Steve interviews Stewart Mandel (00:22:54) from The Athletic. Stewart makes his annual visit to the podcast to preview the upcoming college football season. Stewart updates us on all of the changes to college football since the last season ended and schools us on what we need to know to enjoy the upcoming season. Stewart has thoughts on the changes to the College Football Playoff, the winners of the transfer portal, and who will win the Heisman Trophy in December. Stewart and Steve also discuss Arch Manning and his massive expectations, John Mateer at Oklahoma, and the teams he thinks might make a deep run in the playoff. Stewart also tells us about his recent column on college football preview magazines and explains how they have stayed relevant in 2025.

Steve starts the show with first things first. The 2025 Braves called up a young pitcher from Gwinett and he is sick. The Colorado Rockies are one of the worst teams ever and Devin Williams is having a season from hell with the New York Yankees. The Saints QB competition is off to a rough start and Hard Knocks filmed part of an upcomiong episode at my brother's bar. Also, ESPN and the NFL have made a massive deal that will impact sports media for years to come. The show ends with one last thing about getting my driveway paved.

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Steve interviews Aaron Schatz (00:30:10) FTN Fantasy's Chief Analytics Officer. Aaron joins us to discuss the 2025 Aaron Schatz's FTN Football Almanac. Aaron discusses settling in at FTN Fantasy, explains how charting DB's has become a larger part of his analysis, and helps to break down just some of the information from this year's almanac. Aaron and Steve talk about the fall of the New Orleans Saints and the rise of the Buffalo Bills. Aaron tells us what teams the almanac is higher on than most and the teams they are lower on. Also, how good ate this year's quarterbacks? How will last year's rookie QB class look in 2025? Will the Bengals help Joe Burrow? Who will play in the Super Bowl in February?

Steve starts the show with first things first. The 2025 Braves are officially sellers. Who should they sell and who should they keep? The Saints have stated training camp and their QB competition has begun. Also, Barstool and Fox have a deal. How will it work out for both companies? The show ends with one last thing about being Italian-American and getting to celebrate it this weekend at the Italian Festival.

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Steve interviews Andy Greene (00:24:35) from Rolling Stone magazine. Andy joins us to talk about a busy few weeks in rock and a bad time to be in the "rock is dead," crowd. Andy talks about the return of Oasis, why he thinks the brothers decided to get back together, and gives his thoughts on what he has seen from the shows so far. Andy also talks about the reunions that still need to happen while they still can. Steve and Andy then move on to the last Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne concert. Ozzy pulled it off, Steve Tyler sounds incredible, and who was the band that Sharon kicked off the gig? Next, the guys talk about Matt Cameron leaving Pearl Jam. Why? What is next for Matt? What is next for Pearl Jam?

Steve starts the show with first things first. The 2025 Braves have reached the All-Star break, thank god. Also, Jannik Sinner is the first Italian to win Wimbledon. In the NFL, 30 second round picks remained unsigned and Kirk Cousins realizes that the Atlanta Falcons are hideous. The show ends with one last thing about Steve's journey from fat dad and horrible dancer to horrible dancer who isn't quite as fat.

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Steve interviews Tim and Jeff Kurkjian (00:18:37) the hosts of the podcast, Is This A Great Game, Or What? Tim and Jeff join us to talk about the origin of their podcast, the joy they get doing the podcast together, and the unique approach they take to interviewing. Jeff talks about doing morning radio in Philadelphia and how he sees podcasting evolving in the next few years. Tim talks about writing for Sports Illustrated and the future of sports writing. Jeff and Tim also talk about the injures Atlanta Braves, interviewing Cal Ripken Jr., and how they think baseball needs to evolve to continue to be one of the premier sports in America.

Steve starts the show with first things first. The 2025 Braves are the 2024 Braves, the Buffalo Sabres made another bad trade and, AC Milan actually signed an Italian player. The show ends with one last thing featuring the beautiful, Paula Bennett. Paula talks about the end of third grade, her plans for the summer, and her thoughts on the Oasis reunion.

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Steve interviews Mark Kriegel (00:21:25) the author of a new book about Mike Tyson called, "Baddest Man." Mr. Kriegel returns for the first time since 2012. Mark explains why not wanting to "give the money back" resulted in a new book about Mike Tyson. Mike also talks about Tyson's appeal in the 80's, the revenue he generated, and the likely outcomes to living at the speed Tyson was back then. Mark also remembers Tyson's famous fight against Micheal Spinks, his relationship with Cus D'Amato, and how Tyson's life ushered in a new way famous athletes were covered by the press.

Steve starts the show with first things first. The 2025 Braves are hot, is there reason for optimism? Also, the Florida Panthers have won their second Stanley Cup, Connor McDavid wasn't good enough, and Italy has a new coach. The show ends with one last thing on the destructiveness of short hand in conversation.

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Steve interviews Jay Mariotti (00:18:00) who returns to the podcast with a list of sports medias topics he needs to get off his chest. Jay talks about the end of Around the Horn. Jay remembers the good and bad times he spent on the show and explains why he thinks it was never the same after he left. Jay has thoughts on the Pablo Torre and Bill Simmons feud. Jay is tired of hearing about Jordan Hudson and Bill Belichick, and he also talks about Jeff Pearlman getting in the mix and calling out gambling money. Jay has thoughts on Stephen A, sports writers on television, and the fall of the national sports columnist.

Steve starts the show with first things first. The 2025 Braves still stink, Italy faces the nightmare of missing a third straight World Cup, and the Stanley Cup Final is awesome. The show ends with one last thing about self-evaluation.

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Steve interviews Bob Costas (00:18:04) who returns to the podcast after making his debut at the start of season 14. Bob and Steve talk about the Atlanta Braves troubles, the Pittsburgh Pirates blowing their window with Paul Skenes, and Aaron Judge in the regular season vs. Aaron Judge in the post season. Bob recalls his time hosting the Cheers finale, explains what is left on his bucket list, and outs himself as a casual hockey fan. Bob also plays a round of 9 in 90 where he gives a Mt. Rushmore of baseball movies, a book recommendation for Father's Day, and tells us his favorite Bob Uecker story.

Steve starts the show with first things first. The 2025 Braves have hit rock bottom, Inter Milan embarrassed themselves and fans of Italian football all over the world, and the Stanley Cup Final is here.. The show ends with one last thing about Steve becoming a skilled plumber.

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Steve interviews SL Price (00:21:50) the author of an upcoming book about lacrosse in the United States. Mr. Price returns for the first time since September of 2022. After spending eight years researching and writing, The American Game will be released on May 20, 2025. Mr. Price explains why he wanted to write the book, the stereotypes about the game and the people who play it that he found to be false and the few that proved to be true. Mr Price also talks about Jim Brown, box lacrosse, and the relationship indigenous people have with the game.

Steve starts the show with first things first. The 2025 Braves have another chance to crawl back to .500, Inter Milan will face PSG in the Champions League Final, and Connor McDavid embarrassed Jack Eichel. The show ends with one last thing about a big weekend ahead.

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Steve interviews Field Yates (00:16:45) from ESPN. Field joins us shortly after returning home from Green Bay where he was covering the NFL Draft. Field talks about walking around Green Bay, the layout of the draft, and behind the scenes in the ESPN production meetings for the broadcast of the draft. Field also explains what was happening behind the scenes when the Browns traded the second pick to the Jaguars and the reaction when Shedeur Sanders was finally drafted.

Also, Mike Triplett from NewOleans.Football (00:46:51) returns to talk about the New Orleans Saints. Mike mostly listens and laughs as Steve rants and raves about Dennis Allen, Derek Carr, and the post Brees/Payton era. Mike gives his thoughts on Tyler Shough, the Saints draft, and the future of Carr. Mike and Steve calm down (mostly Steve) and the guys have some fun looking back at a few of the best moments from the Brees/Payton era.

Steve starts the show with First Things First and talks about the incredible game between Inter Milan and Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Champions League. Also, the Braves blow a chance to reach .500, the NHL playoffs, and the NFL Draft. The show ends with one last thing being in the hospital with a nasty kidney stone.

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Steve interviews Adrian Dater (00:11:55) his old partner on The Lonely End of the Rink podcast. Adrian joins us from St. Louis where he is covering his first Frozen Four. Steve and Adrain talk Sabres playoff drought, the Avalanche's playoff hopes, and the return of Gabriel Landeskog. Adrain has opinions on Ovechkin breaking Gretzky's record, the best teams heading into the NHL Playoffs, and the success of the Four Nations tournament. The guys also discuss Kiss, Gene Simmons, the Frozen Four, and more.

Also, James W. Miller debuts (1:00:55) to talk about his new book, "The Last Manager." John explains why he wanted to write a book about Earl Weaver and the challenges of getting the book published. James talks about interviewing MLB players from the 70's and finally getting some time with Cal Ripken Jr. Miller also talks about the disaster that is the Pittsburgh Pirates and their recent run of unforced errors thats has brought disgrace to the franchise.

Steve starts the show with First Things First and talks about the Atlanta Braves showing signs of life, Lazio losing to a team in Norway, and the Frozen Four. The show ends with one last thing about Nonnas.

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