The Option Podcast

Ugh. I do hate goodbyes. But we had to tie a bow on all this sooner or later, didn’t we? 

I’m sure we’ll have everything solved by the end of the next ~30 minutes.

So come on down for the grand finale. We’re almost there. 

This is The Option, from Cross Streets Media. 

Guests featured (in order):

• Andy Coats: Lead Attorney, NCAA v. Board of Regents

Host: Michael Hendricks

College sports contain multitudes. Nearly all of the coverage is devoted to what we tend to call the "revenue sports," and except for this time of year right now, what that really means is D1 football. 

But what about everybody else? There are literally hundreds of thousands of college athletes across the country who we tend not to hear from. There's this giant conversation happening around them, and they barely get a word in. 

So listen up. They've got something to say, here on The Option from Cross Streets Media. 

Guests featured (in order):

• Abbey Forbes: Tennis Player, UNC Chapel Hill

Host: Michael Hendricks

Every now and then, you have to press the ol’ rewind button to get up to speed. 

It’s clarifying. We already got a lot out of that trip back to 1984, right? What’s another eight decades or so? 

Teddy Roosevelt’s a gracious host. He’ll show us a good time. 

So let’s head on back – way back – here on The Option from Cross Streets Media. 

Guests featured (in order):

• Dennis Deninger: Professor, Syracuse University

Host: Michael Hendricks

Instead of a Hail Mary, it’s a Hail Charlie. Get it? Like the football play?

Its namesake is the ambitious new head of the NCAA, a guy named Charlie Baker, whose most recent experience was running the state of Massachusetts. So, in that sense, it’s a heave alright.

But now that Baker’s in the chair, he’s bringing some changes to college sports. A lot of changes, actually, and he’s still hoping on a whole lot more. 

We’ll tell you all about ‘em, here on The Option from Cross Streets Media. 

Guests featured (in order):

• Amy Perko: CEO, Knight Commission

Host: Michael Hendricks

Remember 1984? Us too. What a year. Hit after hit after hit: Ghostbusters. Born in the USA. NCAA v. Board of Regents.

What do you mean you don’t remember that last one? The landmark antitrust lawsuit that turned college sports upside down forever? Still no? For real? 

Well, in that case. You’re prolly gonna want to listen to this episode STAT. We’ll get you up to speed. 

This is The Option, from Cross Streets Media. 

Guests featured (in order):

• Amanda Christovich: Reporter, Front Office Sports

Host: Michael Hendricks

The NCAA has four letters, three divisions, a thousand schools, and half a million student-athletes. It’s a lot. Too much, some say. 

For as long as most of us have been alive, the organization’s been running the world of college sports. But that world is going through some changes right now. 

More than ever, the ground is shifting beneath this pillar of bureaucracy. And, to their credit, the NCAA is starting to shift with it. 

It’s a funny time to be covering college sports. “May you live in interesting times,” right? Well. Here we are. 

This is The Option, from Cross Streets Media. For the next six episodes, we’ll try and explain these times, and what might be coming next. So sit down, stay a while. 

Guests featured (in order):

• Jay Bilas: College Basketball Analyst, ESPN

Host: Michael Hendricks

College sports are at an inflection point. The NCAA we grew up with is already gone.