Hang Up and Listen

Josh Levin, Stefan Fatsis, and Vinson Cunningham are joined by Ben Mathis-Lilley to discuss his new book on college football, The Hot Seat. They also discuss the hype around American tennis star Coco Gauff and review the soccer documentary Welcome to Wrexham.

The Hot Seat (2:14): Why does college football make so many of us insane?

Coco Gauff (24:54): Is the publicity warranted, or is too much for an 18-year-old to handle?

Welcome to Wrexham (47:60): Does the story of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney buying a soccer team make for good TV?

Afterball (1:06:51): Josh on drinking beer through a hot dog straw.

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Josh Levin, Stefan Fatsis, and Vinson Cunningham are joined by Defector’s Maitreyi Anantharaman to discuss the WNBA playoffs. Dion Wright also joins to explain what it was like to guard LeBron James. Finally, they talk about Isiah Thomas’ “No Crime Day,” the subject of the first episode of Slate’s One Year: 1986 podcast.

WNBA (2:48): Can Sue Bird lead the Seattle Storm to a fifth title?

Dion Wright (23:39): How it felt to go viral for going up against one of the greatest of all time.

No Crime Day (42:20): A conversation about basketball and athlete activism in the 1980s.

Afterball (1:05:56): Stefan on the agony and ecstasy of watching Pete Carril’s Princeton teams.

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Vinson Cunningham and Stefan Fatsis are joined by the New Yorker’s Louisa Thomas to discuss the latest on Deshaun Watson’s sexual abuse case and Serena Williams’ impending retirement. Also, Sports Illustrated’s Julie Kliegman joins to talk about athletes and psychedelics.

Deshaun Watson (5:00): The new Browns quarterback debuted with the team to boos and jeers.

Serena Williams (21:52): The superstar announced in Vogue that she is “evolving away from tennis.”

Psychedelics (35:20): Should more athletes be using them to treat mental health and injury?

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Josh Levin, the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham, and Slate’s Henry Grabar take an audio tour of Vin Scully’s broadcasting career. They also discuss the documentary NYC Point Gods. Finally, Josh interviews tennis players Maxime Cressy and Daria Saville.

Vin Scully (2:36): Eight moments from 66 years in the booth.

NYC Point Gods (33:11): Is the new basketball documentary worth watching?

Tennis (48:33): Conversations with two of the most fascinating players on tour.

Afterball (1:16:42): Josh on the Shammgodd—or is it the Pooh Allen?

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Josh Levin is joined by Aram Goudsouzian for a conversation about Bill Russell’s life and legacy; by Grant Wahl to talk about England’s historic victory at the women’s European soccer championships; and by Andscape’s Jason Reid to discuss Deshaun Watson, Kyler Murray, and Reid’s book Rise of the Black Quarterback.

Bill Russell (2:21): The basketball legend’s biographer on his impact on and off the court.

England (23:28): How the Lionesses won, and how that victory will change women’s soccer.

Quarterbacks (44:46): The past, present, and future of Black QBs in the NFL.

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Josh Levin and the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham are joined by Tim Layden to discuss the record breakers of the world track and field championships; by Abe Riesman to talk about Vince McMahon’s scandal-laden retirement from WWE; and by Sarah Larson for a conversation about her New Yorker feature on pickleball.

Track and field (1:30): What’s next for Sydney McLaughlin, Noah Lyles, and the sport as a whole?

Vince McMahon (25:24): Why did he retire now? What’s next for WWE?

Pickleball (47:23): Why is it so popular? Is a billionaire ruining it?

Afterball (1:05:40): Josh on Carl Lewis’ mythical 30-foot long jump.

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Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the opening weekend of the world track and field championships. They also talk about why the Angels are so bad in spite of Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout and the Nationals’ Juan Soto dilemma. Finally, Puck’s Julia Ioffe joins for a conversation about Brittney Griner’s detention in Russia.

Track (4:07): Why an American hurdler got a raw deal.

Baseball (25:02): Is Juan Soto crazy to turn down $440 million?

Griner (44:43): Should we be more pessimistic about her fate?

Afterball (1:04:43): Stefan on the Amarillo Sod Poodles.

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Joel Anderson, Josh Levin, and Ben Mathis-Lilley discuss their proposals for fixing college football. Josh then speaks with Ben Rothenberg about Novak Djokovic’s Wimbledon win over Nick Kyrgios. Finally, Joel, Josh, and Ben assess the rising stars of NBA Summer League.

College football (3:26): How will the sport reshape itself in the next five years?

Tennis (27:01): Wimbledon got the final it deserved.

Summer League (53:07): What to make of the Chet Holmgren experience.

Afterball (1:09:07): Josh on the Summer League record for most points in a single game.

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Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the Brooklyn Nets’ Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving trade drama. They also talk about UCLA and USC moving to the Big Ten and assess the verbal sparring between Nick Kyrgios and Stefanos Tsitsipas at Wimbledon.

Nets (2:26): Could they still keep KD and Kyrie?

Big Ten (24:28): What the latest big move means for the future of college football and every other sport.

Kyrgios and Tsitsipas (45:35): The story behind the ugly tennis squabble.

Afterball (1:10:10): Joel on the latest feats of pole vault prodigy Mondo Duplantis. 

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Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by Olympic gold medalist Crissy Perham to discuss what Roe v. Wade getting overturned means for women athletes. They also discuss Arch Manning’s decision to play football at the University of Texas and Ohio State getting a trademark on the word “the.”

Crissy Perham (2:56): A champion swimmer on why she’s speaking out about her abortion.

Arch Manning (23:15): America’s leading legacy athlete will be a Longhorn.

The Ohio State University (44:01): Is the school’s love affair with the definite article endearing or annoying?

Afterball (1:02:20): Josh on Billie Jean King’s abortion story.

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