Conversations with Sports Fans

We're joined in this episode by Fr. Burke Masters from St. Isaac Jogues Parish in Hinsdale, IL. In addition to his responsibilities at St. Isaac's, Fr. Burke also serves as the nearby Chicago Cubs' Catholic Chaplain. Fr. Burke's work with the Cubs is, shall we say, on brand for him. A highly recruited high school baseball player out of Joliet, IL, Fr. Burke wound up in Starkville, MS, playing four...

In this episode we're joined by Colin Prater, a high school science teacher and golf coach from Colorado Springs, CO. Also an avid sports fan, those reasons alone are enough to engage in a Conversation, but wait until you check out the past six months Colin's enjoyed: Played in the ⁠ U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship ⁠ at Philadelphia Cricket Club in Flourtown, PA Placed second in his ⁠ U.S. Ope...

Del Reid, one of the co-founders of the #BillsMafia movement joins us in this episode. Along the way we discover a bit about Del's early years as a sports fan, how the #BillsMafia came to be, and how its grown in the 13-plus years since. We also learn about the philanthropic arm of the Bills Mafia and how Del's enterprise, 26 Shirts, plays a role in that arena. Links: Bills' Receiver Stevie Johnso...

Host Doug Hill is joined in this bonus episode by friends Rob Byrd (previously hear on S:1, E:5 ) and Macker Wilson, both of whom joined him for a portion of Event No. 8 of Around the World in 80 Sporting Events : the Texas Football Trifecta. Doug recently attended a Friday Night Lights game in Odessa's historic Ratliff Stadium ( Permian 50, Odessa 26 ), Saturday afternoon's Red River Rivalry ( Te...

We've taken the show on the road for this episode, all the way to Abilene, TX, where we're joined by Al Pickett, Chairman of the Big Country (TX) Athletic Hall of Fame . In addition to his role with the Hall, Al has served in various media capacities during the past 50 years covering high school and college athletics. He's the former sports editor of the Abilene Reporter-News and is currently the...

In this special bonus episode, host Doug Hill reflects on his brief but enjoyable time at the 2024 Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal Golf Club as part of his Around the World in 80 Sporting Events project. If you're enjoying Conversations with Sports Fans please consider supporting our work ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠ he⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠e ⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

In this episode we're joined by the John Creasey, the Mayor of Grand Blanc, MI. Why is that significant you ask? Well, Grand Blanc is the home of double Paris Olympic Bronze Medalist, Grant Fisher . Fisher took third in the 10K (video here ) and 5K (video here ). ***Update: Following the recording and scheduling of this episode, Mayor Creasey informed us that September 27 was named Grant Fisher Da...

We're joined in this episode by Dave Raymond who is, perhaps, best known as the original "best friend" of the Phillie Phanatic . The son of the late-University of Delaware head football coach Tubby Raymond (36 seasons and a member of the College Football Hall of Fame) and himself a player for the Blue Hens, Dave's story of how he went from being driven to follow in his father&#39...

This week's guest, Andrew Powerski, says his love of the University of Michigan football team began with - of all things! - watching the second-ranked Wolverines lose to top-ranked Ohio State, 42-39 , back in 2006. He's been hooked ever since. And while this season may be off to a wobbly start in Ann Arbor, Andrew notes he will always have last year's National Championship. In addition...

We're joined in this episode by Evan Jewson, a University of Alabama graduate and current Systems Engineer for the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing 's 45 Car as part of the IndyCar Series. If, like us, you're curious how a hockey-playing, Chicago Blackhawks'-loving, high schooler from Lake in the Hills, IL, wound up in Tuscaloosa, AL, and became enamored with autoracing and found his...

In advance of Event 6 of host Doug Hill's Around the World in 80 Sporting Events project (the Solheim Cup ), he's joined in this special bonus episode by Kevin Costello, Tourism of Director of Prince William County, VA. The Solheim Cup will be contested at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club which is located in Gainesville which sits in PWC. Kevin provides some background on how the Cup came...

We're joined in this episode by singer-songwriter John Ondrasik. John's better known by his stage name, Five for Fighting , which he divined from the vernacular for announcing hockey's fighting major penalty. A native of Los Angeles, Ondrasik was in on the NHL's Kings early. He shares with us memories of plentiful seats in the Forum from bygone days as well as his vivid recollectio...

In this episode we're joined by the father-son duo of Scott and Isaac Ellingson. The Ellingsons live in Wisconsin (barely!) but primarily root for Minnesota's pro teams. We learn the whys, hows, and whatfors of this early on and then turn our attention to discovering "What Scott and Isaac did during their summer vacation?" Turns out, quite a lot! During a two-plus week stretch in...

We're joined by Tonja Marshall, the Chief Marketing Officer at Visit Canton (OH), in this special bonus episode in advance of Event 5 of our host's Around the World in 80 Sporting Events project: Visiting the Pro Football Hall of Fame . Yes, the Hall of Fame, its annual enshrinement ceremony, and exhibition game are big drawing cards for this city of about 70,000 in northeast Ohio, but Ton...

With the Paris Olympics fresh in our memories and the Paris Paralympics about to get started, we're joined in this episode by Ken Hanscom who's as knowledgeable about the Olympics as anyone. Ken and his wife, Ashley, have now attended the past four Olympics that permitted a full spectator experience (2012 London, 2016 Rio, 2018 Pyeong Chang, and 2024 Paris). Along the way, Ken's picked...

In advance of Event 4 of ⁠ Around the World in 80 Sporting Events ⁠ (Little League Baseball World Series) we speak to Jason Fink. Jason is the President and CEO of the ⁠ Lycoming County (PA) Visitors Bureau ⁠ . Lycoming County is home to both Williamsport and South Williamsport. For those who might be planning to visit the LLBWS this year (or sometime in the future), Jason provides listeners with...

Our guest this week is Tej Seth, a football analytics afficianado who attempts to teach our retired English teacher host a thing or two about the math and science of professional football. Tej is the co-host of the Stats and Scheme podcast along with Shawn Syed. The show has just begun its second season where the hosts take a deep dive into football analytics. You're also able to follow Tej on...

In this special bonus episode of Conversations we catch up with three generations of the Hill Family that recently attended Event 3 of Around the World in 80 Sporting Events : Cubs-Cardinals at Wrigley Field. It's a fly-on-the-wall sort of episode as host Doug Hill tries to keep everyone on topic to reflect on a wonderful day at in the Friendly Confines. If you're enjoying Conversations wi...

We're joined in this special bonus episode by Mary Nedbalski, Chicago's Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce's Marketing and Membership Director. Lakeview East is the part of Chicago that includes the Wrigleyville neighborhood, home to historic Wrigley Field. That location is the site of the next stop on host Doug Hill's "Around the World in 80 Sporting Events" project. Mary...

We're delighted to be joined by the dean of Detroit professional sports broadcasting, George Blaha . George has been calling Detroit Pistons games for going on 50 years and, just because there's more time in the year, he's also been calling Michigan State University football for nearly as long. During our time with George, he enlightens us to the impact of the University of Iowa footba...

In this episode we enjoy a Conversation with the Eugene, OR, husband-and-wife duo of John and Jennifer Scurlock. With track and field competition set to begin at the Paris Summer Olympics we felt the timing was just right to catch with this pair who were able to see several sessions of the U.S. Olympic Trials at Hayward Field on the University of Oregon campus in Eugene. Along the way we discuss e...

Back in late May I took the 75 step journey (maybe!) across my backyard with my recording device and a bottle of Willett Pot Still Bourbon in hand to have a visit with my neighbor, Paul Merkourios. We had a lovely conversation, discussing plenty about all Detroit teams - the Lions and Tigers, especially - as well as the recently completed NFL Draft in Detroit, the University of Michigan football t...

We catch up briefly with our sidekick (and wife<3), Carol Hill, to garner her perspective on attending ⁠ The 152nd Open Championship . If you're enjoying Conversations with Sports Fans please consider supporting our work ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠ he⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠e ⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For as little as 99 cents a month, g...

We're joined in this episode by Jason Brunner-Burns. Jason was born and raised in Ludington, MI, and has recently relocated there with his family. A lifelong golfer and golf fan, Jason is now the junior varsity golf coach for Ludington High School and recently introduced his soon-to-be 4-year-old daughter to the game. As befits an episode airing the opening day of The 152nd Open Championship,...

We're joined by South Ayrshire (Scotland) County Councillor Alec Clark to discuss what's what about this week's 152nd Open Championship played at Royal Troon Golf Club that lies within South Ayrshire County. Alec was a wealth of knowledge and shares that over 150,000 spectators will flow into the community of Troon this week (population about 15,000 on a normal day) and bring with them...