Category Archives: College Sports

Episode #18 – Bob Ryan, Boston Globe

Bob Ryan is perhaps the greatest American sportswriter of all-time, with a 44-year career covering some of the greatest moments in Boston sports. In this episode, Ryan discusses his outstanding career, how sports journalism has evolved over his newspaper days, and talks about his new book, “Scribe: My Life in Sports.”

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For a kid who grew up wanting to be the Celtics beat writer for the Boston Globe, Bob Ryan was required reading, especially when I got to college and started journalism school at Boston University. During junior year, when I was asked to write a profile of someone noteworthy, I picked Bob Ryan and called his desk at the Globe. Ryan was very gracious, inviting me to interview him at the Globe offices, and was very generous with his time, talking for well over an hour at the time about his career and how he got started.

Decades later, Ryan’s still just as passionate about sports as he was when he started, and he was equally gracious with his time talking about his career and his new book. For a podcast called Media Masters, Bob Ryan fits the bill perfectly.

Buy Scribe: My Life in Sports on Amazon.com.

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Episode #10 – Molly McGrath, Fox Sports 1

For the 10th episode of Media Masters, I talked to Molly McGrath, an NFL sideline reporter, anchor and host at Fox Sports 1 who launched her on-camera career as the website reporter at the Boston Celtics. In under one year, Molly’s become a break out star at the new network, and is now featured on the nightly SportsCenter competitor, “America’s Pregame,” which airs five nights a week on Fox Sports 1.

Molly talked about her work ethic and drive that led to her success, what it was like to help launch the network, and how far her career has gone in such little time. She also offers insights for young reporters hoping to follow a similar career path, and shares some stories from her incredible journey.

Listen:

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Episode #8 – Chris Nowinski, Concussion Expert and Retired WWE Wrestler

My most recent podcast is easily the most important episode I’ve done. I talked to Chris Nowinski, a Harvard grad who pursued a dream by becoming a WWE wrestler, only to have his career taken from him because of concussion problems.

After retiring, Nowinski went on a crusade to educate athletes about the dangers of concussions, and has worked to change the culture of denial in the NFL, WWE and other sports. Nowinski’s tireless work continues to this day, and he’s making a real impact on the way concussions are both prevented and dealt with in sports.

If you’ve ever played contact sports at any level, give it a listen. And if you have young children playing football, hockey or other contact sports, you MUST listen to this podcast. It literally could save your child’s life.

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Episode #6 – Bonnie Bernstein, Campus Insiders

This episode was a lot of fun to record, and after we wrapped up on the phone, Bonnie told me “it felt like to friends hanging on the couch talking sports.” That was a really awesome complement to get from Bonnie Bernstein, who’s a real pioneer in sports broadcasting and someone I’ve admired from afar for a long time.

Bonnie was one of the first female sideline reporters to gain national prominence with her work on the NFL on CBS, and now she’s helping to launch a start up digital college sports venture in Chicago called Campus Insiders. Campus Insiders takes you inside college sports by connecting fans to the reporters who cover the teams on a daily basis, and it’s really gaining traction as a digital outlet. Bonnie’s been a driving force behind the network, and she talked to us about what it’s like to work on both sides of the camera as the network continues to build an audience.

She also reflected upon her impressive journalism career, and offered up advice for young reporters looking to make their mark and get their break.

Listen:

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