Telich Talks

This podcast is a compilation of three more of my favorites of 2025. Let’s call it. Telich Talks, Best of 2025, part 2. Hall of Fame football coach Chuck Kyle, the Iron Chef, Michael Symon, and three Time Olympic gold medalist Tianna Madison.

This episode features three of my favorites from 2025. All of them center around the theme of home, from Hall of Fame broadcaster Tom Hamilton, to Tracy McCool longtime news anchor in Cleveland, Ohio to former convict Rickey Jackson who served 39 years due to a wrongful conviction. The Lovely Jackson documentary is on Amazon Prime .

Kyle Stahlberg was, up until the fall of 202 5 , a middle school science teacher and the head baseball coach at Tri- C community college in Cleveland, Ohio. A very successful three year stint at Tri-C, which featured a 41 game winning streak, caught the attention of the Miami Marlins, and now Kyle is plugged into that organization with tremendous potential to move up as either a coach or manager....

Chuck Galeti is a former television and radio sportscaster in Cleveland Ohio. His appearance on the podcast in 2024 registered the highest amount of listenership as he talked about his path to sobriety. So, I decided, let’s make this an annual affair. On the podcast, he celebrated becoming a grandfather, we talked about Shedeur Sanders, Myles Garrett, high school, football, Guardians baseball, the...

In this episode, I enlist the services of former Cleveland State University basketball player Pat Vuyancih and journalist David Glasier to talk about the late, great hoops coach Kevin Mackey, who passed away in early November. Mackey led CSU to a stunning win over Indiana in March Madness, 1986 ,sending the Vikings to the Sweet Sixteen. In the late nineties, Mackey was let go due to issues with al...

Greater Clevelander Ron Shadrach spent years and years, trying to right a wrong. His ancestor, Private Philip Shadrach , and one other man, Private George Wilson were not recognized by the US government as persons of valor regarding a heroic feat they and a small band of men performed against the confederate forces in the Civil War.. They stole a train and disrupted enemy forces before being captu...

Organ donation is truly the gift of life. This week, a selfless, heroic act by dying 21 year old Bryce Dunlap gave Cleveland Browns legendary quarterback Bernie Kosar a new lease on life. Bryce , a lifelong Browns fan passed away unexpectedly from a brain injury. He expressed wishes to be an organ donor. The family put Bernie Kosar’s name on the list. And Bernie did receive Bryce’s liver. The surg...

This episode of Telich Talks looks into the career of the great Josh Cribbs, NFL return dynamo who spent much of his career with the Cleveland Browns. He’s a 2023 inductee of the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame. My cohost on this episode is Cade Cracas, Ashland University grad and multitalented journalist who is also the social media director of the Greater Cleveland sports Hall of Fame. Thi...

Jared Beasley is an award winning author. His recent book, the Endurance Artist, chronicles, the story of Gary Cantrell of Tennessee, a man who has created some of the toughest and most unique ultra endurance races in the world. His Barkley Marathons race each year is legendary in reputation and the concept of Backyard Ultra’s has captivated the imagination of a lot of the ultrarunning community ....

Dave Rastoka is a 1990 graduate of John Carroll U niversity and a former multiple time all American football player. He played high school football at Lake Catholic high school in Mentor, Ohio. Rastoka has owned and operated several companies that help people with disabilities live better lives. Recently, John Carroll University renamed their athletic Hall of Fame, the Dave Rastoka Sports Hall of...

Marc Bona is an author of 4 books, including Not Your Average Joe, the Joe Thomas story, co-written with Dan Murphy. Our conversation centers about some sports nuggets found in another book, The Hidden History of Cleveland Sports. Bona is a features writer for Cleveland.com and the Plain Dealer. Marc is a proud graduate of the University of Iowa .

Tianna Madison is a three time Olympic gold medalist in track and field. She won Olympic gold as part of the 4 x 100 relay team in both 2012 and 2016. She won Olympic gold in the long jump in 2016. She is an Elyria, Ohio high school product, who was wildly successful in high school. In 2005, at age 19, she won the world championships in the long jump. Our discussion was about navigating the downti...

Harvey Lewis, a high school teacher from Cincinnati, Ohio, is recognized as one of the greatest ultramarathoners in the world. The unassuming 49 year-old set a world backyard ultra last man standing record of 450 miles in 2023. He is back this October to compete once again in Tennessee. Lewis excels in a lot of different type races , either , 24 hour competitions or 100 milers or grueling , punish...

This episode looks into the greatness of college basketball stand out Wanda Ford, who played years before the WNBA started and who is one of many elite athletes from East Tech high school in Cleveland Ohio. East Tech has sent the likes of Jesse Owens to greatness and many others. This December, Wanda Ford will be inducted into the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame on a night where the Hall of...

Josh Fenick Is a sophomore football standout & multiple-sport athlete at Eastlake North high school in suburban Cleveland, Ohio. At age 6, a case of strep throat became much more ominous. Josh was dealing with chronic kidney disease. There was a point where he might not have been able to play sports again. He was on a walker. But he recovered and has proven to be one of the strongest high scho...

Alec Cline is an ultra runner who has achieved a great deal of success in Ohio and the Midwest. Cline has notched several wins at the 100 mile and 50 mile level in 2025 alone. The 29 year old from Canton won Burning River 100, Eagle Up 100, Mohican 100, Tuscazoar 100 , and High Lea .He notched a 2nd at Eastern States and 3rd at the Georgia Death Race. He served with the United States Marines.

This weeks episode examines some of the behind-the-scenes aspects of one of the most successful high school football programs, not just in the state of Ohio, but in the country. Small Kirtland high school in Lake County Ohio. Their head coach , Tiger Laverde has posted a 246 and 21 record with 7 state titles in 20 seasons. Sportswriter John Kampf from the Willoughby News-Herald knows this program...

This episode harkens back to the day I was able to fly with the Navy’s Blue Angels here in Cleveland, Ohio. It was one of the highlights of my nearly 50 years as a television sportscaster. On that day, one of the other individuals to get a ride was NASA Legend Gene Kranz. This is my recollection of the day and the significance of just who and what Gene Krantz represents.

Stacey Bell Lynn spent more than 20 years in local news from New York City to Cleveland, Ohio and beyond. She has won multiple Emmy awards and a prestigious Edward R. Murrow Award. Married to NFL assistant coach and one time head coach Anthony Lynn, Stacey hosts a podcast, Super wives of the NFL. She is the co founder of the Lynn Family Foundation.

This episode deals with my interview with Jim McCarthy, writer and producer for the documentary called Mr. Football. It centers around the 2004 year at Benedictine high school in Cleveland Ohio. One promising athlete on the reigning State Champion team is shot dead and two of his teammates, including Mr. Football in the state of Ohio, Ray Williams, are charged with murder and aggravated robbery. H...

Adam Popp is a retired Air Force veteran who, in 2007 while serving as an EOD technician in Afghanistan ,lost his right leg when an ordnance went off. It wasn’t until roughly 10 years ago when Popp was fitted for his first running blade. Since then ,the results have been extra extraordinary. He became the first above the knee amputee to finish a 100 mile ultra marathon. ( he has five finishes) Jus...

Tonia Kwiatkowski competed in 3 world figure skating championships for the United States. She was a member of the United States National and International teams for 13 straight years. A United States Olympic alternate in 1998. The Cleveland area native won the World University games figure skating title twice and was a six time United States national figure skating medalist. Kwiatkowski was induct...

Lance Reisland is a former high school football coach who breaks down Cleveland Browns practices and games for cleveland.com. In this episode we talk about a young receiver Luke Floriea, who Reisland has stated reminds him of Julian Edelman. Also in the episode we hear from Tim Robertson who trained both Edelman and Floriea. Not to be out done because it’s the Cleveland Browns, we talk about the q...

Greg Heister has broadcast, produced and hosted coverage of the famous Iditarod Trail dog sled race for more than 30 years and has numerous Emmy Awards to show for it ( he won’t say..we estimate upper teens). He has hosted a television show, Seasons on the Fly on the Discovery Channel for more than 20 years and he has been the play-by-play voice of Gonzaga basketball for numerous seasons. We talk...

Rickey Jackson is a Cleveland Ohio man who spent 39 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. Set free in 2014 Jackson, along with filmmaker Matt Waldeck combined their talents to create a film called “Lovely Jackson” that recalled everything that led up to the crime, his long incarceration, his release, and new life. Waldeck, is a St. Ignatius graduate and a creative force behind Zodiac feat...