Hang Up and Listen

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the most important and most memorable sports moments of 2023. They’re also joined by Mark Wright to talk about his podcast The Bison Project, on Howard University’s 1971 NCAA champion soccer team. Finally, we look back at one of our favorite segments from the recent past, featuring … a mystery guest.

Memorable moments (4:41): Damar Hamlin, Michigan sign-stealing, and everything in between.

Howard soccer (21:06): Can a 50-year-old injustice be rectified?

Mystery guest (42:57): Can you guess what sports innovation he came up with?

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Joel Anderson, Josh Levin, and Slate’s Alex Kirshner discuss Draymond Green’s indefinite suspension. They also talk about the Washington Capitals and Wizards reportedly leaving D.C. for Northern Virginia. And finally, they examine why every college quarterback is in the transfer portal.

Draymond (4:43): What’s next for him and for the Warriors?

Wiz and Caps (26:12): Are they actually leaving or is this just a classic case of owner extortion?

Portal (45:53): Why so many quarterbacks are switching teams.

Afterball (1:06:58): Joel on North Dakota State’s very lopsided basketball victory.

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Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss Shohei Ohtani’s record-setting contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. They’re also joined by the Washington Post’s Ben Golliver to assess the NBA’s first in-season tournament. Finally, they discuss Joel’s story about his tenure at ESPN and what it’s become now.

Ohtani (4:31): Did the Dodgers actually get a bargain?

In-season tournament (23:41): Was it a flop or is it here to stay?

ESPN (47:57): What is the Worldwide Leader trying to be?

Afterball (1:08:30): Josh on Bills coach Sean McDermott talking about the teamwork of … the 9/11 hijackers.

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Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, and the Ringer’s Bryan Curtis assess the decision to leave Florida State out of the College Football Playoff at the expense of Alabama. They also discuss Sports Illustrated using AI writers. And Stefan and Josh follow the continuing saga of LSU’s Kim Mulkey and Angel Reese.

Florida State and Alabama (3:50): A total outrage or a totally understandable decision?

Sports Illustrated (21:28): What does the magazine’s AI mess say about the present and future of sports media?

Mulkey and Reese (39:36): The question that went unasked when the LSU basketball star returned.

Afterball (1:00:19): Stefan on the origins of a famous quotation from baseball Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby.

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Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the Michigan football team’s win over Ohio State and Alabama’s last-second victory over Auburn. They also discuss the mystery around why LSU women’s basketball star Angel Reese isn’t playing. Finally, the Wall Street Journal’s Jonathan Clegg explains the huge penalty the Premier League dished out to Everton.

College football (6:31): Why this year’s rivalry week loss was so crushing for Ohio State.

LSU women’s basketball (26:10): What’s going on between star Angel Reese and coach Kim Mulkey?

Everton (48:22): Will Manchester City and Chelsea get hammered next?

Afterball (1:07:17): Joel on the uplifting journeys of Idaho and New Mexico State football.

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Josh Levin, Joel Anderson, and Ben Mathis-Lilley are joined by the Ringer’s Lindsay Jones to talk about the controversy Charissa Thompson kicked up about sideline reporting. They also discuss Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, and whether he’ll succeed at bringing a new leadership style to the NFL. Finally, the Wall Street Journal’s Joshua Robinson joins to assess Formula 1’s Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Sideline reporting (5:41): Why did Thompson’s admission that she made up reports strike such a nerve?

McDaniel (29:06): Can a humane coach win big in the NFL?

Formula 1 (49L59): How the Las Vegas Grand Prix went from disaster to success.

Afterball (1:07:17): Josh on commercials where athletes celebrate “ordinary people.”

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Josh Levin, Joel Anderson, and Ben Mathis-Lilley weigh the evidence in the sign-stealing case against Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh. They also discuss Texas A&M’s decision to fire its football coach Jimbo Fisher. Finally, Josh and Joel speak with writer Megan Swanick about the career and legacy of Megan Rapinoe.

Harbaugh (4:04): Should the coach go down or is he getting railroaded?

Fisher (26:49): How national championship dreams turned into a $76 million buyout.

Rapinoe (44:01): She didn’t get a perfect ending, but she handled her ending perfectly.

Afterball (1:06:36): Joel on Jimbo Fisher, Colby Carthel, and Texas-sized football expectations.

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Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, and Joel Anderson assess the life and career of basketball coach Bobby Knight, who died last week at age 83. They also review Victor Wembanyama’s awe-inspiring opening weeks in the NBA. Finally, the Athletic’s Dan Robson joins to discuss the tragic death of hockey player Adam Johnson, who was slashed in the neck by a skate blade.

Knight (4:39): The legendary coach was a symbol of toughness and egomania.

Wemby (24:45): The French giant is even better than we thought.

Hockey death (45:25): Will a horrifying on-ice tragedy change anything about the game?

Afterball (1:08:39): Josh on the latest abuse allegations against tennis player Alexander Zverev.

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Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, and Joel Anderson are joined by Slate’s Ben Mathis-Lilley to assess the latest developments in the Michigan sign-stealing extravaganza. The Ringer’s Ben Lindbergh also joins to break down the World Series matchup between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Texas Rangers. Finally, Stefan, Josh, and Joel discuss how to talk about Dwight Howard, the future basketball Hall of Famer who’s been accused by a man of sexual assault.

Michigan (5:52): Is Jim Harbaugh in trouble?

World Series (27:27): These might not be the best teams in the major leagues but it is a great match-up.

Howard (49:57): There’s never been a story like this in the NBA.

Afterball (1:08:55): Stefan on the etymology of the “tush push” and its upstart rival, the “Brotherly Shove.”

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Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, are joined by Slate’s Ben Mathis-Lilley to talk about allegations that the Michigan football team is running a sign-stealing operation. They also discuss flag football becoming an Olympic sport. Finally, ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski comes on for a conversation about the National Hockey League’s ban on rainbow-colored Pride Tape.

Michigan (1:54): Are the Wolverines cheating? And what does a guy named Connor Stalions have to do with it?

Flag football (23:12): Will NFL players take the field at the 2028 Games?

Pride Tape (41:54): The Arizona Coyotes’ Travis Dermott defied the ban. What happens now?

Afterball (01:05:41): Stefan on the first woman kicker in college football who’s also a rated tournament Scrabble player.

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