Bryan Pata was a standout defensive lineman for the University of Miami Hurricanes, and the 22-year-old was projected to be a 2nd or 3rd round pick in the NFL Draft. But on November 7th, 2006, after returning home from football practice, Pata was shot and killed in the parking lot of his apartment complex. 14 years later, Pata’s murder remains unsolved. Over the years, police have pursued multiple leads in Pata’s case, but they have never made an arrest, or even publicly named a person of interest. But now, during a recent court hearing, police say they believe they know who was responsible for Pata’s death, and that an arrest will come in the foreseeable future. ESPN’s Paula Lavigne, who reported extensively on the case, brings us up to date on the investigation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With QB Trevor Lawrence sidelined with COVID-19, Clemson’s freshman backup QB DJ Uiagalelei steps into the spotlight this Saturday vs. Notre Dame. Uiagalelei has been touted for his arm strength and decision making, and received his first Power Five offer in the sixth grade. David Hale brings us everything you need to know about Clemson’s rising star, from his early beginnings to what he’s contributed to Clemson so far. Then, “Ted Lasso” star Jason Sudeikis joins the show to tell us about being a bright spot in the pop culture/sports world in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Election Day 2020 has arrived. It’s an unprecedented one in many ways, including that dozens of stadiums and arenas are serving as polling places. That’s a direct result of athlete attention on voting, which took off this summer across sports leagues, but particularly in the NBA. Veteran NBA player and coach Doc Rivers takes us behind the scenes, to tell the story of how - against a backdrop of social and political unrest, as players gathered in the “bubble” due to the pandemic - voting took center stage. Plus we hear from voters outside Staples Center in Los Angeles. You can find information on where and how to vote HERE. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Halfway through the NFL’s regular season, its power players look the same…but somehow different. The once mighty Patriots have now lost four in a row, and the Bills lead the AFC East, with Tua Tagovailoa’s Miami Dolphins gaining traction. The Steelers remain undefeated and sit atop their division, so how good are they? Then in the NFC East, the Eagles lead the pack with a stunning 3-5-1 record. Bill Barnwell brings us up to speed on all of Sunday’s NFL action. Plus US Soccer alum, Angel City FC co-owner, and “Laughter Permitted” podcast host Julie Foudy talks about the rise in viewers for women’s sports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When the Philadelphia 76ers announced this week they were hiring Daryl Morey to be their president of basketball operations, it turned heads across the NBA. Not just because of Morey's track record with the Houston Rockets, but because of his close relationship with former 76ers GM Sam Hinkie. Hinkie's tenure with the 76ers was polarizing. With some accusing him of tanking and turning the team into a laughingstock, and others admiring his long-term vision for the team's success...a vision that has come to be embodied by the now ubiquitous phrase "Trust the Process." Hinkie, who was ousted from the franchise in 2016, now works not in basketball but in business, and has founded a venture capital firm called Eighty-Seven Capital. He joins Pablo Torre for an extremely rare, wide-ranging interview that covers his time with the Sixers, his exit from basketball, and his new life away from the game. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On Thursday, Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence announced he had tested positive for COVID-19, shocking the college football world. David Hale explains what the diagnosis means for Lawrence and the rest of the sport. Then, after the Big Ten decided to reverse its initial decision to not play this fall, their season is underway...and the conference is now dealing with an outbreak of COVID-19 on the Wisconsin Badgers, leading them to cancel their game this weekend with Nebraska. In another Big Ten showdown, Ohio State plays Penn State this Saturday, featuring possible Heisman challenger QB Justin Fields. Kirk Herbstreit joins the show to preview that matchup, and to assess the college football landscape so far. Plus, a preview of our first-ever bonus episode. Former 76ers basketball executive Sam Hinkie gives a rare interview as his friend and colleague Daryl Morey takes his old job. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Antonio Brown is back in the NFL after agreeing to a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Friday. On the field, Brown is one of the most prolific wide receivers in NFL history, with over 11,000 receiving yards and 80 touchdowns in a career that began as a humble 6th round pick. But off the field, Brown has had ongoing issues: from social media outbursts to troubling sexual assault allegations and an arrest. After serving an eight-game suspension for violating the NFL’s Personal Conduct Policy, Brown will reunite with Buccaneers QB Tom Brady, who was Brown’s teammate for one game in New England last season, before Brown was released by the Patriots. Mina Kimes, who profiled Brown back in 2015 for ESPN the Magazine, joins the show to discuss his tumultuous journey to this point, and to assess whether the hall-of-fame caliber wide receiver is worth the risk for an already surging Buccaneer offense. Then, Pablo weighs in on the surprising news that the Philadelphia 76ers are reportedly about to hire former Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Los Angeles Dodgers are your 2020 World Series Champions. After a thrilling come-from-behind victory in Game 6, including a solo Mookie Betts home run, LA finally earned its first championship ring since 1988. But the victory was as strange as the season which preceded it, with Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner receiving COVID test results and getting pulled from the game. Jeff Passan joins the show from the scene in Arlington to break down what happened in Game 6. Why did the Rays pull pitcher Blake Snell? And what does the completion of this season mean for MLB going forward? Then: a tribute to Edmonton Oilers great Joey Moss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After drafting rookie Tua Tagovailoa fifth overall this April, the Miami Dolphins immediately envisioned him as their franchise quarterback of the future. But with Tua coming off a hip injury that ended his college career, the Dolphins decided to start the season with veteran QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, who led the team to a surprising 3-3 record heading into their bye week. Now, despite Fitzpatrick’s success, Miami is starting Tua against the LA Rams on Sunday. What’s behind the roster change, and how is the locker room reacting? ESPN Miami reporter Cameron Wolfe explains what’s at stake for the Dolphins at QB, and how the team and fans alike are responding to the prospect of Tua Time in Miami. Then, how Mike Tyson’s podcast might surprise you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sunday’s slate of NFL games brought a few wild endings and surprising upsets. The Cardinals beat the Seahawks in the final minute of overtime. The Browns defeated the Bengals thanks to a last second Baker Mayfield touchdown pass. Todd Gurley accidentally scored a touchdown for the Falcons, setting up Matthew Stafford to deliver a Lions touchdown on the final play of the game - giving the Falcons another new way to lose. Bill Barnwell breaks down this Sunday’s NFL action, and what’s at stake ahead of the NFL trade deadline, just 8 days away. Plus, Khabib Nurmagomedov claimed his 29th straight victory on Saturday. Hear why he’s retiring. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Las Vegas Raiders take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this Sunday, pitting Raiders head coach Jon Gruden against both his former team and former “Tuck Rule” game foe, Tom Brady. Gruden’s personality and coaching style has long been a part of NFL lore, throughout his first stint with the Oakland Raiders, time in Tampa, and now a return to the newly moved Vegas team. ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez gets at what makes Gruden tick, brings us up to speed on the 2020 Raiders, and weighs the impact of a rash of positive COVID tests. Plus, how the Raiders are settling into their Nevada home (and how Gutierrez is settling into his Vegas digs). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

UFC fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov is 28-0 inside the octagon. He is the UFC Lightweight Champion and viewed by many as the best pound-for-pound fighter in mixed martial arts. But on Saturday at UFC 254 in Abu Dhabi, Nurmagomedov will face his greatest challenge yet: defending his title against his highly-skilled opponent, Justin Gaethje, and doing so just a few months removed from the death of his father and trainer, who passed away from COVID-19 in July. ESPN's Brett Okamoto previews Saturday's highly anticipated showdown, and tells us how Nurmagomedov is guided by his "father's plan." Then, Sam Borden shares the story of former Packers backup QB Graham Harrell playing flip cup with Aaron Rodgers at a fraternity party. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the Big Ten kicks off this weekend, we remember the time Ohio State’s Brutus Buckeye and Ohio University’s Rufus the Bobcat got into a mascot brawl for the ages. It was 2010, and regardless of who won, the fight went viral. Did Rufus attack Brutus unfairly and without warning? Or was it simply a loveable underdog taking a jab at a college football powerhouse? Dave Fleming brings us the epic tale of that fateful September day, and the years of rivalry behind it. Plus: rookie QB Tua Tagovailoa was named starter for the Miami Dolphins, making veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick a backup yet again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tonight, Game One of the 2020 World Series gets underway between the Dodgers and Rays. It’s a series that promises to be as strange and intriguing as the season it concludes. Will Clayton Kershaw exorcise his playoff demons and lead the Dodgers to their first title in three decades? Or will the aggressively unconventional Tampa Bay Rays upset LA to claim their first-ever championship? And with a neutral site location and limited fans in the seats, will it feel like a real World Series? Jeff Passan explains how LA and Tampa made it this far, and what the fall classic in a pandemic will look like. Then, an ode to hockey’s preeminent broadcasting scholar, Mike “Doc” Emrick, who announced his retirement on Monday.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The NFL’s sixth Sunday saw Aaron Rodgers suffer at the hands of the Buccaneers’ relentless defense, while Ryan Tannehill and the Titans clung to victory over the Texans in overtime. The Titans and Steelers both remain undefeated at 5-0, but the hapless Jets fell to 0-6 amidst drama between head coach Adam Gase and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams. Bill Barnwell brings us his insights on this weekend’s football action, and if this season has met expectations surrounding the pandemic. Then, the weirdest college football commitment video we’ve ever seen (if that is even what it was?). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On Saturday, #3 Georgia visits #2 Alabama in what could be the biggest game of the college football season. Despite not playing each other every year, the Bulldogs-Crimson Tide rivalry has a rich history in recent seasons, with numerous high profile matchups that have all ended in heartbreak for Georgia. But this year might be different. Especially because Alabama will be without head coach Nick Saban, who will miss the game after testing positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday. ESPN’s Bill Connelly explains how Saban’s absence will affect the Crimson Tide, and what the Bulldogs need to do to finally come out on top. Then, Max Kellerman joins Pablo to preview this Saturday’s big fight between Vasiliy Lomachenko and Teofimo Lopez. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu earned the nickname “Honey Badger,” for his fearlessness, speed and dynamic play on the football field. But one trait he doesn’t share with nature’s biggest badass is not caring. Mathieu’s dedication to his teammates and community have made him a leader, on and off the field, in spite of battling and injuries and skepticism about his character. Domonique Foxworth wrote a Cover Story on Mathieu for ESPN.com, and joins the show to break down what makes him a model modern NFL defenseman. Then, how the saga of the LSU-Florida cancellation plays into the bigger story of sports safety and the SEC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The NBA bubble has finally come to a close, with the LA Lakers crowned champion, and no positive COVID tests throughout. The impressive feat has set a high bar for sports in the pandemic. ESPN’s Malika Andrews was the longest tenured reporter inside the NBA bubble, and she returns to the show to chronicle her exit from Orlando, and reflect on what it all meant. She’s joined by ESPN producer Malinda Adams, who was also on site from Day One. And, we get some insights on what’s next for the 2021 NBA season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As if 2020 couldn’t get any weirder....the undefeated Buffalo Bills sit atop the AFC standings. The Bills take on the Tennessee Titans tonight in a rare Tuesday evening game, the result of multiple recent positive COVID tests on the Titans. With a win on Tuesday, the Bills would join Seattle as the only 5-0 teams in the NFL, a feat that surprisingly has not been due to their highly touted defense, but rather from their the play of their offense, and its leader, QB Josh Allen. After several years of inconsistency, Allen’s play has improved dramatically this season, and he now ranks 3rd in the NFL in quarterback rating. ESPN Bills reporter Marcel Louis-Jacques makes the case for why these Bills could have what it takes to make a potential Super Bowl run. Then, Mike Schur, mind behind “The Office” “Parks and Recreation” and “The Good Place” remembers Reds legend Joe Morgan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are NBA champions, after a six game final series against Miami. Many dedicated the win to deceased Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. Hard to believe, but the longest season in NBA history began almost one year ago. The league has struggled with a pandemic hiatus, creating a bubble, and navigating a social movement against racial injustice that swept all of sports. And the Lakers, after all of it, came out on top, in a 106-93 win. Dave McMenamin shares all the things this victory means. Then Bill Barnwell brings us the latest on this week in the NFL: the impact of Dak Prescott’s injury, how the Raiders were able to contain Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, and to what degree NFL schedule changes affect which teams.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When the #7 Miami Hurricanes take on #1 Clemson on Saturday night, it will be a matchup of two of this year’s top contenders for the Heisman Trophy. One is a household name to college football fans: Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence, whose golden boy image and physical gifts have made his success seem preordained. The other, is shorter, less heralded...and has been underestimated his entire career: Miami QB D’Eriq King. King’s road to this marquee matchup has been anything but normal. After beginning his career at the University of Houston, King was asked to redshirt as a senior when the team got off to a rocky start. Instead of returning to the Cougars, King transferred to Miami for his senior year. Off the field, he’s faced personal tragedy: his mother was diagnosed with breast cancer last year, and his father died this February of a heart attack. Sam Khan Jr. has covered King since his high school football days, and joins the show to share King’s unique story. Then: an ode to Dion Waiters, the most unlikely possible NBA champion, ahead of Game 5 of the NBA Finals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach is unlike anyone else in college football. After nearly two decades at Texas Tech and Washington State, he’s now taken his talents to the SEC, where his team has upset reigning NCAA champions LSU and lost to lowly Arkansas through the first two weeks of the season. Ryan McGee brings us some of his all-time Mike Leach stories, and discusses how his unique personality might be received in the toughest conference in college football. Then: Scottie Pippen helps you fall asleep. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

MLB’s divisional series saw tons of action on Tuesday. In the ALDS, the New York Yankees fell to the Tampa Bay Rays, bringing that series to 1-1. Earlier, the Houston Astros went up 2-0 over the Oakland A’s, thanks to George Springer’s homers. ESPN baseball insider Jeff Passan brings us his playoff insights from Arlington, Texas, where he’s covering the NLDS: Ronald Acuna Jr. and the Atlanta Braves defeated the Miami Marlins 9-5, then the LA Dodgers won the first game of their series with the San Diego Padres. Later, Mauricio Pedroza joins the show to explore the rising prominence of Latino players in MLB.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After Jimmy Butler’s dominant performance in Game 3 of the NBA Finals and the trash talk that came with it, Tuesday’s Game 4 promises to turn up the heat (pun intended) on the Lakers. Miami has ruined LA’s chances of a sweep, and now hopes to ride the wave of momentum to even the series. The Heat are also looking to get their injured stars Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic back from injury. Malika Andrews joins the show from inside the bubble, where she’s been for nearly 100 days, to tell us what she expects to see in Game 4, and what she’s learned from covering the strangest postseason in NBA history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A crisis over coronavirus spread across the NFL in recent days. Following a rash of positive tests on the Tennessee Titans, Patriots QB Cam Newton also tested positive, as did the Chiefs practice QB Jordan Ta'amu. The Titans-Steelers game, scheduled for Sunday, has been postponed to later in the season, and the Patriots-Chiefs game, also scheduled for Sunday, is now tonight, in a Monday doubleheader. Bill Barnwell breaks down the impact of COVID-19 on NFL teams’ schedules and rosters, and assesses the NFC East, currently the worst division through four Sundays of action. Then, a remembrance of St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The WNBA finals tip off tonight in the Bradenton, Florida bubble. The Seattle Storm, led by Sue Bird in her bid for a fourth championship, take on 2020 MVP A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces. ESPN’s LaChina Robinson previews the contenders and the path that got them here. Then Dallas Wings All-Rookie Satou Sabally shares stories from inside the WNBA bubble. We talked to her throughout the summer, to get a portrait of a rookie season unlike any other. Plus, Josh McCown on what it’s like to be with the Eagles as the NFL’s only “Quarantine Quarterback.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Runner Oscar Pistorius became the first double leg amputee to compete in the Olympic Games, when he took the track in London in 2012, inspiring athletes around the world. Then in 2013, Pistorius’ girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp was shot dead at his home, and he was convicted of her killing, in one of South Africa’s most infamous trials. Dan Williams was a correspondent for ESPN in South Africa from 2007 to 2013, where he covered Pistorius' athletic career and court proceedings. Williams is featured in the four-part documentary “The Life and Trials of Oscar Pistorius,” available on ESPN+ now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The NBA Finals tip off tonight between the Miami Heat and LA Lakers. And while the series is loaded with intriguing storylines, perhaps none is bigger than the drama surrounding LeBron James facing off against his former team. LeBron won two rings in Miami, and with the help of superstars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, seemed destined for years more of dominance. But in 2014, LeBron decided to take his talents back to Cleveland, stunning many within the Heat organization: Heat team president Pat Riley was furious that a team he thought would be a decade-long dynasty went up in smoke. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst takes us inside the complicated relationship between LeBron and Riley...and what it means for one of the most unexpected NBA Championship matchups we’ve seen in years. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ready or not, it’s time for playoff baseball! After one of the strangest (and shortest) MLB regular seasons in history, the postseason begins today...and it’s shaping up to be equally bizarre. 16 teams have advanced to the Wild Card round, which consists of a best-of-three game series played at the higher seeded team’s home ballpark. The format is primed for unpredictability, in a season that has been defined by it. Will the Dodgers and Yankees fulfill the predictions of so many, and cruise to a World Series battle of the titans? Or will some of the more unexpected participants, like the Miami Marlins and the Toronto (aka Buffalo) Blue Jays shock everyone? Jeff Passan joins the show to explore how we ended up with these wild playoffs, and what he expects to see going forward. Then, “Remember the Titans” at 20: how Trevor Rabin’s iconic score embedded itself in sports history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Through three NFL Sundays only a handful of teams remain undefeated. Russell Wilson led the 3-0 Seahawks to a thrilling win over Dak and the Cowboys. The 3-0 Bills blew a 28-3 lead, but Josh Allen’s 4th quarter heroics secured the victory for Buffalo. Meanwhile, the 3-0 Bears scored three touchdowns in the 4th, coming from behind to beat the Falcons. Bill Barnwell compares the league’s leaders, and previews tonight’s Chiefs-Ravens game. Plus, a few words show the power of LeBron James. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After months of debate and uncertainty, the SEC kicks off this weekend, three weeks later than originally planned. It promises to be a strange season in so many ways...there are no non-conference games, limited fans will be allowed in stadiums, and tailgating will be forbidden on campus. Meanwhile, coaches like LSU’s Ed Orgeron and Alabama’s Nick Saban focus on preparing their players for the new normal. And new coaches like Mississippi State’s Mike Leach and Ole Miss’s Lane Kiffen promise to bring even more intrigue to the conference. Spencer Hall from the SEC Network’s “Thinking Out Loud” brings us all the updates you need to know about the SEC, and everything else happening around college football. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In football-obsessed Oxford, Mississippi, Nacoma James was a beloved high school football coach and math teacher at Lafayette High School. In August, James died due to complications of coronavirus. In September, the school decided to play football this season. James’ widow Laticia supports the team, even as she struggles to find her way back to socializing in a town centered on the sport. ESPN’s Elizabeth Merrill shares the story of James’ life and untimely death at age 42, and weighs the community’s pain at his loss, alongside the risk of the pandemic and its deep love of football. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Stanley Cup playoffs have been a major success in the age of the pandemic, as the league’s bubble sites in Toronto and Edmonton returned little to no positive tests since their launch in early August. With Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Dallas Stars set to take place on Wednesday, ESPN’s Emily Kaplan joins the show as one of the few American sports reporters currently in Edmonton, to talk about the action on the ice and give us a glimpse at life inside the NHL bubble. Among her revelations: why fly fishing is a running joke amongst players, why avoiding eye contact is critical, and something called “the prison yard.” Plus, why Michael Jordan believes the timing is “perfect” for him to become a NASCAR owner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Miami Heat lead the Boston Celtics 2-1 in the NBA’s Eastern Conference Finals, thanks largely to a dominant postseason performance from Jimmy Butler. Through his ten seasons in the league, Butler’s ferocious competitiveness and polarizing personality have contributed to departures from his previous three teams. But now, in the Miami Heat, Butler seems to have found a home and team that is as passionate about the game as he is. With the Heat two wins away from a trip to the finals, and Butler as their unquestioned leader on the court, the 31-year old may finally rise to the next level of NBA stardom. Nick Friedell has covered Butler since he first came into the league, and takes us inside Butler’s psyche. Then, an ode to golfer Danny Lee’s 6-putt Saturday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The NFL was hampered by injuries to stars around the league on Sunday. Among them? Saquon Barkley going down for the Giants, Carolina RB Christian McCaffrey, and many, many 49ers, including Jimmy Garoppolo, Nick Bosa, and Raheem Mostert. Considering the impact of those injuries, many teams have now dropped to 0-2. Bill Barnwell discusses the severity of injuries around the league, and explains what’s at stake for football’s winless teams. Plus, a tribute to the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: athletic inspiration. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Denver Nuggets are the Cinderella story of this year’s NBA playoffs. After overcoming back-to-back 3-1 deficits in their series vs. the Jazz and the Clippers, and squashing any hopes for a potential “Battle of LA,” the Nuggets tip off tonight against LeBron James and the Lakers. Zach Lowe explores how Jamal Murray, Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets got here - and whether they have what it takes to get past the Lake Show. Then, how “Quarterback Whisperer” Bruce Arians is finding new ways to loudly motivate Tom Brady. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In September 1970 the USC Trojans, a racially integrated team, traveled to Birmingham, Alabama to take on the Crimson Tide, where only white players were allowed on the roster. And the game - a blowout by USC - put college football in the South on solid ground toward desegregation. Sam Borden spoke to several players who suited up that day for USC and Alabama, and shares their account of the legendary game with Pablo Torre. In this current moment of national dialogue on racial justice and police violence, and with college athletes speaking out more than ever before, these alums also consider how much progress has been made in the past 50 years, or not. Plus, how politics plays into the Big Ten college conference decision to hold a season, after all. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Joe West is the MLB’s longest tenured umpire, and certainly the most recognizable. Over the course of his 40-year-plus career, he’s been at the center of numerous controversies, and his confrontational style has made him a figure that both players and fans love to hate...even if they grudgingly respect him. Tim Kurkjian recently profiled West, who is on track to break the all-time record for games as an umpire early next year, and joins Pablo Torre to tell the story of one of baseball’s all time characters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals tips off tonight between the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics. The Heat have been one of the biggest surprises in this year’s NBA playoffs, after first sweeping the Indiana Pacers, and then knocking off the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks and reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo in the second round. Now, in taking on the Celtics, the Heat renew a bitter rivalry from earlier this decade, when the two teams faced off in three consecutive playoffs. Dan Le Batard joins Pablo Torre to explore the buildup behind this series, as well as how Miami is embracing this new underdog version of the Heat, a role they certainly never played when they were winning championships with LeBron and Dwyane Wade. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The NFL’s season kicked off to a thrilling start, as Tom Brady earned his first loss as a Tampa Bay Buccaneer to the New Orleans Saints. Meanwhile, Cam Newton rushed for two TDs in his debut as a New England Patriot. Around the league, 2018’s draft class had a chaotic day, with Baker Mayfield and Lamar Jackson squaring off while Josh Allen took on Sam Darnold...and Josh Allen. Bill Barnwell surveys the weekend’s football action, and examines where these quarterbacks stand following their week one performances. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In any normal year, Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence would already have an enormous voice in college football. He is the most well-known player in the country, a Heisman Trophy favorite, and is widely expected to be the first overall player taken in the 2021 NFL Draft. But 2020 is no ordinary year, in college football or anywhere else: and Lawrence is increasingly speaking out on issues ranging from the global pandemic to racial injustice. It’s not a role Lawrence has asked for, but it found him, as fellow players, the media, even the President of the United States want to hear what Lawrence has to say. Hallie Grossman joins the show to explain just how Lawrence found himself in the middle of every issue in college football, and how he plans on using his massive platform.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We hear it before every major game: “The Star Spangled Banner.” Throughout sports history the national anthem has unified the U.S. in historic moments. It’s also served as a platform to call for change in our country. And right now athletes are staking their claim on the anthem more than ever, to make history themselves. We take a deep dive into this present moment, and how it speaks to the past and future of the anthem’s role in sports. Our guests are Dr. Damion Thomas, sports curator of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and Jon Batiste, musician and band leader for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (who performed the national anthem for the NBA’s 2020 restart), plus Atlanta Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce. As the NFL lines up to start its season, we also explore playing “Lift Every Voice and Sing” in the pregame, and whether anthems should continue as part of sports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

QB Deshaun Watson takes the field for the Texans on Thursday night, armed with a fresh 4-year deal worth over $177 million, the second biggest in NFL history behind only the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes. Watson has found success at every level of his football career...from the public housing project in Georgia where he grew up, to Clemson where he won a national championship, and now in the NFL, where he’s made two straight Pro Bowl appearances. Through it all, Watson has remained quiet off the field, rarely speaking on anything outside of football. But following the killing of George Floyd, Watson has begun to use his voice. He marched in the streets of Houston with Floyd’s family, and helped lead a campaign to remove the name of a pro-slavery politician from a building at Clemson. Tim Keown interviewed Watson about his career and impact as a Black quarterback, and discusses his reporting with Pablo Torre. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The NFL season is already here (at last!) as the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs face the Deshaun Watson-led Houston Texans this Thursday. Week One’s full slate of games has something for every football fan: Tom Brady debuts with the Bucs, Joe Burrow takes the helm for the Bengals, and the Cowboys get the chance to live up to the hype surrounding their offense. Mina Kimes joins Pablo to preview this week’s football action. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Korean baseball energy is very much about the audience, performance and celebration. That includes big time bat flips. Mina Kimes traveled to Korea to get to the bottom of how a taboo in MLB became a signature of KBO play. In a re-spin of one of our favorite episodes, Pablo Torre asks Mina about her journey to Korea to investigate how bat flipping became part of their game, tied to the bigger history of the sport abroad. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 146th running of the Kentucky Derby is Saturday, resuming after a four month delay due to the pandemic. While the event brings more attention and eyeballs to the sport of horse racing, the Derby also invokes a conversation surrounding the sport’s biggest crisis. The new ESPN podcast series "Bloodlines" looks into the deaths of horses at California’s Santa Anita racetrack, since a spike in fatalities began in 2019. Animal rights activists have been calling for reforms and even pushing for horse racing to be shut down altogether. The controversy has raised numerous questions about the complicated relationship between horses and the Bloodlines, and how the “sport of kings” found itself in jeopardy.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Washington Football Team’s offseason has been anything but quiet. In July, the team changed its name after years of public protests. And in the past couple weeks, a series of exposés in the Washington Post have highlighted the team’s workplace culture, which a number of current and former female employees have alleged is rife with sexism and harassment. Jeremy Schaap interviewed four of these women this week, and brings us their stories of working for an organization that they say was openly hostile to the women employed there. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

College football is off to a strange and uneven start. The SEC, ACC, and a few other conferences kicked off their season last weekend. Meanwhile the Big 10, which cancelled its season, seems to be muttering about regrets or even reconsidering, and the Pac-12 remains firmly out of the picture. Paul Finebaum explains the decisions and power struggles still at play even as college football kicks off, which stars are opting out to prepare for the NFL draft instead, and what it will take for the season to stay on course in coming weeks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices