The Beat of Sports

With the ratings for the sports on the downward trend and talk of a sale happening one has to wonder, can NASCAR be salvaged? Marc and Greg discuss what the sport was like in the heyday and wonder if it can ever get back to those highs. Did the sport benefit too much from dynamic personalities like Dale Jr and Jeff Gordon and is that something that NASCAR needs to find an use to move into a new era. Plus is there a chance that the explosion of other niche sports in the country a cause for concern or should NASCAR just embrace being a niche sport?

Today at the campus of Ohio State there will be a rally organized by fans of the Buckeyes to show their support for Urban Meyer. Also being passed around the internet is a petition signed by at least 30,000 Ohio State fans showing their support for Meyer and not wanting him to be fired from the university for how he handled the Zach Smith situation. Marc explains that this show of support has gone to far and reminds fans that this is very similar to what happened at Penn State with Joe Paterno and what fans in Texas did for Baylor.

Why the arms race in college football to build newer bigger and better football only facilities is going too far. Matt Baker of the Tampa Bay Times joins the show to explain how an influx of cash from television contracts has caused schools to think they need to keep spending money on these projects. Matt explains that Oregon was the first to start the run on building these multi-million dollar buildings. He also dispels the myth that that bigger the facility with the most amenities will help lead to better recruiting.

On The Bridge today Mike and Marc discuss the statement that Urban Meyer made about the the Zach Smith situation, and try to figure out how honest they think it is. Marc explains that Ohio State needs to be careful with how much they decide to defend Urban because more evidence may come out to hurt the university. They also talk about how fan bases are starting to go too far in defending coaches despite what they have done, Marc brings up the examples of Joe Paterno, Baylor and everything that has happened at Michigan State. Then they turn their attention to the Hall of Fame inductions and wonder if Terrell Owens will regret his decision to not participate in the festivities in Canton.

With our sports legal expert we discuss the latest with the Urban Meyer situation. Could their be legal ramifications for Urban lying about when he was told about the incident involving Zach Smith, plus is their a chance that even Meyer's wife has to deal with a legal problem? Plus why the NBA signing a deal with MGM Resorts was such a big move for Adam Silver and will be one that other sports legals try to emulate over the next few years.

Today on The Bridge: Bianchi and Daniels listen back to Dan Mullen's awkward press conference, where he fumbled and rambled through answers, with the attempt to make sense of it all.

We take a journey back to 1998 when the MLS All-Star game was played at the Citrus Bowl. What was the world of soccer like in the US 20 year ago? How much has changed in the last 20 years when it comes to the coverage and media attention that soccer has gotten.

Longtime Gator historian Buddy Martin joins the show to talk about the latest with the Urban Meyer saga. He tries to figure out what Meyer was thinking when he denied the story at media days a few weeks ago. Buddy presents what the 3 likely outcomes will be for Urban: stay, leave or end up being fired from Ohio State. And Buddy talks about what kind of role the wife of Urban might have played in this scenario.

Bianchi has been vindicated in what he's always said about Urban Meyer, that he's a lying snake. Marc Daniels backs him up on that point and discusses how the controversial coach got to this point, where OSU has him on administrative leave.

Joining the show today is Ryan Aber who covers the Oklahoma Sooner but is also an Associated Press voter who gave UCF a first place vote. He explains to Marc his thought process and voting for UCF although he doesn't think they are better than Alabama but deserve the recognition. Ryan also talks about his process with doing a weekly rankings and how they differ from other AP voters. Plus he explains what the frustrating things are about being a voter and what things can be changed in the voting process.