1. I’ve said many times that the only negative with ESPN’s Monday Night Football ManningCast is that because it’s so good, we will now be subjected to a million ManningCast copycats, and the vast majority of them will be awful.
However, ESPN has come up with a concept for a new type of ManningCast that will no doubt be a smash success.
Pat McAfee announced Thursday that he’s teaming up with Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions to do a “simulcast” for six games during the college football season to be aired on ESPN2.
Some details on the news:
The marriage with college football, Pat McAfee and the ManningCast format is a perfect idea. There’s probably nobody better equipped right now in sports media right now to host a loose, freewheeling, chat-based alternate telecast than McAfee.
He’s got momentum, he’s become an outstanding interviewer and he has the exact personality that’s right for a ManningCast telecast.
College football is also the perfect forum for a McAfee-led ManningCast. The NFL is serious business. A lot of people have said that while they like the ManningCast, they still need the traditional broadcast for bigger games so they know what’s going on with penalties, down and distance, and game situations.
These things are less important in college football. The sport lends itself to a lighter, more fun atmosphere. Every NFL broadcaster has to worry in some way, shape or form about saying something that Roger Goodell may not like. This isn’t the case in college football.
And this is why McAfee will thrive in his new role.
2. New Good Morning Football host Jason McCourty has shared a Twitter account with his brother, Devin, for many years. This week, Jason reactivated his own personal account, which had been dormant since 2011, and when he did so, all his old tweets were still there. On Friday's show, McCourty's cohosts had fun reading and mocking those 11-year-old tweets, and it was highly entertaining.
3. As someone who grew up in the ’80s, it was great to see that LeBron James appreciates the classics, as he rocked out to Karma Chameleon after a workout.
4. Speaking of classic songs, Bills rookies belted out one of the greatest pop songs of all time at training camp Thursday.
5. Derek Jeter addressed the famous gift baskets story in Thursday night’s episode of The Captain, sharing this amusing story.
6. This week’s Sports Illustrated Media Podcast is a celebration of the show's 400th episode.
Jimmy is joined by his weekly guest, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV in New York, to talk about the history of the SI Media Podcast, reminisce about Jimmy taking over as host after Richard Deitsch left Sports Illustrated and discuss how the podcast has evolved over the years. Jimmy also takes time to thank several people, including his audience, for helping the podcast roll along. Jimmy also reads the latest SI Media Podcast reviews that listeners have written on Apple.
This edition of the SI Media Podcast also features an interview with Alan Sepinwall, the chief TV critic for Rolling Stone. Sepinwall gives is recommendations for what TV shows you should be watching this summer and goes in-depth on The Bear, The Rehearsal and Succession. Sepinwall also shares his memories of Tony Siricio and The Sopranos character he played, Paulie Walnuts.
You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.
You can also watch the SI Media Podcast on YouTube.
7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: Today is International Beer Day, so let's pay tribute to the greatest beer drinker of all time.
Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.
