Telich Talks

Hayden is a sports journalist with Cleveland.com . Grove is also an accomplished singer and entertainer who was classically trained and now, can belt out Michael Buble' , Harry Connick Jr, and others tunes.  Much of our conversation however, dealt with his mental health issues. He suffered from depression, from anxiety, and panic attacks. His body image was such that, he starved himself, eating very little and exercising like a fiend, getting under 160 pounds on a 6'3" frame.  Grove talked about coming to grips with those issues and about those who helped him along the way.  The important message here as well is for someone dealing with depression or such issues, its not a case of "snap out of it" or "buckle up buttercup" and grind your way to great health.  It takes professional help and it takes compassion from others.  Grove thanked Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers for his courageous public stance in telling his own story and inspiring others to get the help they need.  And, at the end of the interview Hayden belts out a short version of a Buble' song. You'll hear how good his voice is.  I can't thank Hayden enough for speaking publicly about such an important topic. I urge anyone listening who is suffering from depression or anxiety to get professional help.  It is near and dear to yours truly. I spent several years leading support groups for families whose loved ones suffered from mental health issues. A great organization. National Alliance on Mental Illness can help.  www.nami.org

Todd abused drugs and alcohol for years. He was sent down the road due to a traumatic experience. The suicide of his mom.  After abusing drugs and alcohol, he found salvation  by training for  and competing in triathlons.  Now, more than 80 races later, he saves lives through his organization. Racing For Recovery  www.racingforrecovery.org .  Please visit his website and his You Tube channel

Baskin has done many years of televison sports and now co hosts a daily sports talk  radio show in sports crazy Cleveland Ohio.  He is also a huge advocate for those suffering from Cystic Fibrosis and pushes for organ donation.    He talked about structuring a sports talk show, and went back into his past, discussing learning the business, way out in Missoula, Montana.   On a personal note, Andy was an intern at my tv station back in the late 1980's Fans of WEWS Cleveland, and WBNS Columbus will remember Andys work.

Mike is the head coach of the St. Ignatius Wildcats soccer program in Cleveland , Ohio. His teams have won 9 state titles, and 5 national titles.  He has numerous Coach of the year honors, both on the state and national level.  Simply stated, this guy knows how to win.  He was for many years, the chair of the Theology department at the high school and is the Sophmore Services Director.  Mike spoke about how his upbringing and his faith has played a big part in how he teaches and coaches. How he focused in on life after going on a 30 day silent retreat to find out if being a priest would be part of his life.       As always, thanks for listening and if you enjoy, please rate us 5 stars on Apple podcasts and please pass this link along. I would appreciate it very much. 

WJW Fox 8 sportscaster PJ Ziegler was reporting daily for our Nexstar tv chain of 200 stations during Super Bowl preparation week in Miami. It was a marathon and he handled it greatly.  He did 300 live reports. How did he keep straight all the different markets he dealt with?  How were the logistics for such a big undertaking.?  Also, we chat about the state of the Browns and how the rest of the nation thinks of the Browns operation.

Tim Alcorn has been a fixture calling high school sports in Northeast Ohio. More than 30 years and many awards.  But due to the tragic passing of longtime Cavs tv play by play guy Fred McLeod, the Cavs restructured their broadcast lineup, and hired Alcorn to handle radio play by play.  He is now doing what his idol, and mentor Joe Tait did.  And the biggest irony is that as a kid in New England he used to listen late at night to Tait call Cavs games on 1100 Radio, which boomed into his New Hampshire home radio.     I hope you enjoy the listen.  As I post this, Tim is starting his play by play call of the Cavs and the Toronto Raptors at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse

The morning after the legend, his daughter Gianna, and 7 others passed away, I recorded my thoughts on Kobe. His Greatness and how we should just appreciate what we have, when we have it.   Rest In Peace Mamba

The Browns changed coaches again. Their star receiver got in hot water for giving money to LSU players and also had an arrest warrant out for smacking the behind of a security guard. Ohh and did I mention that the Browns reclusive Chief Strategy Officer spoke to the media??  Lets not for get the cheating in baseball story that had more twists and developments.  Yes, just a typical week covering sports in Cleveland as I have been at WJW TV for 40 years now.  Never a dull moment. This is a slight departure from my usual  podcast interviews. I invite you to check the archives.  We'll be back with some of those next week.  Ohh, yes, and right after I recorded this, the star receiver, Odell Beckham got some good news, The security guard will not be pressing charges. 

Sonny is a former Mr. Basketball award winner in the state of Ohio. He starred at Garfield Heights, then at Cleveland State and also at Ohio University.  He has been the boys hoops coach at his alma mater for about 15 years, and is involved in trying to showcase youth hoops players to get them in the pipeline to one day, possibly gain a scholarship. He talked about handling his own kids in sports and about the connection he has with LeBron James, among others.