Huddle Up with Gus

Joining me in the Huddle this week is the Co-Host of Pardon the Interruption on ESPN, Michael Wilbon. We talk about growing up in Chicago and perfecting his craft on the family couch, his time spent at Northwestern, and how he landed an internship at The Washington Post. 
Michael's love for Chicago sports still runs deep in his veins, but DC is a close second. He loves the Cubs, and when we started talking about some HOFers like, Ernie Banks his face lit up. He, of course, loves Da Bears too, but we push them aside and talk about the days of RFK Stadium and the Washington Football Team. Please, someone, help give them a new name!!!!!!
PTI has been running for 20 years thanks to Michael's dynamics pitted against the oft-maligned Tony Kornheiser. They make it a great show because of the push-pull of opinions they have regarding sports. Michael tells us the way PTI started and who made it all happen. 

Thank you for joining me on the show, Michael!

Joining me in the Huddle this week is one of my closest friends, Dr. Thom Mayer. Our story goes way back to the early days of my Pro career in Washington D.C. Thom tells how we met at Redskins park and how that day created our longtime friendship. 
Thom has also been the Medical Director for the NFL Players Association since 2001. He became director when his good friend, Hall of Famer, Gene Upshaw. Gene was the head of the NFLPA and asked Thom to be Medical Director because the NFLPA did not have one. Thom has used his expertise to define the NFL players' medical leadership. 
He is from Anderson, Indiana, and went to Hanover College, where he played linebacker and center. He had a tryout in the NFL but realized he needed to go down a different path. He was accepted to medical school at Duke and completed his residency in Utah, where he met Maureen. Thom and Maureen has 3 kids and 4 grandkids
Dr. Mayer is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of BestPractices, Inc., Executive Vice President of EmCare, the Medical Director for the NFL Players Association and Clinical Professor of Emergency Medicine at George Washington University, and a Senior Lecturing Fellow at Duke University. He is one of the most widely-sought speakers on healthcare customer service, trauma, and emergency care, pediatric emergency care, medical leadership, and sports medicine. He has published over 70 peer-reviewed articles, 75 book chapters and has edited or written 12 textbooks on emergency medicine, including Leadership for Great Customer Service: Satisfied Patients, Satisfied Employees, Leadership for Smooth Patient Flow, Hardwiring Flow, and Strauss and Mayer's Emergency Department Leadership: Principles and Applications. Tom Peters, the internationally acclaimed leadership guru, has referred to his work as "gasp-worthy." Dr. Mayer was named the ACEP Outstanding Speaker of the Year in the second year the award was given and has twice been named ACEP's "Over-the-Top" award winner. On September 11, 2001, Dr. Mayer served as one of the Command Physicians at the Pentagon Rescue Operation, coordinating medical assets at the site. The BestPractices physicians at Inova Fairfax Hospital were the first to successfully diagnose and treat inhalational anthrax victims during the fall 2001 anthrax crises. Dr. Mayer has served on the Department of Defense on Defense Science Board Task Forces on Bioterrorism, Homeland Security, and Consequences of Weapons of Mass Destruction. Dr. Mayer also serves as a Medical Director for the Studer Group.

My teammate joins this week in the Huddle. Ricky Williams is a gentle soul that was misunderstood by many for years in the NFL. After winning the Heisman and every other award while at the University of Texas, the expectations placed on him were unrealistic for many, but not Ricky. He expected to be great, and talking with him about his journey was incredible. 
Growing up in San Diego, he became a star on the diamond and the football field. He was drafted by the Phillies and played in their farm system while in college. Although he has a deep love for baseball, he excelled on the football field. While at Texas, he was a two-time All-American and won the Heisman trophy. He loved Texas because he said it felt like a family. Ricky was drafted by New Orleans, who traded all their draft picks that year to move up and get him. New Orleans is the only team in NFL history to draft one player in an NFL draft. 
This is why expectations were so high. He lasted 3 years in New Orleans before being traded to Miami. While in Miami, his life's calling was just beginning. He retired, played in the CFL for Toronto, and then played for the Dolphins again. He finished his 11-year career with the Baltimore Ravens. 
Ricky was still finding out who he was. He started coaching and became an ESPN analyst for the Longhorn Network. He was in a few reality shows, Celebrity Apprentice and Celebrity Big Brother. Ricky followed his heart to alternative medicine and healing through all of this. He is now an astrologer, owns a wellness company called Real Wellness, and created a new app to use astrology to match people using their astrological signs. He also has his own podcast called Curious Questions, where he interviews his guests about their lives and interest using their astrological signs. 
Follow Ricky @williams on Instagram and @rickthelaureate on Twitter.
His store: https://realwellnessherbal.com
His Website: https://rickywilliams.life

Thank you, Ricky!!!!!

Joining me this week is one of the freshest guys on the radio. Zach Gelb is a rising star in Sports radio, and you can find him every weekday on CBS Sports Radio from 6-10 pm EST. Yes, he beat me in our NFL picks this year, and I owe him a Fat Head of myself, but I am still waiting on my steak.
Zach's dad Bob has been in the radio business for a long time running the Mike and The Mad Dog show. Bob helped Zach start his first show in their basement when he was eight years old. Zach always knew he wanted to be a sports broadcaster but did play many sports growing up. He retired from playing sports to talking about them in 10th grade, and he has carved an insane path to the top of his industry. 
Zach chose Temple over Syracuse and worked hard not on his books but on his studio time. He says that his most significant experience came from being in the studio and learning from real-life experiences. Zach landed his first job in New Jersey out of college at WNJE. He made a few more moves before landing one of the top spots for CBS Sports Radio.

Joining me in the Huddle this week is Michele Tafoya. Since 2011, she has been a reporter for NBC Sports, primarily as a sideline reporter for NBC Sunday Night Football. We find out that her love for sports came from the passion her dad had for sports, a die-hard San Francisco 49ers fan. Her father Orlando Tafoya grew up in San Francisco and attended many games at Kezar Stadium. Michele describes her parents as compassionate and inspiring role models; she gives them much credit for her success. 
By the time Michele was 27, she had earned her Bachelors in Mass Communications from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of Southern California. During her time at graduate school, she really thought about exactly what it was she wanted to do. What she knew was, she loves sports and she loves journalism. She thought if she could marry the two together she would never work a day in her life. There was no shortage of inspiration for her dreams. She admired the works of Lesley Visser and Robin Roberts and felt confident that she could do what they do.
She landed her first gig in her professional broadcasting career; she moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, and started covering games not only for the NFL Vikings but the University of Minnesota women’s basketball team as well. From there she accepted an offer in Charlotte, North Carolina. She was a color analyst for the men’s basketball team for the University of North Carolina; in 1993 she was the first woman to hold that position. As Michele became more recognized she also became more sought after. From 1994 to 1999 she co-hosted "CBS Sports Spectacular". In 1996 she positioned herself as the first woman to call television play-by-play of an NCAA Tournament game.
Michele quite frequently works several jobs at a time. She is of course humbly proud of her accomplishments, but she credits hard work and dedication for her success. In the new millennium, Michele spent the next decade with ABC and ESPN, in 2004 she was allowed to report side by side with Al Michaels and John Madden for ABC’s Monday Night Football. By 2011 Michele had earned so much respect she was offered a position of sideline reporter for the most-watched weekly game. She was back with Al Michaels for NBC’s Sunday Night Football. With her outstanding sports personality, she won two Emmys; one in her first year with Sunday Night Football and the second in 2013. And in 2014 Michele won her second Gracie Award for her work on Lifetime again, but with the Sunday Night Football syndicate.

Professional golfer, Fred Funk joins me in the Huddle this week. I talk to Fred about his time growing up in Maryland and how working at the University of Maryland golf course starting at age 10. He was a multi-sport athlete growing up but golf eventually became his passion. He attended the University of Maryland, studied Law Enforcement and was on the golf team. After college, Freds journey to the PGA was not easy but he never gave upon his dream and eventually eatrned his PGA Tour card.  
Fred has had such a long and illustrious career that there is to much to write. Here is his PGA Bio.... https://www.pgatour.com/players/player.01381.fred-funk.html

Joining me in the Huddle this week is an amazing woman, mother, player and coach. Playing hoops on the rough-and-tumble Harlem courts, Brooklyn-bred Nancy Lieberman learned to play a physical, aggressive style of basketball unlike other women of her time. As a 5'10" point guard, Lieberman was taller than many of the guards of her era, and her ability to drive to the hoop, dish out assists, and grab hard-fought rebounds served her well during her stellar career. Lieberman led Old Dominion University to back-to-back AIAW national championships in 1979 and 1980. She was twice named as the Wade Trophy winner - a basketball first. As the nation's top female athlete during those two seasons, Lieberman was the two-time winner of the Broderick Cup as well. Lieberman played professionally in the Women's Professional Basketball League, Women's American Basketball Association, United States Basketball League, Women's National Basketball Association, and with the Washington Generals. Earning WBL MVP honors with the Dallas Diamonds in 1981, she led the team to the 1984 WABA championship.
I want to thank Nancy for her honest conversation and all of the incredible stories she shared with us. Her stories about Muhammed Ali, Kobe Bryant, Ice Cube and many others were incredible. It was a hard day for her because it was the anniversary of Kobe's death. They were very close. Thank you Nancy for sharing your special relationship with me and all of our listeners.
Please visit http://nancyliebermancharities.org to donate!

He was so influential that he was voted one of the top 100 most influential people in sports and even voted higher than Michael Jordan for a few years. Some of his favorite announcers were John Madden, Jim Nantz, and Bob Costas. Rudy was actually the first in the industry to hire Bob Costas. Rudy was the Director of Operations for the Spirit of St. Louis of the ABA in 1974. He also worked for 3 other Pro Basketball organizations.

Joining us in the Huddle this week is American University Law professor, Jeremi Duru. His journey through life has been influenced by sports and the pursuit of racial equality. Moving from Africa back to the states at age 7, Jeremi realized how sports helped him connect with all the new kids in his school. He also realized his passion to stop racial injustice and inequality at a young age after watching the movie Roots. I think it is amazing how Jeremi has combined these two experiences to find his path in life. 
Jeremi is a sports law expert, media commentator, law professor, author and advocate for strengthened solutions around diversity and inclusion. (bio below).  (Note: Jeremi was involved in Jim Rooney’s book project and on content related to The Rooney Rule)
As one of the nation’s foremost sports law authorities, Duru teaches in the areas of sports law, civil procedure, and employment discrimination at American University Washington College of Law. His book Advancing the Ball: Race, Reformation, and the Quest for Equal Coaching Opportunity in the NFL examines the NFL’s movement toward increased equality of opportunity for coaches and front office personnel. He is also co-author of Sports Law and Regulation: Cases and Materials and The Business of Sports Agents.
You can find out more about Jeremi with this link. https://www.wcl.american.edu/community/faculty/profile/duru/bio

Joining me in the Huddle this week is my former teammate and friend, Matt Birk. He played center and was a Super Bowl Champion with the Baltimore Ravens, a 6-time Pro Bowler and Walter Payton Man of the Year. He had an incredible NFL career and continues his endeavors off the field with his company, https://www.mattbirkandcompany.com
Join me in the Huddle with Matt Birk!