orleans Saints. That career included multiple All-Pro honors, a Super Bowl win, and a spot on the 2000 NFL All-Decade Team.   Shortly after his playing days were over, however, he would go on a crime spree that will leave you shaking your head. When you look back on the details, it leaves you wondering how he could have gotten away with committing so many violent offenses before getting arrested despite multiple cities actively investigating him.    This is the true crime story of Darren Sharper.    For more, visit us online: http://distantreplaypodcast.com

We're on to the second part of the Tiger documentary on HBO, which is the one with scandal, drama, and all the affairs. In other words, this is the part that many people were waiting for. 

We'll dive into the show and discuss what we saw and what we thought about part two. There's a lot to unpack but surprisingly not a lot of it completely new. 

Either way, let's get into it. Here are some of the topics we'll discuss: 

• Wright Thompson is the man
• Did his military obsession get enough attention?
• Rachel Uchitel
• 2008 US Open maybe his greatest performance
• Thanksgiving night 2009
• Armen Keteyian with the moment of the episode
• Our overall review of the sow

That's all on the docket and more. Makes sure you visit our website for all of our shows: http://distantreplaypodcast.com

Former MLB outfielder Chad Curtis is best remembered for his time with the Tigers and Yankees, which included a walk-off home run during game 3 of the 1999 World Series. 

But once his playing days were over, he and his family moved back to Michigan to begin a new career in education. By the 2012 school year, he was set to become the head football coach at Lakewood before he abruptly resigned. 

The stories that would come out after that are disturbing and would eventually land him in jail for seven years. 

We went back and look at that case for this minisode. 

For more, find us online here: http://distantreplaypodcast.com 

The highly-anticipated HBO documentary about Tiger Woods is out and we react to the first episode, which highlights his childhood, amateur career, the relationship with his father, and his rise to stardom.

 

Read more and check out the trailer here: https://distantreplaypodcast.com/ep-58-tiger-documentary-ep-1recap/ 

In the early 90s, Anthony Smith was on his way to becoming an NFL star. He was a first-round pick by the Los Angeles Raiders and  made the franchise look great by recording 36 sacks over his first three seasons. 

But after signing a 4-year, $7.6 million contract, Smith's life began to change. 

Today we'll take you back through his career and a series of crimes  that included murder and a firebombing. All of it ultimately led to his serving life in prison without parole. 

If you'd like to read more about Smith's story, check out this GQ story: https://www.gq.com/story/nfl-anthony-smith-oakland-raiders-murder 

Today we're going back to a 90s NFL rivalry and one of the greatest catches you'll see to end a playoff game.

The 1998 Wild Card matchup between Green Bay and San Francisco was just the latest of a string of playoff games between these perennial NFC powers. The 49ers were knocked out of the playoffs three straight years leading into this game and Steve Young looked to reverse this streak. 

On the other side, Brett Favre, Mike Holmgren and the Packers were coming off of back-to-back Super Bowl appearances and looking to add to their storied franchise history. 

Everyone knows this game for the play Terrell Owens made to win the game, but there's another HUGE play in this game that should have determined the outcome but no one talks about it.    Here are some of the topics discussed on this week's episode:  

• Summerall & Madden on the call
• A classic audio clip from Madden
• Majestic Candlestick Park
• Young, Favre, Rice, White on the same field
• The history of the rivalry
• The Fuji blimp?
• Jerry Rice fumble
• Terrell Owens' struggles all game long and his triumphant moment
• Mariucci, Holmgren, Andy Reid and the 49ers coaching tree
• Which QB/WR group would you take?
• Have we seen the last of massive defensive linemen in the NFL?

We'll talk about those things and much more. If you want to go back and watch this game in its entirety, check out the video on our website: https://distantreplaypodcast.com/ep-58-1998-nfc-wild-card-green-bay-packers-san-francisco-49ers/ 

Be on the lookout for more minisodes as well and connect with us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

With 41 bowl games now, it feels like there's always a game on tv from the middle of December until the first week of January. That's great for football fans that want more games to watch, but we've lost a great bowl game tradition.

On this minisode, we look back on the old bowl schedules, take you through that epic week between Christmas and New Years, and reminisce on a lost tradition on New Year's Day.

Do you remember how awesome the 2000 Orange Bowl was? That game featured future pros all over the field and was also the last game in the college career of a guy you might have heard of, Tom Brady.   The Alabama Crimson Tide, led by running back Shaun Alexander, looked to be on the rise and returning to glory after an SEC Championship and just missing the BCS national championship game.   On the other sideline, Lloyd Carr had Michigan humming with top recruits all over the field, including the likes of David Terrell, Steve Hutchinson, Ian Gold, Dhani Jones and Anthony Thomas.   Should we have seen the greatness of Brady coming? There were signs, even in this game, that he had the intangibles to be a good QB and it was fascinating to go back and watch.    Join us as two of the most storied programs in college football history squared off on the very first day of the new millennium in Pro Player Stadium.    Here are some of the things we discuss:

• Ben’s special place for this Alabama squad
• Shaun Alexander’s greatness and future fantasy football prowess
• The Andrew Zow/Tyler Watts QB controversy
• What we remembered about Tom Brady
• David Terrell’s scintillating performance
• The Mike DuBose story
• Y2K
• Alabama kickers!
• David Terrell vs Milo Lewis

We hit that and a lot more as we go back through this overtime victory for the Wolverines. If you want to go back and relive that game as well, you can watch the video on our website here: https://distantreplaypodcast.com/ep-57-2000-orange-bowl-4-alabama-vs-8-michigan/ 

 

Please connect with us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube as well!

The Dr. Pepper Tuition Challenge has become a staple during the college football conference championship weekend, but it's not without controversy. 

Back in 2010, a new strategy emerged in the form of a chest pass that's taken over the competition and stirred up lengthy debate online. 

Today we'll look back through the history of the event, share our side of the argument, and tell you which we'd choose.

For more, visit us online at distantreplaypodcast.com