It's been a year since the first episode of Says Who Sports in March of '24...fast time. Strong guests galore, including numerous legends, have joined Says Who Sports to share their observations and insight.

So, we at SWS thought it fitting to put together a "greatest hits" collection of guest quotes and anecdotes to highlight the first season. From first guest, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach Bob Hurley Sr., to Bob Costas to Oscar Winners Billy Bob Thornton and Cameron Crowe, from Lou Holtz to "The Rocket" Roger Clemens to multi-time Emmy Award-winner Michele Tafoya and all legends in between, this episode of Says Who Sports is a taste of the best of those conversations. 

And of course, you can find all of the first-season episodes of Says Who Sports on Apple and Spotify and the Says Who Sports YouTube channel. Please "like" and subscribe and leave a five-star review...no cost to you, and it helps to spread awareness of Says Who Sports. 

Thank you, as always, and enjoy!

NFL Official Sarah Thomas, who worked Super Bowl LV and has been in the league for a decade, visits with Says Who Sports to share her thoughts on a variety of topics, including the Philadelphia Eagles blowout of the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Thomas says that, aside from Super Bowl-specific preparation, NFL game officials prepare for battle year-round, including multiple offseason clinics and constant rules/situational testing by the league. Thomas details the hectic atmosphere of her Down Judge positioning along the line of scrimmage during a game, including the requisite ability for unwavering focus and execution on every play.  

Thomas, a former college athlete, recalls her disdain for game officials as a player, and discusses the newfound understanding and respect she gained for the job after attending her first-ever officials meeting at the local amateur sports level in her native Pascagoula, Mississippi. The meeting fueled her interest in officiating and launched a career that has now spanned three decades, including many years as an official in D1 college football in Conference USA and being selected to work multiple bowl games and Senior Bowls. 

She has worked numerous high-profile NFL contests including Monday Night Football, multiple playoff games and Super Bowl LV between the Chiefs and Buccaneers. Thomas talks about the excitement of receiving word from legendary NFL official Wayne Mackie that she’d earned the honor of officiating in Super Bowl LV, and the emotion of sharing the news with her parents.

Thomas also discusses the inspirational impact made on her by Jill Upton, her aunt and the coach of the U.S. Women’s Basketball team at the World University Games in Moscow in 1973 (the team included a young player named Pat Summitt). Upton encouraged Thomas, who loved playing basketball, to try out for the fifth-grade boys basketball team because there was no girls’ team at the time. Thomas made the squad. She went on to play college basketball at the University of Mobile.

Thomas has blazed an inspirational trail en route to becoming an official at the highest level of professional sports, and discusses the strong foundation of faith, work ethic and accountability (no excuses) instilled in her and her siblings by her parents. Plus, much more!

Michele Tafoya, who was the sideline reporter for NBC Sunday Night Football from 2011-22 and worked five Super Bowls and multiple Olympics for NBC, including the poolside reporter role during Michael Phelps’s last Olympics at Rio in ’16, joins Says Who Sports to discuss a variety of topics, including the upcoming Super Bowl, the intensity of an NFL sideline and the necessity of being able to adjust on-the-fly to ever-changing storylines during a game and relay key information at a moment’s notice to viewers during a television broadcast.

Tafoya, who grew up in Southern California in a family of San Francisco 49ers fans (her parents were from the Bay Area), recalls the excitement of trips to old Candlestick Park to watch the Joe Montana-era Niners play, and the thrill of meeting Montana for the first time early in her career. Tafoya talks the importance of preparation, keys to improvement (including willingness to accept criticism) and the work ethic needed to succeed for decades at the highest level.

She shares the excitement of covering Phelps, Katie Ledecky and company at the Rio 2016 Games, including the added joy of being able to share it with her family, who accompanied her on the trip. Tafoya, who left NBC Sports in ’22 to become host of The Michele Tafoya Podcast, shares the reasons behind her move, discusses her concern for the slide of sports media coverage into activism and identity politics, and shares her perspectives on keeping our minds right to overcome life's challenges.

Mark Floreani, Co-founder and CEO of FloSports, joins Says Who Sports to discuss the sports media company’s commitment to coverage of sports, athletes and events with strong fan bases he believes had been previously underserved in the sports media marketplace. From exclusive coverage of the Chili Bowl Nationals, the signature event in Dirt Midget racing, to the UCA and UDA College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships, to track and field, wrestling, racing and more, FloSports has built a streaming service rights-and-partnerships portfolio that includes production, content and coverage of more than twenty sports and thousands of events. 
Floreani shares the stories behind the earliest days of Austin-based FloSports, including a ten-thousand-dollar budget and months spent traveling the country by van to provide coverage of track and field and wrestling events. Floreani, who grew up in Chicago and attended the University of Texas, talks lessons learned from his days as a member of the track and field team at UT that continue to drive him as a competitor in the sports media industry. 
Floreani discusses the key fundamentals of the FloSports business model, the company’s approach to rights acquisition, his perspectives on the current-and-future sports media/streaming landscape, and finding ways to help partners win for the long-term when it comes to building awareness and growth of their sports, athletes and events. 

Ryan Patton, Tire Carrier for Hendrick Motorsports famed No. 24 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Cup Series, talks with Says Who Sports about the thrill of winning the Daytona 500 with driver William Byron in '24, making the Championship 4 in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs for a second year in a row last season, his championship expectations for ’25, and how he and his pit crew teammates on the No. 24 team are readying for a shot at a repeat Daytona 500 win in February.
Patton recalls his rookie season at Hendrick Motorsports as a member of the pit crew for Jimmie Johnson and Crew Chief Chad Knaus on the legendary No. 48 Chevrolet in 2013, including what it was like to win his first Daytona 500 and Cup Series Championship that season and learn under the tutelage of Knaus. 
Patton, who grew up in a racing family in small-town Delphos, Ohio, graduated from Ohio State and was a member of the strength and conditioning team for the Ohio State football program under Eric Lichter, shares the powerful story of the visit to Hendrick Motorsports in 2011 that changed his life and launched a career as a competitor with the winningest organization in NASCAR history, as witnessed by the organization’s record 300-plus Cup Series wins and 14 Cup Series championships.  
Patton explains how many of the same core skills and fundamentals necessary to become an elite college football player are essential to being a pit crew member on a premier team in the NASCAR Cup Series, especially as the evolution of pit stops has led to drastically lower stop times and made pit crew athletes possessing a hybrid combination of top-level speed and mobility a must-have for success.
Patton also shares stories about a few of the craziest happenings he has experienced on pit road, his favorite NASCAR tracks and why, watching his favorite driver Dale Earnhardt win the first Cup race he ever attended at Michigan International Speedway, the leadership influence on him of HMS owner Rick Hendrick and former Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel, importance of passing on insight gained from many years in the sport to the next wave of youngsters in the developmental pit crew funnel at Hendrick Motorsports, and much more!

Blackberry Smoke Guitarist and Singer Paul Jackson visits with Says Who Sports to share his perspectives on a variety of topics, including the first concert he ever saw as a teenager in Pensacola and the life-changing impact it had on him, Blackberry Smoke’s notable longevity (twenty-five years and counting) and the keys to making it work for the long haul as bandmates, his memories of special moments with BBS drummer and founding member Brit Turner, who died earlier this year, his love for many genres of music and the diversity of his record collection at home (think “Dancing Queen” and much more), the legendary guitarist he’d choose above all others to study and learn from, the magical first time Blackberry Smoke opened for one of the biggest bands in rock history, the nuggets of insight he shares with his guitar-playing son about being in a band, his memories of playing little league baseball on his dad’s team and the impact his dad--simply known as “Coach” to everyone in the community--had on numerous kids, his longtime love of the Florida State Seminoles and the special Bobby Bowden era, watching college football games on television on the tour bus in the middle of the night while touring Europe, his favorite Christmas movie, and much more!

Bob Huggins, a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, the 3rd-winningest coach ever in Men’s D1 College Basketball and who led two different programs (Cincinnati and West Virginia) to Final Fours, talks with Says Who Sports to share his perspectives on a variety of topics, including his thoughts on a possible return to coaching, his continued philanthropic efforts on behalf of his fellow West Virginians (especially youngsters), the powerful influence of his father and legendary coach, Charlie, including the valuable experience he gained working the renowned Eastern Ohio basketball camps started decades ago by his dad and Pennsylvania coaching legend Ed McCluskey, the factors that separate a great coach from a good coach, the impact on him of close friend and mentor Charlie Spoonhour, his longtime friendships with Jerry West, Jerry Tarkanian and John Calipari, what it was like coaching great players such as Kenyon Martin, Nick Van Exel, and Da’Sean Butler, learning from mistakes including those in the spring of ’23 that led to him leaving his job as head coach at West Virginia and how he has become a better person thru that learning, his thoughts about the state of college basketball including the NCAA and (some) university presidents, his days as an assistant coach for Eldon Miller at Ohio State and conversations with Woody Hayes, his plans for Christmas, a prevailing gratitude for family and his life journey including the many gifts the game of basketball and those around it have given him, and more! 

Longtime CBS Sports College Basketball Analyst Clark Kellogg joins Says Who Sports to share his perspectives on the current college hoops season and teams to watch, highlights from his decades as an analyst including his favorite venues to work/watch a game, his most memorable moments working alongside Jim Nantz for multiple NCAA Championship games, his days as a first-round draft pick in the NBA facing legends like Dr. J, Kevin McHale and James Worthy, his rugged “welcome” to the NBA by Hall of Famer Bob Lanier during a game and respect shown him by Lanier for not backing down, the powerful influence of his mom on his approach to communications that originated during his days of high school stardom and continues to guide him in his broadcasting career, and the excitement of tagging along as a youngster with his father, a longtime police officer in Kellogg’s hometown of Cleveland, and uncle to Browns games in the bitter cold and local high school basketball games, where Kellogg’s love for sports and belief that he would someday compete with the best was born. Kellogg also discusses his family Christmas traditions, including focus on the true meaning of the season, how he strives to continue to grow and get better as a Christian, his gratitude for his family and basketball journey, and much more!

Dan Dakich, Indiana sports legend and the host of “Don’t @ Me! with Dan Dakich” on OutKick.com and the Dan Dakich Show on Indy’s Sports Ticket 1430am, talks with Says Who Sports about his induction into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame this year (including the influence on him of friend and longtime Andrean (IN) High School baseball coach Dave Pishkur, who presented Dakich for induction), his unforgettable first interaction with Coach Bob Knight as a high school recruit, the key lessons he learned as a player/captain and longtime assistant coach for Knight at Indiana that have contributed to Dakich’s success in sports media, the B1G’s decades-long national championship drought in basketball and what he believes is the main reason for it, why the media-at-large continues to miss the mark on accuracy and telling the truth (including his own experiences with untruths in stories written and reported about him), how what he learned in striving to get the most out of his players as a former coach has influenced his approach as a show host and sports media personality, and much more!

Justin Gainey, Associate Head Coach for Tennessee Vols Men’s Basketball, visits with Says Who Sports to discuss the program’s Elite Eight run last season, the ingredients that make the SEC what he believes is the toughest conference in the country, the powerful life lessons he continues to learn from mentor and Vols’ Coach Rick Barnes, the influence of NIL on recruiting (including the positives Gainey says it brings to the player/fan relationship), the noteworthy impact his approach to coaching defense has had on the team, his days as a former player and captain at NC State and what it was like playing in the dominant ACC of the late nineties including facing opponents like Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter and Steve Francis, the strength of family that has enabled him to pursue his coaching dreams, and much more!