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Speaker 1: Oh, let's get it going. Good morning, Merry Christmas, and

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Speaker 1: welcome in to this excursion, our yearly gathering. They bring

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Speaker 1: together four bright minds, the four brightest minds in Cincinnati

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Speaker 1: Sports in one room.

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Speaker 2: Who's the fourth?

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Speaker 1: We always say somebody should be left behind in case

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Speaker 1: something happens to all of us, because if that's the key,

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Speaker 1: is the designated survivors left the seg or or Chad Brendles,

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Speaker 1: and that could get really merry Christmas everybody. Our task

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Speaker 1: this morning is to uh reset, walk through, recap the

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Speaker 1: year in Cincinnati sports, and look ahead to twenty twenty six.

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Speaker 1: Lance Pacallister, Moeger, Tony Pike, Austin Elmore. We are all

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Speaker 1: decked out in our in our Christmas footy pajamas. Tony

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Speaker 1: has a scarf, Austin has an elf, hat Mo has

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Speaker 1: sleigh bells, and I'm wearing a Santa Claus beard. And

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Speaker 1: we're already a sight for what is about credible? What

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Speaker 1: is about to unfold? We joke, but one of these

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Speaker 1: years we are going to do whether it's Meredith who

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Speaker 1: agrees or Molly agrees, We're going to do this from

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Speaker 1: somebody's living room. Awesome, Perhaps going to be rock paper

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Speaker 1: scissors to decide who gets it.

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Speaker 2: Well, Tony's'll be the noisiest, Yes will mine this morning,

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Speaker 2: I could assure you. Whatever we're doing, Taylor Swift is

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Speaker 2: a part of it, so you'll hear that. So you

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Speaker 2: have grown kids, Austin has no kids. So it depends

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Speaker 2: on how much chaos we want.

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Speaker 3: True, my kids aren't allowed to open anything until we

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Speaker 3: all sit down and listen to this show in its entirety.

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Speaker 2: You're not gonna open them as you listen to this show.

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Speaker 3: Nope. Wow, they're just gonna sit. They're sitting and watching

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Speaker 3: and listening.

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Speaker 1: See, our household doesn't Christmas doesn't begin. I've said this.

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Speaker 1: We always used to negotiate the time Christmas would start

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Speaker 1: because they'd want to get up. Casey and Peyton would

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Speaker 1: want to get up at five and run down the hall.

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Speaker 1: Now we're to the point where we have to dootiate

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Speaker 1: Casey actually getting up to open the Presence or he'd

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Speaker 1: sleep to one.

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Speaker 2: So see, you're lucky because you escaped the Elf on

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Speaker 2: the shelf. Tony and I have been been practicing for

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Speaker 2: almost four weeks because of Elf on the shelf.

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Speaker 4: How many times have you been laying in bed and realize,

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Speaker 4: oh crap, I forgot, so my wife check on the elf.

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Speaker 2: My wife and I usually have a you know, meeting

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Speaker 2: at night, like who's doing tonight. The day we're recording this,

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Speaker 2: I woke up at seven o'clock in a panic, in

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Speaker 2: a panic, and it's like I had to go into

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Speaker 2: the room next door and get the stuff. And I

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Speaker 2: don't want to spoil this for anybody who may be listening,

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Speaker 2: but I had to go get the stuff, take it

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Speaker 2: to another room, write the note, and as soon as

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Speaker 2: I got done, she came downstairs.

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Speaker 3: My wife despises the elf, and at the start of it,

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Speaker 3: I was like, well, I'll do it. Yeah, how hard

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Speaker 3: can this be? It's awful.

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Speaker 2: Yes, it's unbelievable. I spend my day furiously like looking

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Speaker 2: up elf ideas.

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Speaker 3: Yesterday I had a string going from our banister to

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Speaker 3: our tree, and our elf was just riding down this string.

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Speaker 3: Not sure why not sue? So that was like and

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Speaker 3: then the very next day, it's like the elf is

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Speaker 3: sitting on the table because I forget I'm either elaborate

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Speaker 3: or right. The kids are coming downstairs, and I gotta

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Speaker 3: throw that thing somewhere. Yes, Magic of Christmas.

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Speaker 1: Let's get to it. We've broken this down into segments.

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Speaker 1: It's very researched, very very well structured and prepared, and

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Speaker 1: then we're just gonna blow the whole thing up. We'll

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Speaker 1: start with the high points. I figure we start high

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Speaker 1: and then work our way down short of segment. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: exactly right. The high points of Cincinnati Sports twenty twenty five.

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Speaker 1: I'll throw out the Reds, who made the postseason for

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Speaker 1: the first time since twenty thirteen. It was a season

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Speaker 1: and a journey where I think people gave up on

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Speaker 1: the Reds about seventeen times at various points during the season,

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Speaker 1: and then late in the season we were scoreboard watching,

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Speaker 1: got some help from the Mets, but the Cincinnati Reds

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Speaker 1: in twenty twenty five actually made the postseason in a

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Speaker 1: full season for the first time since twenty thirteen.

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Speaker 2: Cockroaches couldn't kill. I remember walking out of the ballpark

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Speaker 2: that Friday before the NFL season started. They lost that

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Speaker 2: Friday game against the Mets, fell six back, and it's like,

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Speaker 2: all right, well, they literally got us to football season.

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Speaker 2: Tony and I talked about that a lot, like they

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Speaker 2: literally got us to football season. And then quietly without

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Speaker 2: a lot of people paying attention. They won the next

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Speaker 2: two games and kind of took off from there.

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Speaker 3: There was this cool debut series of Chase Burns or not,

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Speaker 3: like it felt like every team he started against was

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Speaker 3: a perennial contender, Like the hardest start to your career

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Speaker 3: you could ever have. But I think it, unfortunately says

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Speaker 3: kind of the landscape of Cincinnati sports in the last

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Speaker 3: year that when you talk about high points, we talk

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Speaker 3: about Savannah Bananas came into town and a high school

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Speaker 3: football game in pouring rain that brought twenty two thousand

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Speaker 3: plus down to downtown Cincinnati. I mean, that was incredible

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Speaker 3: in itself, but there wasn't as many high points as

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Speaker 3: maybe we've had in years past. But certainly Sayex and

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Speaker 3: Elder and what they did. You think about what that

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Speaker 3: game would have been if it was nice weather, holy cow,

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Speaker 3: or if they had planned it.

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Speaker 1: From the planet from the g y and the thing

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Speaker 1: that started with seven thousand at Mason from the initial

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Speaker 1: plan it turns into twenty two thousand plus.

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Speaker 3: Incredible.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, going back to the Reds, the thing for me

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Speaker 4: is like, for the first time in a long time,

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Speaker 4: it felt like they were actually trying. It felt like

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Speaker 4: there was an energy about them, whether it be getting

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Speaker 4: rid of jam or Candelario calling up Chase Burns, moving

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Speaker 4: guys around, making trades at the deadline. There was an

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Speaker 4: energy about the Reds this year that I appreciated. And

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Speaker 4: obviously it fizzled out towards the end in the playoffs,

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Speaker 4: but for the first time in a while, you felt

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Speaker 4: that energy around the ball club again, which I was

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Speaker 4: excited about.

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Speaker 1: And that night with Burns, I mean the anticipation and

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Speaker 1: the build up and just the short of time from

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Speaker 1: the time they drafted into He's on a Major League

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Speaker 1: mount of Great American Ballpark facing the Yankees, and there

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Speaker 1: was electricity that was almost like Homer Bailey debut, like

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Speaker 1: Jay Bruce debut, like Roman Yeah, a Rollers Chapman. It

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Speaker 1: felt big that night, and against the big bad Yankees

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Speaker 1: for his debut.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, And to me, I just think of that the

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Speaker 2: number of times they would lose a game, and this

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Speaker 2: goes back to the middle of the summer, the number

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Speaker 2: of times they would lose a game and you go, Okay,

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Speaker 2: that's it, and you know, we it got to the

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Speaker 2: point that we sort of made fun of it, but

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Speaker 2: they never got swept in a series. You know, right,

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Speaker 2: never got swept. But you can't lose four, five, six, seven,

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Speaker 2: eight in a row if you don't get swept in

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Speaker 2: a series. That team found a way to stay afloat

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Speaker 2: to the very end, and they made the postseason. They

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Speaker 2: were very quickly swept out of the postseason. Didn't really

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Speaker 2: feel like they participated in the postseason. But to have

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Speaker 2: something like that in September, which has been so few

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Speaker 2: and far between this century, was a lot of fun.

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Speaker 3: It made you appreciate what the crowds in the atmosphere

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Speaker 3: can be, and the team's competitive in Cincinnati just going

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Speaker 3: down to the ballpark. I remember the was that the

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Speaker 3: Pirates came in late in town and I'm sitting there

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Speaker 3: at the dinner table like I got to take the

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Speaker 3: kids down, like you don't know when this is going

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Speaker 3: to happen. And the environments were awesome, and you know,

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Speaker 3: I equated him many times on the show this year

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Speaker 3: to like a boxer who it feels like he's about

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Speaker 3: to get knocked out, he somehow survives the right then

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Speaker 3: he comes back out the next round and he's back

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Speaker 3: in it. It felt like that ten different times this season.

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Speaker 3: With the Cincinnati Rep.

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Speaker 4: I went to twenty five Reds games in four states

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Speaker 4: this summer, and obviously they didn't play Bristol, including Bristol,

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Speaker 4: which was a disaster in and of itself that we'll

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Speaker 4: get to. But it was just a fun team that

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Speaker 4: drew you in. They didn't always play in a fun way,

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Speaker 4: but they drew you in and it made you wonder, Okay,

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Speaker 4: what is the Francona era actually going to look like

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Speaker 4: by the time it's all said and done.

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Speaker 1: And FC Cincinnati is going to show up later on

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Speaker 1: a list of low points. But the fact that they

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Speaker 1: knock out the Columbus Crew in a three game series

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Speaker 1: and Brenner scores twice, that was like the first step

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Speaker 1: in what everybody thought, all right, they're going to the

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Speaker 1: MLS Championship and then we'll get to the low point later.

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Speaker 1: But that moment with him against that team, that's like

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Speaker 1: a Bengals Steeler moment when it's f C Cincinnati the

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Speaker 1: Crew and they knocked him out of the playoffs.

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Speaker 2: So fars is after losing to them in the Eastern

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Speaker 2: Final two years prior, they lose Game two and just

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Speaker 2: got absolutely smoked. Yep, somebody who's a Cincinnati sports fan

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Speaker 2: felt like that was Okay, they missed their chance to

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Speaker 2: win up there. Now Columbus is going to come back

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Speaker 2: here and win. Really, that entire season, the regular season

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Speaker 2: was such a high point because it started so weird,

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Speaker 2: right they trade away an MVP yep, and then they

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Speaker 2: get an MVP candidate.

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Speaker 4: Pat Noonan's done a great job.

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Speaker 2: I know things fizzled out with the way they played

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Speaker 2: against Miami, but the night that they beat Columbus, I

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Speaker 2: just I'm so excited for Major League Soccer to adjust

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Speaker 2: its calendar because that got buried amid all the other stuff.

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Speaker 2: But for diehard fans of that club, that was a

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Speaker 2: special night.

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Speaker 3: I think one of the high points, along with just

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Speaker 3: the season, is what that organization continues to do, because

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Speaker 3: it never feels like with FC Cincinnati that they just

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Speaker 3: go all in for one year and then you'll worry

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Speaker 3: about the rest. Like they they have a plan. They're

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Speaker 3: going to continue to be aggressive, not just for the

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Speaker 3: season they're in, but they're going to be aggressive for

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Speaker 3: the future as well, and I think that gives you

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Speaker 3: confidence as a fan to know, Okay, this organization is

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Speaker 3: going to try to win year in and year out.

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Speaker 1: All right, those are some of the high points.

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Speaker 2: We didn't even mention. The Bengals a is a high point.

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Speaker 1: And the return of Joe Burrow and how everybody thought

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Speaker 1: he had written they started doing.

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Speaker 2: Oh, got to get off to a fast start.

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Speaker 4: That's my point.

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Speaker 3: Show's over.

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Speaker 1: Let's go perfect transition into low points as we continue.

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Speaker 1: MO Tony Austin, I'm Lance, thanks for hanging out with this.

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Speaker 1: Merry Christmas, Thanks for hanging out with us on this

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Speaker 1: Christmas morning at Sports Talk the Year and Review and

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Speaker 1: look Ahead Show on seven hundred WLW Mary Christmas and

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Speaker 1: welcome back in to Sports Talk The Year and Review

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Speaker 1: and look Ahead Show, Fine tuned with precision by executive

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Speaker 1: producer Drew Wester Hiding just a flow to this show.

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Speaker 4: Good for Tony Bender to finally have a Christmas morning off.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, go to Tony by the way.

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Speaker 2: One of the biggest parts of twenty twenty five the

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Speaker 2: rise of Drewby. Yeah, through Western Heidi, that's right, right,

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Speaker 2: the ascension of Drewby.

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Speaker 4: And our building. He's been all over the place.

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Speaker 1: Yes, we're serving this morning.

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Speaker 3: I'm just happy to be here.

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Speaker 2: Breakfast cocktails are right, that's.

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Speaker 3: The point a couple of months ago. I didn't know

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Speaker 3: if I'd be doing this show today.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, is that part of the low points we're gonna

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Speaker 4: gets at the top of the list.

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Speaker 1: Wait a minute, we're gonna have to insert this into

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Speaker 1: my unofficial rundown.

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Speaker 4: It says here the Lost Weekend. There was also the

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Speaker 4: lost job.

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Speaker 1: Oh man, I completely blanked on that one, so did.

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Speaker 2: The people who let Tony go.

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Speaker 1: Let's uh, let's go to the Lost Weekend. It was

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Speaker 1: November twenty first through the twenty third, and let's see,

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Speaker 1: in a matter of how many hours, you see loses

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Speaker 1: Downtown to Louisville in basketball, you see loses to BYU,

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Speaker 1: with Big Monday in town and hopes and dreams of

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Speaker 1: a Big twelve championship dancing in our minds. The Bengals

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Speaker 1: lose to the Patriots, and FC Cincinnati gets blown out

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Speaker 1: by Messi in Miami four nil, all in a period

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Speaker 1: of what forty eight sixty hours, and the devastration and

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Speaker 1: destruction left behind. Everything was in rubble at that point.

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Speaker 4: Well, to pick up with from what we said in

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Speaker 4: the last segment, like after since an FC Cincinnati had

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Speaker 4: beaten Columbus, there was a lot of confidence because they

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Speaker 4: had owned Miami in the last couple of meetings, including

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Speaker 4: with or without MESSI. So you're feeling great about that

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Speaker 4: energy all over downtown and you get your face bashed in.

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Speaker 2: I remember we were wondering which of those games do

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Speaker 2: you feel most confident in?

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Speaker 3: Everyone said up C Cincinnati.

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Speaker 2: Everybody said FC Cincinnati.

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Speaker 4: Yeah.

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Speaker 2: I didn't feel great about UC beating Louisville. Although I

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Speaker 2: loved how they played in the first half, I didn't

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Speaker 2: really think they would beat BYU counting on the Bengals

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Speaker 2: as a fool's errand so yeah, I for it to

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Speaker 2: unfold the way they did. And I think you could

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Speaker 2: tell when we went to bed on Friday night, It's like,

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Speaker 2: all right, the Bearcats lost to Louisville. It ain't gonna

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Speaker 2: get any better this weekend.

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Speaker 3: If I could go back to that night, I would

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Speaker 3: happily take that UC basketball team. Yeah, the way I

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Speaker 3: felt about them even after a loss. Like I remember

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Speaker 3: leaving the arena and I said this to Mo. I

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Speaker 3: hated how many people were content with a ten point law.

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Speaker 3: It was like, well, we competed, played hard against Louisville.

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Speaker 3: I'm like, man, is that where this program is at

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Speaker 3: and then the U see and I know it's it's

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Speaker 3: the loss to BYU with big newon kickoff, but it's

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Speaker 3: really the microcosm of what happened down the stretch for

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Speaker 3: the Cincinnati Bearcats. There's the low point seven straight wins

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Speaker 3: and I drank the kool aid. I liked what they

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Speaker 3: were doing on offense. I liked the pieces they had

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Speaker 3: special teams was elite, and you're thinking, man, they could

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Speaker 3: compete to play in Dallas for a Big twelve championship.

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Speaker 3: And then it was a complete collapse down the stretch.

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Speaker 3: Just more pain for for Cincinnati Bearcat fans.

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Speaker 2: The moment show Heyo Tani stepped in the batter's box

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Speaker 2: in Game one against the against the against the Dodgers

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Speaker 2: was a low point.

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Speaker 3: Say, when Hunter bounced the ball about eight foot and

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Speaker 3: for eight feet in front of him.

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Speaker 2: I love Hunter Green, but when he took him deep

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Speaker 2: and hit the ball about five hundred feet, it was

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Speaker 2: like Eric Davis against the A's where you just knew

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Speaker 2: and it was the same thing you just kind of

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Speaker 2: knew Best of three series they have notes.

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Speaker 1: It was that classic. The ball sounds different coming off

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Speaker 1: the bat. I'll never forget when show Hey hit the ball,

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Speaker 1: I jumped. It was so loud off the bat. And

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Speaker 1: that's after Blake Snell had used a total of I

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Speaker 1: think eight pitches to retire the Reds in the top

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Speaker 1: of the first and just it was like that smack

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Speaker 1: of reality, like welcome to major League Baseball and the

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Speaker 1: Los Angeles died.

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Speaker 3: We're thinking, like, all right, now he's going to settle in.

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Speaker 3: You know, he gave up the big one. Now he

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Speaker 3: can settle in. And it didn't happen.

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Speaker 4: To go back to that lost weekend, the Bengals were

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Speaker 4: playing the Patriots. They were doing so without Jamar Chase,

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Speaker 4: because the previous week Jamar Chase had spit on Jalen

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Speaker 4: Ramsey and that was a hot topic. And then meanwhile,

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Speaker 4: there's the idea that Burrow could actually come back for

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Speaker 4: the Patriots game. He ends up being held out and

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Speaker 4: the Bengals played one of their best games of the

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Speaker 4: season against one of the best teams in the AFC.

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Speaker 4: And that's one of those what ifs. If Burrow had played,

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Speaker 4: if Chase had played, had the Bengals won that game?

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Speaker 4: Does this season turn out a lot different?

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Speaker 3: It's, unfortunately a season of what ifs, and every loss

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Speaker 3: was a what if? Yeah, you know you you Bears, Jets, Vikings.

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Speaker 1: I went back this morning and looked and how they

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Speaker 1: gave up. And I know the defense has been bad,

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Speaker 1: but they give up forty eight points to Curson Wentz

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Speaker 1: in the Minnesota Vikings. You just look at some games

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Speaker 1: that they like what the Jet happened?

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Speaker 5: The Jets just the fields and the Jets like the

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Speaker 5: Bills where you have it like And it wasn't until

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Speaker 5: the Buffalo game where I allowed myself to buy back

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Speaker 5: in that they're just like, this is in Buffalo, it's

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Speaker 5: in the snow. Burrow's back, they can do this, that

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Speaker 5: they can go on this run that everyone has talked about.

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Speaker 5: Mixed that in with the race like it's it's so

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Speaker 5: many times, I feel like with so many Cincinnati sports,

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Speaker 5: and you can equate it to the Reds where they

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Speaker 5: lose a game and you say that's gonna be one

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Speaker 5: that comes back to bite them at the end.

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Speaker 2: The Burrow injury obviously a low point, but you even

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Speaker 2: came out of that. Okay, they're two and zero and

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Speaker 2: Jake Browning will keep them afloat. And then they got

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Speaker 2: destroyed against Minnesota and he kind of thought, all right,

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Speaker 2: a lot of weird stuff happened in that game. They

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Speaker 2: went to Denver and the Broncos were one and two,

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Speaker 2: and you're like, you know what, get this one three

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Speaker 2: and one. Then they've got some cushion because you're talking

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Speaker 2: about like just by time to mid December, right, just

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Speaker 2: keep it afloat till mid December in what already felt

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Speaker 2: like a down AFC. And they got throttled that night,

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Speaker 2: and Jake Browning looked like an Arena league quarterback. To me,

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Speaker 2: there were all the losses Chicago, the Jets game, how

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Speaker 2: they lost to Baltimore, and how they lost to the Bills,

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Speaker 2: the Patriots, But that night against Denver, I think to

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Speaker 2: me was so sobering because you looked at this and said, Okay,

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Speaker 2: Plan B a QB isn't gonna work. They're gonna have

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Speaker 2: to find somebody else.

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Speaker 1: I remember when Joe goes down limps off the field

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Speaker 1: the next day, and then we had to deal with

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Speaker 1: the onslaught of everybody diagnosing what it was and how

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Speaker 1: long he was going to be out, and then running

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Speaker 1: the numbers, thinking all right, if he does come back late,

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Speaker 1: if they can, if it's eight nine games. Can they

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Speaker 1: go four and four? Can they go four and five,

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Speaker 1: five and four? Somehow? Stay in and to see what

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Speaker 1: Jake Browning. The collapse of Jake Browning. Yeah, you talk

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Speaker 1: about a lobit, and we're talking about a guy who

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Speaker 1: had an opportunity a runway in a free agent year

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Speaker 1: to have a big chunk of the season and he

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Speaker 1: did nothing.

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Speaker 4: Not even close to the same player that took over

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Speaker 4: for Joe Burrow at the end of twenty twenty three.

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Speaker 4: I mean, he played that one game against the Steelers

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Speaker 4: in twenty three where it was like, Okay, that wasn't

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Speaker 4: very good, but after that he was a viable NFL quarterback.

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Speaker 4: He was never even close to that in this season.

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Speaker 3: It's the most frustrating thing about Cincinnati sports is we're

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Speaker 3: always talking ourselves into something. If they can just win,

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Speaker 3: you know, three out of the next four how many

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Speaker 3: times with the Reds, is it, Well, if they can

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Speaker 3: sweep this weekend, they're only three back in the wild card.

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Speaker 3: It's never like midway late in the season you're like, oh,

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Speaker 3: we're playing for playoff seating.

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Speaker 2: Right, They're never playing from a head.

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Speaker 3: Same thing with UC basketball, like they're in the tournament.

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Speaker 3: Now we're playing for seeding. It's always you need a.

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Speaker 4: Run in the tournament.

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Speaker 3: Yes, well the crown, the un there's a lot of

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Speaker 3: them now, any one of the tournament.

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Speaker 4: Now. Even Terry Francona tried to talk himself into Ian

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Speaker 4: Jabou being the closer on opening day and that didn't work.

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Speaker 4: I want to talk him to that low point.

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Speaker 2: I will never forget the sound in the ballpark when

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Speaker 2: that gate flung open and here comes I mean, I

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Speaker 2: like people were like tapping each other, weren't even paying

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Speaker 2: attention to the games, Like we're winning, right, Is he

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Speaker 2: the closer this year? Like? I don't think so. You

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Speaker 2: talk about low moments for everybody but Jamer Candelario. Yeah,

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Speaker 2: when they had to end the Jamer Candelario experiment, you

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Speaker 2: talk about one of the failed signings in the recent

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Speaker 2: and not so.

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Speaker 1: Recent twenty two million.

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Speaker 3: See.

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Speaker 4: I considered that a high point when they let Jamber go,

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Speaker 4: because I was like, Okay, we're done with that.

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Speaker 2: You talk about like talking ourselves into things. If you

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Speaker 2: listen to God love Tommy Thrall and Jeff Brantley, but

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Speaker 2: they were selling it hard during the Cactus League. Jamer

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Speaker 2: looks like he's in great shape. He's rededicated himself to baseball,

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Speaker 2: like rededicated himself.

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Speaker 4: I remember when Matt McClain looked like Barry Larkin in

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Speaker 4: the Cactus League this year. That was pretty good.

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Speaker 2: I think of low points. I also think of folks

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Speaker 2: we lost in Cincinnati sports. You know Rudy Johnson way

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Speaker 2: too young, Dave park Arker right before he goes into

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Speaker 2: the National Baseball Hall of Fame, Davy Johnson, the last

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Speaker 2: manager of a Reds team to make an LCS. Our friend,

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Speaker 2: Bob Trumpy, our friend Jim Kelly. Yeah, just you know,

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Speaker 2: people that made such an indelible mark on sports in

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Speaker 2: this town. And it just felt like there was this

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Speaker 2: run during the middle of the year where we lost

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Speaker 2: so many of them.

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Speaker 4: No doubt, no doubt.

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Speaker 1: Let's take a time out. Let's continue with best individual

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Speaker 1: game performances by players. There were some of those that

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Speaker 1: might include talking about the shootout, so be prepared.

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Speaker 3: I got to step out for a few minutes.

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Speaker 1: What Tony Austin Lance, Merry Christmas, everybody at SportsTalk the

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Speaker 1: Year and Review and look Ahead show on seven hundred

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Speaker 1: WLW Mary Christmas, Everybody welcome in. Thanks for hanging out

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Speaker 1: with us and sharing your Christmas morning with us. Moegor,

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Speaker 1: Tony Pike, Austin Elmore, Lance but Cantlester, SportsTalk, the Year

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Speaker 1: and Review and the Look a Head show. Do uh

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Speaker 1: we have a quick side note. We have a like

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Speaker 1: a fake electric fireplace which I have. I don't believe

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Speaker 1: we've turned on in a decade or so. Does anybody

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Speaker 1: use the YouTube fireplace log up on your TV? As

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Speaker 1: you're looking at you like, we don't know what that is?

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Speaker 3: It's been on for three days in our house.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, there's on. Go to YouTube. Am I gonna have

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Speaker 1: to teach you technology? Go to YouTube and google like

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Speaker 1: Christmas log you.

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Speaker 3: Could find some with with music in the background.

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Speaker 2: We've got eight TVs in this room. Can we do

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Speaker 2: it in here and like something happen here?

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Speaker 1: A dog will run across the fireplace in front of

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Speaker 1: the fireplace or a cat. And you've never explained the.

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Speaker 3: More power old ones that we do now as you

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Speaker 3: can turn your TV into like a big picture frame

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Speaker 3: too with a holiday scene framed holiday scene you just

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Speaker 3: searched that on YouTube.

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Speaker 2: Understand the unending chaos that's going to be unfolding in

438
00:19:53,720 --> 00:19:56,320
Speaker 2: my house over a thirty six hour period. And that's

439
00:19:56,400 --> 00:19:58,760
Speaker 2: just with one kid that I'm gonna step aside and

440
00:19:58,840 --> 00:19:59,600
Speaker 2: turn on a.

441
00:19:59,600 --> 00:20:02,600
Speaker 3: YouTube for the family a little bit.

442
00:20:02,720 --> 00:20:04,320
Speaker 4: I think this.

443
00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:07,200
Speaker 2: We actually have a real fireplace, the crackling of a fire.

444
00:20:07,240 --> 00:20:10,280
Speaker 2: You must be well, no, I don't cut what but

445
00:20:10,440 --> 00:20:13,679
Speaker 2: my daughter has asked here, if we have a fire,

446
00:20:13,800 --> 00:20:16,600
Speaker 2: how to Sanna get in can? So maybe I will

447
00:20:16,640 --> 00:20:17,640
Speaker 2: have to go to the YouTube fire.

448
00:20:17,720 --> 00:20:21,320
Speaker 3: I don't know you're racking fire looking up you'll YouTube

449
00:20:21,640 --> 00:20:22,560
Speaker 3: put it on my computer.

450
00:20:22,880 --> 00:20:28,040
Speaker 1: Yeah, all right, let's get to uh, let's look back.

451
00:20:27,840 --> 00:20:29,520
Speaker 3: Through the best. Let's keep talking about.

452
00:20:32,000 --> 00:20:35,520
Speaker 1: Let's get to the best individual game performances by players,

453
00:20:35,520 --> 00:20:37,800
Speaker 1: and let me get this one out there so we

454
00:20:37,840 --> 00:20:39,520
Speaker 1: could move on from it, because I know it'll be

455
00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:43,600
Speaker 1: devastating to to Tony. It's memories of Trey Carroll thirty

456
00:20:43,680 --> 00:20:46,960
Speaker 1: points seven rebounds in the shootout, which is perfect the

457
00:20:47,000 --> 00:20:49,080
Speaker 1: course in that game because every year one of the

458
00:20:49,119 --> 00:20:53,280
Speaker 1: storylines is which player will turn into performance nobody was expecting,

459
00:20:53,320 --> 00:20:56,680
Speaker 1: and Trey Carroll drops thirty and owned the shootout.

460
00:20:56,720 --> 00:20:59,159
Speaker 3: And let's be honest, Xavier should feel lucky that that

461
00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:01,080
Speaker 3: game was played as early as it was, because if

462
00:21:01,080 --> 00:21:03,000
Speaker 3: the game is played later in the schedule, then wes

463
00:21:03,040 --> 00:21:04,560
Speaker 3: Miller would have had a chance to go over double

464
00:21:04,560 --> 00:21:05,960
Speaker 3: teaming the post in a practice.

465
00:21:06,240 --> 00:21:06,760
Speaker 4: Yes, at some.

466
00:21:06,760 --> 00:21:08,560
Speaker 3: Point, because when the game is played that early, you

467
00:21:08,560 --> 00:21:10,760
Speaker 3: don't get to go over things like double teaming the

468
00:21:10,800 --> 00:21:13,440
Speaker 3: post player when he's going off and no one can

469
00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:17,240
Speaker 3: guard him. But shout out to Trey Carroll because he like,

470
00:21:17,440 --> 00:21:20,359
Speaker 3: we've talked about but this before. How in this world

471
00:21:20,359 --> 00:21:22,919
Speaker 3: of nil and the portal, does the shootout mean as

472
00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:26,440
Speaker 3: much or do you understand the value of that game

473
00:21:26,480 --> 00:21:29,480
Speaker 3: in the history Trey Carroll did. Yes, the emotion that

474
00:21:29,520 --> 00:21:31,560
Speaker 3: he showed and the passion in which he played with

475
00:21:31,920 --> 00:21:34,679
Speaker 3: no one from UC matched that. So thirty seven, I

476
00:21:34,680 --> 00:21:38,720
Speaker 3: mean that that was incredible and uh, thankful for Xavier

477
00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:39,600
Speaker 3: that one later in the year.

478
00:21:39,680 --> 00:21:43,359
Speaker 2: I will remember two things about this year's Skyline Chili

479
00:21:43,400 --> 00:21:46,240
Speaker 2: Crosstown shootout. One was how many Xavier fans in the

480
00:21:46,240 --> 00:21:48,480
Speaker 2: week up to it were like, just take it easy, honest,

481
00:21:48,600 --> 00:21:50,199
Speaker 2: oh god, you know he lost to Santa Clara by

482
00:21:50,240 --> 00:21:50,960
Speaker 2: a thousand points.

483
00:21:51,040 --> 00:21:51,240
Speaker 4: Yeah.

484
00:21:51,760 --> 00:21:54,359
Speaker 2: And then the incredulous look on my face when I

485
00:21:54,400 --> 00:21:56,800
Speaker 2: heard wes Miller say, we haven't had time to double

486
00:21:56,800 --> 00:21:59,359
Speaker 2: the post. We han't that time to practice doubling the post.

487
00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:03,040
Speaker 2: Can't do it justice. You have a better chance of

488
00:22:03,080 --> 00:22:04,240
Speaker 2: me with the YouTube fire law.

489
00:22:04,320 --> 00:22:06,639
Speaker 3: I remember I texted you I had a text mo

490
00:22:06,840 --> 00:22:09,439
Speaker 3: because I get fooled a lot on social media. Austin

491
00:22:09,480 --> 00:22:11,760
Speaker 3: can like I had a text mo. Like did he

492
00:22:11,880 --> 00:22:15,040
Speaker 3: really say that? Like, surely that's not a quote?

493
00:22:15,040 --> 00:22:16,160
Speaker 1: It was AI generated.

494
00:22:16,280 --> 00:22:17,359
Speaker 4: Yeah, it was real.

495
00:22:18,200 --> 00:22:18,879
Speaker 3: It was real.

496
00:22:19,160 --> 00:22:20,680
Speaker 4: But I don't know if you saw. Wes was talking

497
00:22:20,680 --> 00:22:22,879
Speaker 4: to Roy Williams the other day. Roy was explaining that

498
00:22:22,920 --> 00:22:26,120
Speaker 4: to him just the other day, of how to implement

499
00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:27,119
Speaker 4: that in practice.

500
00:22:27,240 --> 00:22:30,120
Speaker 1: Yeah, what are the other finer performances of the year?

501
00:22:30,280 --> 00:22:35,080
Speaker 1: Joe Flacco and Joe Flacco arrived in this town and everybody.

502
00:22:35,119 --> 00:22:37,320
Speaker 1: The more he talked, the more people loved him because

503
00:22:37,359 --> 00:22:40,080
Speaker 1: he gave us insight that nobody had really heard beyond

504
00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:42,960
Speaker 1: just short soundbites of Joe Flacco as an opposing player

505
00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:45,920
Speaker 1: over the years. But Joe Flacco goes thirty one of

506
00:22:46,040 --> 00:22:49,000
Speaker 1: forty seven for four hundred and seventy yards. He'd never

507
00:22:49,040 --> 00:22:51,720
Speaker 1: thrown for four hundred in his career. He throws for

508
00:22:51,800 --> 00:22:54,359
Speaker 1: four seventy and four touchdowns on a Thursday night to

509
00:22:54,359 --> 00:22:55,120
Speaker 1: beat the Steelers.

510
00:22:55,920 --> 00:22:59,639
Speaker 2: The Joe Flacco experience was fleeting but fun. I've become

511
00:22:59,680 --> 00:23:01,600
Speaker 2: such a fan of his, and he's a guy that

512
00:23:01,880 --> 00:23:04,120
Speaker 2: he never moved the needle for me, you know, which

513
00:23:04,160 --> 00:23:06,320
Speaker 2: is you know odd thinking all the years he played

514
00:23:06,359 --> 00:23:09,200
Speaker 2: against the Bengals. I didn't love him. I didn't hate him,

515
00:23:09,520 --> 00:23:11,639
Speaker 2: but you know, from the get go, he just you

516
00:23:11,680 --> 00:23:14,560
Speaker 2: could tell he just appreciated the absurdity of situation he

517
00:23:14,600 --> 00:23:15,879
Speaker 2: was in. You could tell that he was going to

518
00:23:15,880 --> 00:23:18,280
Speaker 2: embrace the opportunity. You could tell he was going to

519
00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:21,439
Speaker 2: approach it with a level of professionalism that was badly needed.

520
00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:24,960
Speaker 2: And that night against the Pittsburgh Steelers, it felt like,

521
00:23:25,600 --> 00:23:27,640
Speaker 2: it certainly felt like at the time, like a high point.

522
00:23:27,640 --> 00:23:30,240
Speaker 2: It felt like, all right, this is probably not sustainable.

523
00:23:30,640 --> 00:23:33,000
Speaker 2: But that was a blast that night watching him and

524
00:23:33,040 --> 00:23:35,760
Speaker 2: Aaron Rodgers go toe to toe. Jamar Chase was awesome

525
00:23:35,800 --> 00:23:38,520
Speaker 2: that night. T Higgins was really good that night. And

526
00:23:38,600 --> 00:23:41,200
Speaker 2: I think for most people, for most Bengals fans years

527
00:23:41,200 --> 00:23:43,160
Speaker 2: from now, when you hear the name Joe Flacco, you're

528
00:23:43,160 --> 00:23:45,359
Speaker 2: going to think of warm feelings, and you're going to

529
00:23:45,400 --> 00:23:47,560
Speaker 2: think of a Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers when

530
00:23:47,560 --> 00:23:49,800
Speaker 2: it felt like the Bengals had to win that game

531
00:23:49,880 --> 00:23:51,360
Speaker 2: or the Steelers were going to run away and hide

532
00:23:51,359 --> 00:23:52,160
Speaker 2: from everybody.

533
00:23:51,840 --> 00:23:54,280
Speaker 1: Else and eating by yourself at a restaurant, which I enjoyed.

534
00:23:55,560 --> 00:23:58,320
Speaker 3: Joe Flacco walked so Philip Rivers could run, Like, yeah, yeah,

535
00:23:59,320 --> 00:24:02,439
Speaker 3: you know what I love most about Flacco. He just

536
00:24:02,480 --> 00:24:06,040
Speaker 3: simplified things, like he threw the ball and that Steeler game,

537
00:24:06,080 --> 00:24:08,360
Speaker 3: he threw the ball to Jamar Chase twenty three times, yep.

538
00:24:08,720 --> 00:24:11,119
Speaker 3: And I remember like the sincerity like of Joe Flacco

539
00:24:11,240 --> 00:24:13,920
Speaker 3: talking during the week of like just the human natean

540
00:24:14,000 --> 00:24:15,760
Speaker 3: nature of like, you know, I was talking to my

541
00:24:15,800 --> 00:24:18,120
Speaker 3: family and friends and I'm telling him, like Jamar Chase

542
00:24:18,119 --> 00:24:20,080
Speaker 3: and T Higgins, you should see that, Like he just

543
00:24:20,119 --> 00:24:23,000
Speaker 3: sounds like a normal dude who's excited to get the

544
00:24:23,000 --> 00:24:26,840
Speaker 3: throw to Jamar Chase and T Higgins. And he simplified

545
00:24:26,880 --> 00:24:29,399
Speaker 3: the game. And it was so fun watching him. And

546
00:24:29,440 --> 00:24:31,600
Speaker 3: again it was fleeting and everyone knew it was going

547
00:24:31,680 --> 00:24:34,680
Speaker 3: to be but to do it against the Steelers arrival

548
00:24:35,240 --> 00:24:37,639
Speaker 3: and you know Tomlin leading up talking about you know,

549
00:24:37,680 --> 00:24:40,200
Speaker 3: the Browns giving him to the Bengals and things like that.

550
00:24:40,400 --> 00:24:44,000
Speaker 3: It was. It was a high point both individually and

551
00:24:44,080 --> 00:24:45,439
Speaker 3: team in a tough season.

552
00:24:45,440 --> 00:24:47,400
Speaker 4: You might remember it was labeled as the Unk Bowl,

553
00:24:47,520 --> 00:24:50,520
Speaker 4: him against Aaron Rodgers, two forty plus year old quarterbacks.

554
00:24:50,560 --> 00:24:53,919
Speaker 4: My favorite play from that game was Flacco pulling it

555
00:24:53,960 --> 00:24:56,080
Speaker 4: on a read option and running like ten yards and

556
00:24:56,080 --> 00:24:58,760
Speaker 4: picking up a first down in that stadium going berserk.

557
00:24:59,280 --> 00:25:02,720
Speaker 4: But you guys are I mean just the genuine refreshing

558
00:25:02,840 --> 00:25:05,520
Speaker 4: nature of Joe Flacco. He's made a fan in me

559
00:25:05,680 --> 00:25:06,159
Speaker 4: for life.

560
00:25:06,320 --> 00:25:09,040
Speaker 1: Some of the individual moments rens wise to me. I mean,

561
00:25:09,200 --> 00:25:12,639
Speaker 1: I think back to Nick Martinez, who, yeah, the twenty

562
00:25:12,680 --> 00:25:15,159
Speaker 1: one million never made sense. I don't know that the

563
00:25:15,160 --> 00:25:17,159
Speaker 1: Reds expected him to take it him to take it,

564
00:25:17,160 --> 00:25:19,320
Speaker 1: but he did, and he pitched, and he pitched whenever

565
00:25:19,359 --> 00:25:22,080
Speaker 1: they needed him. And then on a magical night, he

566
00:25:22,160 --> 00:25:25,840
Speaker 1: takes a no hitter into the ninth inning, tracking beyond

567
00:25:25,840 --> 00:25:28,080
Speaker 1: a hundred pitches. It was a ball hitt of the

568
00:25:28,200 --> 00:25:30,840
Speaker 1: gap that winds up dropping. And then he comes back

569
00:25:31,040 --> 00:25:32,720
Speaker 1: and I think then would pitching out of the bullpen.

570
00:25:32,760 --> 00:25:34,880
Speaker 1: A couple of days. There was just crazy sequences where

571
00:25:34,920 --> 00:25:37,080
Speaker 1: he said, whatever you need me to do. But that night,

572
00:25:37,160 --> 00:25:40,760
Speaker 1: the crowd was standing and Nick Martinez was that close

573
00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:42,080
Speaker 1: to a no hitter for the Reds.

574
00:25:42,280 --> 00:25:43,920
Speaker 4: Yeah, they had a lot of those this year.

575
00:25:43,960 --> 00:25:45,879
Speaker 2: They had the week where Will Benson was the greatest

576
00:25:45,880 --> 00:25:48,120
Speaker 2: outfielder of all time. They had the Austin Wins game

577
00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:49,880
Speaker 2: where we thought, you know what, they don't need these

578
00:25:49,880 --> 00:25:52,240
Speaker 2: other two catchers. Just let Austin Wins catch every day,

579
00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:54,440
Speaker 2: like Eli Dela Cruz play shortstop every single day.

580
00:25:55,080 --> 00:25:55,280
Speaker 4: You know.

581
00:25:55,359 --> 00:25:59,880
Speaker 2: They had the Christian and Karnassi on strand week weekend

582
00:26:00,000 --> 00:26:02,440
Speaker 2: against the Arizona Diamondbacks and then he got sent away

583
00:26:02,480 --> 00:26:04,440
Speaker 2: and we never heard from him again. They had a

584
00:26:04,480 --> 00:26:06,159
Speaker 2: lot of those moments this year. But I think of

585
00:26:06,480 --> 00:26:09,520
Speaker 2: the two individual performances were both authored by Hunter Green.

586
00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:12,800
Speaker 2: One was that Sunday afternoon game against the Mets that

587
00:26:12,840 --> 00:26:15,080
Speaker 2: nobody was paying attention to because the Bengals were playing

588
00:26:15,119 --> 00:26:17,479
Speaker 2: their opener and he was awesome in the game they

589
00:26:17,520 --> 00:26:20,280
Speaker 2: had to win. Lose your six back, win your four back.

590
00:26:20,640 --> 00:26:22,960
Speaker 2: And then that game against the Cubs that Thursday against

591
00:26:22,960 --> 00:26:26,360
Speaker 2: the Cubs where he goes the distance, one hit shutout,

592
00:26:26,400 --> 00:26:30,040
Speaker 2: one hit shutout, and just it felt like it felt

593
00:26:30,040 --> 00:26:32,199
Speaker 2: like Hunter Green for that night putting the team on

594
00:26:32,240 --> 00:26:35,040
Speaker 2: his back and keeping their hopes alive. I know he

595
00:26:35,040 --> 00:26:37,000
Speaker 2: would go on to pitch poorly against the Dodgers. He

596
00:26:37,040 --> 00:26:40,040
Speaker 2: didn't pitch great in that game against Paul Skeens against Pittsburgh,

597
00:26:40,040 --> 00:26:42,520
Speaker 2: but they don't make the postseason without those two wins.

598
00:26:42,640 --> 00:26:44,080
Speaker 3: I remember, I don't think I've ever wanted to no

599
00:26:44,160 --> 00:26:46,640
Speaker 3: hitter more for someone than Nick Martinez, cause you could

600
00:26:46,640 --> 00:26:50,720
Speaker 3: just tell he was gassed. Yes, come on, man, find

601
00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:53,720
Speaker 3: a way. You mentioned so many Reds moments Andre Rabbit,

602
00:26:54,400 --> 00:26:57,080
Speaker 3: the one nothing win over the Guardians, the three hit shutout,

603
00:26:57,119 --> 00:26:59,120
Speaker 3: and Rabbit as a pitcher. He was on the roster

604
00:26:59,200 --> 00:27:01,680
Speaker 3: in the postseason. Oh, just did not have a chance

605
00:27:01,680 --> 00:27:02,040
Speaker 3: to start.

606
00:27:02,840 --> 00:27:03,040
Speaker 4: Huh.

607
00:27:03,160 --> 00:27:05,080
Speaker 3: But I thought the year of Andrew Abbit, not just

608
00:27:05,160 --> 00:27:09,080
Speaker 3: the individual performances aside. Andrew Abbit was solid this year

609
00:27:09,119 --> 00:27:12,119
Speaker 3: for the Cincinnati Reds and certainly something to build on

610
00:27:12,160 --> 00:27:12,600
Speaker 3: going forward.

611
00:27:12,720 --> 00:27:15,120
Speaker 4: One of my favorite performances took place just a couple

612
00:27:15,160 --> 00:27:17,840
Speaker 4: of days ago, Joe Burrow against the Miami Dolphins. After

613
00:27:17,880 --> 00:27:20,639
Speaker 4: all that has happened over the last couple of weeks

614
00:27:20,640 --> 00:27:23,520
Speaker 4: for him to come out and even though the team's eliminated,

615
00:27:23,560 --> 00:27:25,720
Speaker 4: in my understanding, the only game Burrow has played in

616
00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:28,520
Speaker 4: his career in which the Bengals were actually eliminated for

617
00:27:28,640 --> 00:27:31,800
Speaker 4: him to perform at that level to kind of I

618
00:27:31,800 --> 00:27:33,760
Speaker 4: don't know. Just give everybody a deep breath if that

619
00:27:33,800 --> 00:27:35,960
Speaker 4: was one of my favorite ones of the year. Have fun. Yeah,

620
00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:37,600
Speaker 4: four touchdowns.

621
00:27:37,160 --> 00:27:40,840
Speaker 1: Burrow a perfect segue into our next segment. We'll look

622
00:27:40,880 --> 00:27:44,240
Speaker 1: back and discuss some of the injuries that hit Cincinnati

623
00:27:44,240 --> 00:27:47,800
Speaker 1: sports and athletes in the calendar year of twenty twenty five.

624
00:27:47,960 --> 00:27:50,560
Speaker 1: Merry Christmas, everybody at Sports Talk, the Year and Review

625
00:27:50,560 --> 00:28:01,640
Speaker 1: and the look Ahead Show on seven hundred WLW. Very Christmas.

626
00:28:01,800 --> 00:28:03,919
Speaker 3: Listen to that fireplace crackle.

627
00:28:04,280 --> 00:28:10,119
Speaker 1: Moe has discovered in this show the legendary fireplace ce

628
00:28:11,000 --> 00:28:12,160
Speaker 1: Curtesy of you two.

629
00:28:12,040 --> 00:28:15,920
Speaker 4: Those presents next to the fire are gonna melt. Give

630
00:28:15,920 --> 00:28:17,320
Speaker 4: it long enough, you get an ad.

631
00:28:19,240 --> 00:28:19,640
Speaker 1: On fire.

632
00:28:19,800 --> 00:28:21,880
Speaker 4: Got a fire? Why do you have to have lit candles?

633
00:28:22,280 --> 00:28:24,680
Speaker 3: It's the ambiance that's very nice.

634
00:28:24,720 --> 00:28:27,359
Speaker 1: Welcome back into our Sports Talk Year and Review and

635
00:28:27,600 --> 00:28:30,920
Speaker 1: look Ahead show here on seven hundred WLW. I am

636
00:28:30,960 --> 00:28:34,159
Speaker 1: one I'm gonna guess before we get into the serious

637
00:28:34,240 --> 00:28:37,000
Speaker 1: nature of these injuries. I'm gonna guess. Of the foursome here,

638
00:28:37,080 --> 00:28:40,040
Speaker 1: I'm the only one who is prepared each and every

639
00:28:40,120 --> 00:28:43,320
Speaker 1: Christmas morning with a garbage bag to take all the

640
00:28:43,480 --> 00:28:45,360
Speaker 1: torn wrapping and stuff.

641
00:28:45,040 --> 00:28:45,640
Speaker 4: It into the bag.

642
00:28:46,800 --> 00:28:47,840
Speaker 2: That's usually my job.

643
00:28:47,960 --> 00:28:50,280
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, all right, yeah, I'm the.

644
00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:52,000
Speaker 4: Guy who crumples it up and throws it at people.

645
00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:52,800
Speaker 3: I get to look.

646
00:28:53,000 --> 00:28:54,800
Speaker 1: I scurry around the room and grab it all.

647
00:28:55,400 --> 00:28:56,040
Speaker 3: Go get the bag.

648
00:28:56,160 --> 00:28:59,120
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, that's my job. I have two things I

649
00:28:59,160 --> 00:29:01,640
Speaker 2: do on Christmas. I have a story for you about that.

650
00:29:01,720 --> 00:29:05,400
Speaker 2: I asked my wife what the presents are, and I

651
00:29:05,520 --> 00:29:08,600
Speaker 2: go and get the garbage bag. What did we get

652
00:29:08,600 --> 00:29:09,000
Speaker 2: this year?

653
00:29:09,960 --> 00:29:14,600
Speaker 3: Cool? My job? This year? I introduced our oldest to

654
00:29:14,800 --> 00:29:18,400
Speaker 3: Christmas Vacation because it's my all time favorite. And my

655
00:29:18,440 --> 00:29:20,200
Speaker 3: wife just happened to walk down at like the scene

656
00:29:20,200 --> 00:29:22,680
Speaker 3: where they're in the malls and he's shopping for Longe Range,

657
00:29:22,800 --> 00:29:23,640
Speaker 3: Like really old.

658
00:29:24,200 --> 00:29:24,720
Speaker 4: I'm like, the.

659
00:29:24,680 --> 00:29:26,280
Speaker 3: First of all, it's one scene.

660
00:29:26,400 --> 00:29:28,760
Speaker 2: Right, We're good, He'll mean fine, I'll be fine.

661
00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:30,720
Speaker 3: Yeah, Christmas Vacation. I love it.

662
00:29:30,840 --> 00:29:32,960
Speaker 1: You said you're the bagman, And now I'm flashing to

663
00:29:33,040 --> 00:29:36,280
Speaker 1: like Tony and the Wire or something is the bagman?

664
00:29:36,560 --> 00:29:39,520
Speaker 1: All right? We're dealing with injuries of twenty twenty five,

665
00:29:39,680 --> 00:29:42,320
Speaker 1: and I'm going to start with one who I'd almost

666
00:29:42,000 --> 00:29:44,400
Speaker 1: in trying to put this together. I'd almost forgot about it,

667
00:29:44,560 --> 00:29:46,240
Speaker 1: and then I went back and I watched the play,

668
00:29:46,240 --> 00:29:49,640
Speaker 1: and I remember just how painful it was when the

669
00:29:50,160 --> 00:29:53,400
Speaker 1: unknown Red's left fielder Tyler Callahan, who'd been promoted to

670
00:29:53,440 --> 00:29:55,520
Speaker 1: the major league level and was trying to impress and

671
00:29:55,520 --> 00:29:58,640
Speaker 1: busting his tail, takes off on a dead sprint towards

672
00:29:58,680 --> 00:30:01,320
Speaker 1: the left field line to make a play, hits the

673
00:30:01,360 --> 00:30:06,080
Speaker 1: wall head first and lie crumple crumpled on the ground,

674
00:30:06,520 --> 00:30:08,840
Speaker 1: and it was it was shoulder, it was wrist, it

675
00:30:08,920 --> 00:30:12,360
Speaker 1: was arm. There were multiple things broken and torn, and

676
00:30:12,440 --> 00:30:15,160
Speaker 1: that image of Tyler Callahan, who was trying to prove

677
00:30:15,240 --> 00:30:18,560
Speaker 1: himself as a major leaguer, I think what a lot

678
00:30:18,560 --> 00:30:20,480
Speaker 1: of the hearts of Reds fans who said, that's the

679
00:30:20,560 --> 00:30:23,120
Speaker 1: all out housele we love. But they had to pick

680
00:30:23,200 --> 00:30:24,960
Speaker 1: him up in pieces off the track.

681
00:30:24,800 --> 00:30:27,520
Speaker 2: And he kind of like found out about his story

682
00:30:27,840 --> 00:30:30,040
Speaker 2: in the days subsequent to that, and you felt awful

683
00:30:30,080 --> 00:30:32,760
Speaker 2: because this guy had battled injuries, had taken such a

684
00:30:33,280 --> 00:30:35,560
Speaker 2: twisted road to the big leagues and he finally gets

685
00:30:35,600 --> 00:30:38,520
Speaker 2: there on a team where there was an opening for outfielders,

686
00:30:38,560 --> 00:30:41,400
Speaker 2: right because of the endless cycle of dudes like Blake

687
00:30:41,520 --> 00:30:44,520
Speaker 2: Dunn and Jacob Hurdabies, et cetera. And maybe Callahan was

688
00:30:44,560 --> 00:30:46,840
Speaker 2: going to have an opportunity and he gets one, and

689
00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:49,920
Speaker 2: that injury was so rough, so gruesome, so devastating.

690
00:30:50,000 --> 00:30:51,720
Speaker 4: I still can't believe they didn't call it a catch.

691
00:30:53,640 --> 00:30:54,640
Speaker 4: He caught the ball.

692
00:30:57,400 --> 00:31:00,440
Speaker 2: Brutal breaking it down. I remember watching the game with

693
00:31:00,440 --> 00:31:03,040
Speaker 2: my daughter and trying to explain to her why that

694
00:31:03,120 --> 00:31:05,000
Speaker 2: wasn't a catch, and like, you know, I'm like, well,

695
00:31:05,040 --> 00:31:06,840
Speaker 2: if an eight year old thinks that's a catch, that's.

696
00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:10,160
Speaker 3: Exactly This is the hardest segment I think of the show.

697
00:31:10,040 --> 00:31:12,480
Speaker 1: Because you can relate well, and you can.

698
00:31:12,360 --> 00:31:15,120
Speaker 3: Relate, but it's also like for some of these guys

699
00:31:15,160 --> 00:31:17,200
Speaker 3: that their season never was even able to get off

700
00:31:17,200 --> 00:31:20,480
Speaker 3: the ground, and you think of the work that goes in,

701
00:31:20,600 --> 00:31:23,480
Speaker 3: like I thought of the Burrow injury, not from the

702
00:31:23,480 --> 00:31:26,320
Speaker 3: physical side, but from the mental side, because you go

703
00:31:26,400 --> 00:31:29,120
Speaker 3: from being around the guys working your tail off to

704
00:31:29,520 --> 00:31:32,560
Speaker 3: your alone every day in the training room. I don't

705
00:31:32,560 --> 00:31:34,920
Speaker 3: even want to begin to think the mental hurdles that

706
00:31:35,000 --> 00:31:37,760
Speaker 3: Joe Burrow was going through, because it's one thing to

707
00:31:37,800 --> 00:31:40,080
Speaker 3: go through an injury when you go through an injury

708
00:31:40,120 --> 00:31:41,880
Speaker 3: rehab and come back and win Player of the Year,

709
00:31:42,320 --> 00:31:46,800
Speaker 3: and then you go through another injury, you just start wondering, like,

710
00:31:46,880 --> 00:31:49,040
Speaker 3: what what am I doing? I have to go through

711
00:31:49,040 --> 00:31:50,800
Speaker 3: this again and again. It's not the physical part of

712
00:31:50,800 --> 00:31:53,720
Speaker 3: the rehab, it's the mental part, because you know what's

713
00:31:53,800 --> 00:31:55,840
Speaker 3: going to happen, you know what you're going to go

714
00:31:55,880 --> 00:31:57,880
Speaker 3: through to get back. And that's why I give so

715
00:31:57,880 --> 00:32:00,440
Speaker 3: many of these guys the credit of a Joe Burrow,

716
00:32:00,720 --> 00:32:03,320
Speaker 3: Nick Haglin coming back and winning the Comeback Player of

717
00:32:03,360 --> 00:32:06,360
Speaker 3: the Year, Like that's so hard to do, and for

718
00:32:06,440 --> 00:32:08,640
Speaker 3: so many of these guys whose season didn't get off

719
00:32:08,640 --> 00:32:12,680
Speaker 3: to the start they wanted, it's hard mentally to.

720
00:32:12,560 --> 00:32:14,920
Speaker 4: Do it and to be labeled injury prone. Yeah, I

721
00:32:14,920 --> 00:32:17,600
Speaker 4: mean Hunter Green has dealt with that. Joe Burrow now

722
00:32:17,680 --> 00:32:21,120
Speaker 4: has dealt with that, and that unfortunately becoming a part

723
00:32:21,160 --> 00:32:23,400
Speaker 4: of the story of two of the most prolific athletes

724
00:32:23,440 --> 00:32:26,040
Speaker 4: in this city. Burrow and maybe not really a lot

725
00:32:26,040 --> 00:32:29,320
Speaker 4: of bad luck, I feel like with his injuries Hunter Green,

726
00:32:29,400 --> 00:32:31,480
Speaker 4: it was kind of mysterious at times this year, this

727
00:32:31,600 --> 00:32:35,240
Speaker 4: prolonged absence from the team and second opinions and maybe

728
00:32:35,280 --> 00:32:38,080
Speaker 4: not hearing what we expected to hear from Terry Francona.

729
00:32:38,400 --> 00:32:40,240
Speaker 4: It was a strange year from Hunter Green, but when

730
00:32:40,240 --> 00:32:41,400
Speaker 4: he came back, he was nails.

731
00:32:41,440 --> 00:32:43,440
Speaker 1: You know. Then Nick Haglin won sticks out to me

732
00:32:43,520 --> 00:32:45,880
Speaker 1: because I remember I had Nick on the show shortly

733
00:32:45,920 --> 00:32:49,560
Speaker 1: after he had been in the play. That happened was

734
00:32:49,640 --> 00:32:52,200
Speaker 1: a very innocent looking play, and he wound up puncturing

735
00:32:52,240 --> 00:32:56,160
Speaker 1: a lung and collapsed lung and broken ribs and he

736
00:32:56,280 --> 00:32:59,200
Speaker 1: had to stay back in Atlanta with the team flew home.

737
00:32:59,240 --> 00:33:01,040
Speaker 1: He stayed in Atlanta in the hospital for I think

738
00:33:01,080 --> 00:33:04,120
Speaker 1: ten days. His wife was watching at the time, and

739
00:33:04,200 --> 00:33:07,040
Speaker 1: kids were watching at the time at home, and I'll

740
00:33:07,040 --> 00:33:09,480
Speaker 1: never forget Nick telling me his daughter, his young daughter

741
00:33:09,520 --> 00:33:13,240
Speaker 1: turned to his wife and said, did daddy die? Because

742
00:33:13,240 --> 00:33:16,200
Speaker 1: it was so ugly at that moment. And Nick's wife

743
00:33:16,200 --> 00:33:18,280
Speaker 1: took the kids to the grandparents and she caught a

744
00:33:18,280 --> 00:33:20,360
Speaker 1: flight to Atlanta to be with him during the whole thing.

745
00:33:20,360 --> 00:33:22,880
Speaker 1: And to come back from all of that is kind

746
00:33:22,880 --> 00:33:25,720
Speaker 1: of what Nick Haglin has been unfortunately all about, because

747
00:33:25,720 --> 00:33:27,920
Speaker 1: he's dealt with so many injuries, but he's continued to

748
00:33:27,920 --> 00:33:30,040
Speaker 1: come back and won as Tony mentioned Player of the Year.

749
00:33:30,120 --> 00:33:34,160
Speaker 2: Ellie Delacruz might not have been officially injured, but the

750
00:33:34,200 --> 00:33:36,480
Speaker 2: cycle of in the second half of the season, you

751
00:33:36,480 --> 00:33:39,120
Speaker 2: would say, boy, Ellie's really struggling, and then you would hear,

752
00:33:39,160 --> 00:33:41,480
Speaker 2: well he's hurt, and you'd say, okay, well they should

753
00:33:41,480 --> 00:33:43,760
Speaker 2: give him a day off. Well you can't, Okay, but

754
00:33:43,800 --> 00:33:46,160
Speaker 2: he's not playing very well while he's hurt. Well, then

755
00:33:46,200 --> 00:33:47,960
Speaker 2: they should put him on the injured list. Well they

756
00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:50,520
Speaker 2: can't because they need him, but he's not playing very well.

757
00:33:50,560 --> 00:33:52,080
Speaker 2: I mean, it just went on and then after the

758
00:33:52,080 --> 00:33:54,000
Speaker 2: season when everybody's like, you know, what we should have done,

759
00:33:54,200 --> 00:33:57,400
Speaker 2: it's probably given Ellie a day off, Like you think

760
00:33:58,320 --> 00:34:00,760
Speaker 2: that was weird? And so I'm I'm kind of curious

761
00:34:00,840 --> 00:34:03,000
Speaker 2: this coming season, we'll talk about this as we look

762
00:34:03,040 --> 00:34:06,480
Speaker 2: ahead with the injury hopefully behind him, do we see

763
00:34:06,480 --> 00:34:07,200
Speaker 2: the old Ellie.

764
00:34:07,360 --> 00:34:10,359
Speaker 4: I love the juxtaposition of the way that David Bell

765
00:34:10,400 --> 00:34:12,799
Speaker 4: would talk about injuries and the way Terry Francona would

766
00:34:12,840 --> 00:34:15,680
Speaker 4: talk about injuries. And Francona asked about Ellie day la

767
00:34:15,760 --> 00:34:20,319
Speaker 4: Cruz said he's got a leg. Yeah, thanks, Tito, appreciate it.

768
00:34:20,440 --> 00:34:24,280
Speaker 3: How weird are talking about mysteries? The Trey Hendrickson situation,

769
00:34:24,960 --> 00:34:27,840
Speaker 3: because in today's football, you get injured, you're gonna be

770
00:34:27,880 --> 00:34:30,120
Speaker 3: out some time you go on the injured list. It

771
00:34:30,320 --> 00:34:32,800
Speaker 3: was it was odd at that moment, and then hearing

772
00:34:32,920 --> 00:34:36,920
Speaker 3: Zach every Monday just he's doubtful, He's doubtful, and then

773
00:34:36,920 --> 00:34:39,000
Speaker 3: it leads to the second opinion. Then it leads to

774
00:34:39,040 --> 00:34:43,680
Speaker 3: the surgery, and it leaves a very unclear future, obviously

775
00:34:43,719 --> 00:34:45,799
Speaker 3: for Trey Hendrickson. I think that with the Bengals and

776
00:34:45,800 --> 00:34:48,560
Speaker 3: obviously t Higgins because it's most recent. You want to

777
00:34:48,600 --> 00:34:50,080
Speaker 3: talk about it. We've talked about this a lot. You

778
00:34:50,120 --> 00:34:53,120
Speaker 3: want to talk about a guy, ultimate teammate. No one

779
00:34:53,120 --> 00:34:56,200
Speaker 3: would have fall to t Higgins to say, hey, I'm

780
00:34:56,560 --> 00:34:58,319
Speaker 3: done for the year. I'm gonna make sure my head

781
00:34:58,360 --> 00:35:00,160
Speaker 3: is right and shout out to the Bengals. They they

782
00:35:00,200 --> 00:35:03,640
Speaker 3: got the second opinion. They flew him to make sure

783
00:35:03,680 --> 00:35:06,880
Speaker 3: he was good. They adjusted the helmet in meaningless games.

784
00:35:07,280 --> 00:35:09,359
Speaker 3: With t Higgins going through multiple concussions to come back

785
00:35:09,400 --> 00:35:11,120
Speaker 3: and say no, I'm gonna be out there, I'm gonna play.

786
00:35:11,960 --> 00:35:14,560
Speaker 3: You can't say enough about him as a teammate in

787
00:35:14,600 --> 00:35:15,280
Speaker 3: this organization.

788
00:35:15,360 --> 00:35:17,200
Speaker 1: I'll give you a guy a classic out of sight

789
00:35:17,280 --> 00:35:20,160
Speaker 1: out of mind that people forget about is Reht Louder

790
00:35:20,200 --> 00:35:22,719
Speaker 1: and as well as Red Louder pitched in twenty twenty four,

791
00:35:23,120 --> 00:35:25,759
Speaker 1: the back end of the season and the expectation of

792
00:35:25,800 --> 00:35:28,479
Speaker 1: what he would mean for twenty twenty five. He comes

793
00:35:28,480 --> 00:35:31,040
Speaker 1: to camp with a forearm issue, a little soreness, so

794
00:35:31,239 --> 00:35:33,480
Speaker 1: they're very protective of that that he doesn't pitch at

795
00:35:33,520 --> 00:35:36,960
Speaker 1: all during spring training. He makes a rehab start and

796
00:35:37,080 --> 00:35:40,160
Speaker 1: tears his oblique. He winds up throwing I think it

797
00:35:40,280 --> 00:35:43,640
Speaker 1: was nine minor league rehab innings the entire season, not

798
00:35:43,760 --> 00:35:48,200
Speaker 1: a single major league inning, and you forget like what

799
00:35:48,320 --> 00:35:51,680
Speaker 1: Rhet Lauder was supposed to be for the team last season, how.

800
00:35:51,520 --> 00:35:53,960
Speaker 2: As good as he was toward the end of twenty

801
00:35:54,000 --> 00:35:57,000
Speaker 2: twenty four, a non entity in twenty twenty five, and

802
00:35:57,040 --> 00:35:59,279
Speaker 2: one of the questions for twenty twenty six is what

803
00:35:59,320 --> 00:35:59,839
Speaker 2: are they going to.

804
00:35:59,760 --> 00:36:00,239
Speaker 4: Get for him?

805
00:36:00,280 --> 00:36:02,719
Speaker 2: I think of injuries Jalen Haynes, you see, because if

806
00:36:02,719 --> 00:36:03,600
Speaker 2: he's the whole.

807
00:36:03,440 --> 00:36:05,759
Speaker 3: God, they could double the post, Yes they could. They

808
00:36:05,800 --> 00:36:07,200
Speaker 3: didn't have to double the post, right.

809
00:36:07,400 --> 00:36:09,799
Speaker 4: You want to talk about guys coming to spring training hurt.

810
00:36:09,880 --> 00:36:14,160
Speaker 4: The strange Spencer Steer injury that somehow wasn't treated during

811
00:36:14,160 --> 00:36:17,400
Speaker 4: the off season and leads to him being you know,

812
00:36:17,920 --> 00:36:20,520
Speaker 4: fifty percent of himself through the first month of the season.

813
00:36:20,520 --> 00:36:22,239
Speaker 4: He turns out to have a pretty good year. I'm

814
00:36:22,280 --> 00:36:23,400
Speaker 4: a Spencer Steer believer.

815
00:36:23,880 --> 00:36:27,280
Speaker 2: Hopefully he's did Austin Hayes hurt his calf on the airplane?

816
00:36:27,360 --> 00:36:28,640
Speaker 4: Yes, yeah, something like that.

817
00:36:29,280 --> 00:36:31,640
Speaker 1: And if not for the Tyler Stevenson oblique, we never

818
00:36:31,680 --> 00:36:34,000
Speaker 1: have Austin wins So there you.

819
00:36:33,960 --> 00:36:35,840
Speaker 4: Go, Austin, all I do is wins.

820
00:36:36,440 --> 00:36:40,000
Speaker 1: Remember we argued keeping Austin wins Is a third catcher

821
00:36:40,000 --> 00:36:41,719
Speaker 1: and then like for a month they didn't use him

822
00:36:41,760 --> 00:36:43,799
Speaker 1: at all or a third catcher on the lost which

823
00:36:44,760 --> 00:36:47,400
Speaker 1: he said, to whatsoever. Thanks a segue into the Reds

824
00:36:47,440 --> 00:36:49,560
Speaker 1: twenty twenty five season and they look back at the

825
00:36:49,840 --> 00:36:54,360
Speaker 1: roller coaster ride that was Mo, Tony, Austin, Lance, Merry Christmas, everybody,

826
00:36:54,480 --> 00:36:56,799
Speaker 1: Sports Talk, Year in Review and the look Ahead show

827
00:36:56,800 --> 00:37:09,480
Speaker 1: here on seven hundred WLW. Merry Christmas, Welcome back in

828
00:37:10,000 --> 00:37:12,520
Speaker 1: turn the corner in our second hour. Thanks for enjoying

829
00:37:12,560 --> 00:37:16,960
Speaker 1: your Christmas morning with us. Lance McAlister, Moeger, Tony Pike,

830
00:37:17,239 --> 00:37:20,879
Speaker 1: Austin Illmore, We're all decked out in our candy cane

831
00:37:20,920 --> 00:37:25,560
Speaker 1: striped footy pajamas for your visual enhancement of the show.

832
00:37:25,920 --> 00:37:29,319
Speaker 2: And I'm not just wearing them because it's Christmas, wearing

833
00:37:29,360 --> 00:37:30,320
Speaker 2: them because it's Thursday.

834
00:37:30,440 --> 00:37:31,759
Speaker 3: You're a big footy pajama guy.

835
00:37:31,880 --> 00:37:32,960
Speaker 2: Huge footy pajama guy.

836
00:37:33,200 --> 00:37:37,280
Speaker 1: Yeah, we navigate into the twenty twenty five Red season

837
00:37:37,320 --> 00:37:40,080
Speaker 1: that was, and on one hand, we talked earlier the

838
00:37:40,160 --> 00:37:42,400
Speaker 1: high point, they make the playoffs, first time in a

839
00:37:42,400 --> 00:37:46,200
Speaker 1: full season since twenty thirteen, they get bounced immediately. They

840
00:37:46,239 --> 00:37:51,040
Speaker 1: win eighty three games, yet they finished third place, and

841
00:37:51,400 --> 00:37:53,719
Speaker 1: we debated whether they were done or alive much of

842
00:37:53,760 --> 00:37:57,680
Speaker 1: the season. So I'm left to look back at twenty

843
00:37:57,719 --> 00:37:59,879
Speaker 1: twenty five and on one hand, I want to wait.

844
00:38:00,320 --> 00:38:03,640
Speaker 1: I want to be excited about the postseason. But they

845
00:38:03,680 --> 00:38:06,480
Speaker 1: won eighty three games and they finished in third place,

846
00:38:06,800 --> 00:38:09,080
Speaker 1: and if not for the collapse of the mat the

847
00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:11,760
Speaker 1: Mets in the end, So I'm torn in what exactly

848
00:38:11,880 --> 00:38:12,920
Speaker 1: to take away from the season?

849
00:38:13,000 --> 00:38:15,120
Speaker 2: Ask me at the end of this year, because if

850
00:38:15,160 --> 00:38:17,600
Speaker 2: twenty twenty five proves to be a jumping point for

851
00:38:17,680 --> 00:38:19,719
Speaker 2: something bigger and better, I think we look at this

852
00:38:19,760 --> 00:38:22,880
Speaker 2: season as a necessary step. I view it as tangible

853
00:38:23,000 --> 00:38:26,600
Speaker 2: proof that what they're doing is working, but tangible evidence

854
00:38:26,640 --> 00:38:30,920
Speaker 2: that they need to do more. And so this offseason

855
00:38:30,960 --> 00:38:32,759
Speaker 2: so far, and no, we'll talk about twenty twenty six

856
00:38:33,080 --> 00:38:36,040
Speaker 2: frankly underwhelming. It doesn't feel like they've made themselves appreciably better.

857
00:38:36,080 --> 00:38:37,280
Speaker 2: They're going to have to have a lot of guys

858
00:38:37,520 --> 00:38:40,000
Speaker 2: who underperformed in twenty twenty five be better this year.

859
00:38:40,040 --> 00:38:42,840
Speaker 2: But I looked at it as Okay, that is a step.

860
00:38:43,239 --> 00:38:45,200
Speaker 2: If this ends up being the high point of this

861
00:38:45,440 --> 00:38:48,600
Speaker 2: entire process, boy what a failure. But if if this

862
00:38:48,719 --> 00:38:54,560
Speaker 2: leads to more postseason appearances, consecutive postseason appearances, actual postseason advancement,

863
00:38:54,560 --> 00:38:57,080
Speaker 2: then you go, Okay. The first step was making it

864
00:38:57,120 --> 00:38:58,920
Speaker 2: and losing to the Dodgers in twenty twenty five.

865
00:38:59,040 --> 00:39:02,719
Speaker 3: I remember sitting on a day talking about the season upcoming,

866
00:39:03,360 --> 00:39:06,239
Speaker 3: and one of the points was you have to dominate

867
00:39:06,320 --> 00:39:10,040
Speaker 3: the bad teams. You've got to make your mark there.

868
00:39:10,040 --> 00:39:11,840
Speaker 3: You've got to beat the teams like the Pirates and

869
00:39:12,120 --> 00:39:14,000
Speaker 3: those types of teams that you get a chance to play.

870
00:39:14,480 --> 00:39:17,200
Speaker 3: They were thirty eight and thirty eight against teams below

871
00:39:17,239 --> 00:39:20,560
Speaker 3: five hundred. That's not good enough. And then to add

872
00:39:20,560 --> 00:39:23,920
Speaker 3: on to that, fifty four times scoring three or fewer runs.

873
00:39:23,960 --> 00:39:24,959
Speaker 3: It's a miracle they won.

874
00:39:24,920 --> 00:39:25,600
Speaker 4: Eighty three games.

875
00:39:26,360 --> 00:39:29,759
Speaker 3: So the struggles on offense, and I know when we'll

876
00:39:29,760 --> 00:39:32,000
Speaker 3: look ahead to twenty twenty six, well, what's the answer

877
00:39:32,080 --> 00:39:34,400
Speaker 3: going to be to that? Feels like they haven't addressed

878
00:39:34,400 --> 00:39:36,960
Speaker 3: that much. This offense is not good enough as is.

879
00:39:37,400 --> 00:39:39,480
Speaker 3: They've got to find ways to jump start that offense.

880
00:39:39,520 --> 00:39:42,480
Speaker 3: But you look back at eighty three wins and five

881
00:39:42,560 --> 00:39:45,440
Speaker 3: hundred baseball against teams under five hundred, it's a miracle

882
00:39:45,440 --> 00:39:46,160
Speaker 3: they got to eighty three.

883
00:39:46,239 --> 00:39:48,800
Speaker 4: I keep thinking about a stretch of one nothing losses,

884
00:39:49,160 --> 00:39:53,239
Speaker 4: about their inability to perform in extra innings, and I've

885
00:39:53,320 --> 00:39:56,360
Speaker 4: came away from this season pretty underwhelmed by Terry Francona.

886
00:39:56,680 --> 00:39:58,480
Speaker 4: I thought that I was gonna just I thought this

887
00:39:58,520 --> 00:40:00,360
Speaker 4: guy was gonna squeeze all the juice out of the

888
00:40:00,400 --> 00:40:02,640
Speaker 4: Orange and get the most out of these players. But

889
00:40:02,719 --> 00:40:04,800
Speaker 4: it felt like he kind of went the opposite direction

890
00:40:04,880 --> 00:40:06,960
Speaker 4: of the way the team is built. And I think

891
00:40:07,000 --> 00:40:09,120
Speaker 4: that's part of because the Reds have given him complete

892
00:40:09,160 --> 00:40:11,600
Speaker 4: control of how he wants to manage games. That's fine,

893
00:40:12,120 --> 00:40:14,120
Speaker 4: but the lack of aggression on the bass pass when

894
00:40:14,120 --> 00:40:17,839
Speaker 4: you have a team built around speed and athleticism just

895
00:40:18,120 --> 00:40:21,200
Speaker 4: overall to trying to move the runners over this lack

896
00:40:21,280 --> 00:40:24,400
Speaker 4: of gut feel and analytics. It felt like he was

897
00:40:24,440 --> 00:40:28,160
Speaker 4: indecisive a lot of times. It felt like an underwhelming

898
00:40:28,200 --> 00:40:29,320
Speaker 4: season from Terry Franco.

899
00:40:29,480 --> 00:40:31,680
Speaker 1: Yeah, they went from in a neighborhood of two hundred

900
00:40:31,719 --> 00:40:34,440
Speaker 1: stolen bases to just over one hundred stolen bases for

901
00:40:34,800 --> 00:40:37,600
Speaker 1: whatever reason. But back to the point, the elusive bat,

902
00:40:37,680 --> 00:40:41,200
Speaker 1: the search for the elusive bat again, there were thirteen shutouts,

903
00:40:41,280 --> 00:40:43,879
Speaker 1: They scored one run twenty one times, they scored two

904
00:40:43,960 --> 00:40:47,000
Speaker 1: runs twenty times, and as Tony mentioned, fifty four times

905
00:40:47,000 --> 00:40:49,600
Speaker 1: scoring fewer than three runs. And how many times did

906
00:40:49,640 --> 00:40:53,880
Speaker 1: we reference wasting a performance by a starting pitcher because

907
00:40:53,920 --> 00:40:55,080
Speaker 1: they didn't score that night.

908
00:40:55,200 --> 00:40:57,720
Speaker 2: It was maddening. And we also talked for months about

909
00:40:57,760 --> 00:40:59,920
Speaker 2: what bat will they add at the deadline, and then

910
00:41:00,080 --> 00:41:02,160
Speaker 2: they add a guy who's known for not having a

911
00:41:02,200 --> 00:41:03,360
Speaker 2: bat and.

912
00:41:09,280 --> 00:41:10,080
Speaker 4: Key Brian Hayes.

913
00:41:10,120 --> 00:41:12,200
Speaker 2: It was funny because on Twitter, every time he would

914
00:41:12,280 --> 00:41:13,759
Speaker 2: make a really nice play in the field, it was

915
00:41:13,800 --> 00:41:16,680
Speaker 2: like see see that, and he was He is awesome

916
00:41:16,680 --> 00:41:18,319
Speaker 2: with the glove. He might be the best defensive player

917
00:41:18,360 --> 00:41:21,120
Speaker 2: in the sport, but he is, by everybody's own admission,

918
00:41:21,280 --> 00:41:24,319
Speaker 2: an offensive zero. We saw it in the postseason. So

919
00:41:24,560 --> 00:41:27,560
Speaker 2: just the weirdness of that, and then all the best

920
00:41:27,640 --> 00:41:30,040
Speaker 2: laid plans they they put in black magic mark or

921
00:41:30,040 --> 00:41:33,239
Speaker 2: Matt McClain second base batting, second league, worst production from

922
00:41:33,239 --> 00:41:35,239
Speaker 2: the tool hole, and it felt like Matt McClain had

923
00:41:35,280 --> 00:41:37,400
Speaker 2: the longest leash of all time. Ellie de la Cruz,

924
00:41:37,480 --> 00:41:40,120
Speaker 2: this team was built around him being awesome. He wasn't

925
00:41:40,600 --> 00:41:42,680
Speaker 2: Christian and Carnassi on strain was supposed to hold down

926
00:41:42,719 --> 00:41:45,439
Speaker 2: first base got sent down and never heard from again.

927
00:41:45,760 --> 00:41:48,120
Speaker 2: So many of the best laid plans not working out,

928
00:41:48,160 --> 00:41:50,200
Speaker 2: and then the total lack of debt at the back

929
00:41:50,280 --> 00:41:53,000
Speaker 2: end of the roster, where it was Jacob Hurdabies and

930
00:41:53,040 --> 00:41:54,560
Speaker 2: Blake Dunn and Will.

931
00:41:54,320 --> 00:41:57,320
Speaker 4: Benson in the doghouse for a while and felt well.

932
00:41:57,280 --> 00:42:00,360
Speaker 2: Will Benson in the doghouse, Matt McLain out there, allowed

933
00:42:00,360 --> 00:42:02,799
Speaker 2: to just strike out time after time. They're using Santiago

934
00:42:02,920 --> 00:42:05,080
Speaker 2: Espin on the two hole. It was a weird year

935
00:42:05,120 --> 00:42:08,680
Speaker 2: in terms of lineup construction, roster construction, and dudes that

936
00:42:08,760 --> 00:42:11,239
Speaker 2: you thought were going to be a big, big part

937
00:42:11,239 --> 00:42:13,880
Speaker 2: of this team in twenty twenty five, failing frankly to

938
00:42:13,920 --> 00:42:14,359
Speaker 2: show up.

939
00:42:14,440 --> 00:42:17,000
Speaker 3: In a weird time because you know, you go back

940
00:42:17,000 --> 00:42:19,480
Speaker 3: to when all those guys were rookies. Man, the future

941
00:42:19,520 --> 00:42:22,239
Speaker 3: is bright. Well, now the clock is ticking on. Are

942
00:42:22,239 --> 00:42:23,719
Speaker 3: they going to be busted or are they going to

943
00:42:23,760 --> 00:42:26,600
Speaker 3: figure this out? I'm not one, especially on Christmas Day,

944
00:42:26,600 --> 00:42:28,240
Speaker 3: to point the finger. I'll point the finger at Austin.

945
00:42:28,280 --> 00:42:31,399
Speaker 3: Austin put an MVP vote a bed end for Matt

946
00:42:31,440 --> 00:42:32,359
Speaker 3: McClain to start the year.

947
00:42:32,360 --> 00:42:34,160
Speaker 4: Did you did? I told you in the Cactus League

948
00:42:34,160 --> 00:42:35,719
Speaker 4: he's in like seven fifty.

949
00:42:35,719 --> 00:42:37,920
Speaker 3: Placed a wager on Matt McClain to win the MVP.

950
00:42:38,440 --> 00:42:40,160
Speaker 3: So I don't want to point the finger.

951
00:42:39,920 --> 00:42:42,840
Speaker 4: But well, I'm happy to take your blame. Here's what

952
00:42:42,840 --> 00:42:45,799
Speaker 4: I'm worried about with the Reds this offseason. Last Hey, yes,

953
00:42:45,920 --> 00:42:49,160
Speaker 4: did you not watch in the league? Did you not

954
00:42:49,320 --> 00:42:55,319
Speaker 4: watch the Cactus League? Game was going like like eight

955
00:42:55,600 --> 00:42:56,239
Speaker 4: hits in a row.

956
00:42:57,040 --> 00:42:59,239
Speaker 2: Have to be better than sho Hey Otani to be

957
00:42:59,280 --> 00:43:04,160
Speaker 2: the good value, Edgar, you should know this good value

958
00:43:04,160 --> 00:43:05,600
Speaker 2: in lighting your money on fire too.

959
00:43:05,960 --> 00:43:10,799
Speaker 4: What if got hurt? Okay, then Kyle Schwarbur, fine, you

960
00:43:10,880 --> 00:43:14,040
Speaker 4: never know. Here's my fear with the Reds last offseason.

961
00:43:14,040 --> 00:43:16,440
Speaker 4: The Bengals chalked it up to, oh, we got unlucky,

962
00:43:16,480 --> 00:43:18,840
Speaker 4: we got hurt. The Reds might look at those numbers.

963
00:43:18,920 --> 00:43:20,400
Speaker 4: Lance just gave and said, we're not going to be

964
00:43:20,400 --> 00:43:23,279
Speaker 4: that bad offensively. We're not gonna get hurt again. We're

965
00:43:23,280 --> 00:43:27,359
Speaker 4: gonna have the pitching depth this time. Terry Francona better

966
00:43:27,440 --> 00:43:29,760
Speaker 4: understands this team. We don't have to do that much

967
00:43:30,080 --> 00:43:31,840
Speaker 4: to get over the hump. That's my fear with the

968
00:43:31,880 --> 00:43:32,760
Speaker 4: Reds and Austin.

969
00:43:32,800 --> 00:43:36,960
Speaker 1: You spent an evening in Bristol among eighty five a

970
00:43:37,000 --> 00:43:39,840
Speaker 1: game that was delayed and delayed and then suspended with

971
00:43:39,920 --> 00:43:42,200
Speaker 1: one out on the bottom of the first when there

972
00:43:42,520 --> 00:43:45,200
Speaker 1: were lakes that had formed in the outfield at its

973
00:43:45,239 --> 00:43:45,840
Speaker 1: second base.

974
00:43:45,920 --> 00:43:51,400
Speaker 4: Yeah, just to quickly surreal experience. Bizarre. Still feels like

975
00:43:51,440 --> 00:43:54,759
Speaker 4: a fever dream to me. The lines were hours long

976
00:43:55,000 --> 00:43:57,319
Speaker 4: to get food. I was in line for over an hour.

977
00:43:57,440 --> 00:43:59,320
Speaker 4: We got to the window and all they had left

978
00:43:59,440 --> 00:44:04,480
Speaker 4: was popped corn and candy. We couldn't see the pregame concert.

979
00:44:04,520 --> 00:44:06,640
Speaker 4: It was seemingly a mile away on the other side

980
00:44:06,640 --> 00:44:09,200
Speaker 4: of the racetrack. We got to our seats and a

981
00:44:09,320 --> 00:44:12,840
Speaker 4: gutter had broken and was pouring water onto our seats.

982
00:44:13,200 --> 00:44:16,440
Speaker 4: There was standing water on the concourses. It was the

983
00:44:16,480 --> 00:44:22,879
Speaker 4: biggest disappointment train wreck disaster I'd ever been a part

984
00:44:22,920 --> 00:44:25,520
Speaker 4: of at a baseball game or any sort of sporting event.

985
00:44:25,680 --> 00:44:28,200
Speaker 4: It was surreal speaking of a red played great for

986
00:44:28,239 --> 00:44:29,080
Speaker 4: an inning though.

987
00:44:31,480 --> 00:44:34,200
Speaker 1: Speaking of train wrecks and disasters a perfect segue to

988
00:44:34,239 --> 00:44:36,919
Speaker 1: the Bengals season. We'll recap that in twenty twenty five

989
00:44:37,280 --> 00:44:41,200
Speaker 1: as we continue. Thanks for sharing your Christmas morning with us, Moeger,

990
00:44:41,320 --> 00:44:45,120
Speaker 1: Tony Pike, Austin Elmore, Lance Pacallister. It's the Sports Talk

991
00:44:45,239 --> 00:44:48,040
Speaker 1: Year in Review and look Ahead show here on seven

992
00:44:48,080 --> 00:45:00,560
Speaker 1: hundred WLW. Very Christmas, Welcome back in this sports Dog

993
00:45:00,600 --> 00:45:03,839
Speaker 1: Year in Review and look Ahead Show, seven hundred WLW.

994
00:45:04,000 --> 00:45:07,320
Speaker 1: Lance Mccautlester moeg Or, Tony Pike, Austin Wilmore. This reminds

995
00:45:07,360 --> 00:45:10,560
Speaker 1: me of the have you seen the Trans Siberian Orchestra

996
00:45:10,680 --> 00:45:13,080
Speaker 1: show and the laser lights? And this is the sounds

997
00:45:13,080 --> 00:45:15,319
Speaker 1: that you'll get in all that mo has not seen that.

998
00:45:15,480 --> 00:45:17,680
Speaker 2: I would rather be fed to amount.

999
00:45:17,480 --> 00:45:20,560
Speaker 1: You haven't Christmas, I haven't seen.

1000
00:45:20,400 --> 00:45:25,720
Speaker 3: The It's very overwhelmantastic. Yes, light shows just be prepared.

1001
00:45:26,160 --> 00:45:28,120
Speaker 4: It is a sensory overload.

1002
00:45:29,040 --> 00:45:31,880
Speaker 1: Yes, that's the word. I was looking for. Sensory overload,

1003
00:45:32,239 --> 00:45:35,960
Speaker 1: all right. The Bengals twenty twenty five season began against

1004
00:45:35,960 --> 00:45:39,040
Speaker 1: the backdrop of needing to have a fast start. How

1005
00:45:39,120 --> 00:45:41,800
Speaker 1: much did we talk about they were going to change

1006
00:45:41,840 --> 00:45:45,279
Speaker 1: the the previous off season planning and training camp was

1007
00:45:45,320 --> 00:45:46,840
Speaker 1: going to be different, and they would hit more, and

1008
00:45:46,840 --> 00:45:49,120
Speaker 1: they'd play the starters more. And they come out of

1009
00:45:49,120 --> 00:45:51,279
Speaker 1: the shoot one to oh in a game where they

1010
00:45:51,320 --> 00:45:53,600
Speaker 1: looked okay against the Steelers, and then in game two

1011
00:45:54,239 --> 00:45:55,960
Speaker 1: they get to two and oh, but it cost them

1012
00:45:56,040 --> 00:46:02,880
Speaker 1: Joe Burrow to an injury, and from there it became

1013
00:46:02,920 --> 00:46:06,040
Speaker 1: a journey that just wasn't fair. So many moments, just.

1014
00:46:06,120 --> 00:46:08,799
Speaker 3: A unique I remember being at training camp every day

1015
00:46:08,880 --> 00:46:12,160
Speaker 3: and walking away like, man, the defense performed well. Today,

1016
00:46:12,520 --> 00:46:15,680
Speaker 3: defense is flying around, defense is playing confident. I even

1017
00:46:15,719 --> 00:46:17,560
Speaker 3: had days where I thought Jermaine Burton looked good at

1018
00:46:17,560 --> 00:46:22,319
Speaker 3: training camp, and you walk away from it and you

1019
00:46:22,360 --> 00:46:24,880
Speaker 3: look at where this season is gone. For much of

1020
00:46:24,880 --> 00:46:27,200
Speaker 3: the season, we're talking about not a league worst defense,

1021
00:46:27,239 --> 00:46:30,840
Speaker 3: but a historically bad defense in the National Football League history.

1022
00:46:31,200 --> 00:46:35,000
Speaker 3: Jermaine Burton is no longer with this team. It was.

1023
00:46:35,040 --> 00:46:37,960
Speaker 3: It was unique because it was the fast start. They

1024
00:46:38,200 --> 00:46:39,560
Speaker 3: found a way to get to two and oh. But

1025
00:46:39,600 --> 00:46:42,120
Speaker 3: in the backdrop of that, you lose Joe Burrow, the

1026
00:46:42,200 --> 00:46:46,680
Speaker 3: defense sputters, the Trey Hendrickson and Shamar Stewart situations. It just,

1027
00:46:47,440 --> 00:46:50,400
Speaker 3: you hate to say, it never got off the ground,

1028
00:46:50,440 --> 00:46:52,880
Speaker 3: but it doesn't feel like there was ever a chance

1029
00:46:52,920 --> 00:46:54,839
Speaker 3: this season of things to be anywhere close to normal.

1030
00:46:55,000 --> 00:46:58,080
Speaker 4: Yeah. Sorry. As I mentioned in the last segment, the

1031
00:46:58,080 --> 00:47:00,640
Speaker 4: way the Bengals approached the off season, all that caught

1032
00:47:00,719 --> 00:47:03,160
Speaker 4: up to them very quickly this year, and it led

1033
00:47:03,160 --> 00:47:05,239
Speaker 4: to something that we haven't really seen before, which is

1034
00:47:05,320 --> 00:47:07,920
Speaker 4: Duke Tobin being in the crosshairs of the fan base

1035
00:47:08,320 --> 00:47:10,960
Speaker 4: more than at any point in his let me count

1036
00:47:11,200 --> 00:47:16,200
Speaker 4: twenty six years now. In Cincinnati, there was a growing

1037
00:47:17,200 --> 00:47:20,120
Speaker 4: discontentment with Duke Tobin in the front office in the

1038
00:47:20,160 --> 00:47:22,200
Speaker 4: way that they have gone about trying to draft and

1039
00:47:22,239 --> 00:47:24,480
Speaker 4: develop these players, and it caught up to him in

1040
00:47:24,520 --> 00:47:25,200
Speaker 4: a big way. You know.

1041
00:47:25,480 --> 00:47:28,839
Speaker 2: For all the talk of we want a serene offseason

1042
00:47:28,960 --> 00:47:31,480
Speaker 2: and a different training camp and approach it with urgency,

1043
00:47:31,560 --> 00:47:34,120
Speaker 2: the Trey Hendrickson thing just took on a life of

1044
00:47:34,120 --> 00:47:36,200
Speaker 2: its own where he shows up at practice one day

1045
00:47:36,239 --> 00:47:39,520
Speaker 2: and he's lobbying for himself. The Shamar Stewart thing, which

1046
00:47:39,600 --> 00:47:41,880
Speaker 2: in this era where we don't really have rookie holdouts,

1047
00:47:41,920 --> 00:47:44,200
Speaker 2: not only did we have one, we guy was technically

1048
00:47:44,239 --> 00:47:48,080
Speaker 2: not under contract. Just blasting the team does press conference.

1049
00:47:48,120 --> 00:47:51,960
Speaker 2: I mean, you know, so as this you know, important

1050
00:47:52,000 --> 00:47:55,000
Speaker 2: offseason is unfolding, you have these side shows and then

1051
00:47:55,840 --> 00:47:58,080
Speaker 2: I can't tell you how many times you would talk

1052
00:47:58,120 --> 00:48:00,440
Speaker 2: about the team this offseason and go, hey, remember last

1053
00:48:00,480 --> 00:48:03,319
Speaker 2: year's defense wasn't very good. Are we sure they've done

1054
00:48:03,400 --> 00:48:04,839
Speaker 2: enough to fix it? And you would kind of get

1055
00:48:04,840 --> 00:48:07,800
Speaker 2: patted on the head Slayton and hey, they're gonna be fine.

1056
00:48:08,080 --> 00:48:12,160
Speaker 2: Al Golden's gonna fix everything. And they played a game

1057
00:48:12,160 --> 00:48:14,200
Speaker 2: against the Philadelphia Eagles, I think it was the Eagles

1058
00:48:14,200 --> 00:48:16,640
Speaker 2: in the preseason where it's like they were just trucked,

1059
00:48:16,760 --> 00:48:19,000
Speaker 2: and then you were told, oh, Al Owl's he's not

1060
00:48:19,080 --> 00:48:23,400
Speaker 2: showing anything. Vanilla, it's Vanilla not showing anything. And I

1061
00:48:23,520 --> 00:48:25,839
Speaker 2: just I can't tell you how many times I would go,

1062
00:48:26,239 --> 00:48:28,440
Speaker 2: you know, we sure, we sure no distractions? You got

1063
00:48:28,440 --> 00:48:30,640
Speaker 2: these two major distractions, were sure you did enough to

1064
00:48:30,640 --> 00:48:33,319
Speaker 2: fix the defense, and as the season unfolded, Obviously, the

1065
00:48:33,320 --> 00:48:34,960
Speaker 2: answer was, well they didn't we Uh.

1066
00:48:35,360 --> 00:48:37,600
Speaker 3: Remember texting back and forth during the National Championship with

1067
00:48:37,640 --> 00:48:40,800
Speaker 3: Austin when Al Golden decided in the biggest play of

1068
00:48:40,800 --> 00:48:43,880
Speaker 3: the game to go one on one coverage with Jeremiah Smith,

1069
00:48:43,920 --> 00:48:46,960
Speaker 3: and I remember like, wait, I don't know, like that

1070
00:48:46,960 --> 00:48:49,439
Speaker 3: that to me, I don't know if that's going to work.

1071
00:48:50,160 --> 00:48:53,520
Speaker 3: And you fast forward again, I don't think it's a

1072
00:48:53,520 --> 00:48:56,319
Speaker 3: full deck he's playing with. I think the back end,

1073
00:48:56,400 --> 00:48:59,200
Speaker 3: especially the safety position, is lacking in a big way.

1074
00:48:59,200 --> 00:49:01,239
Speaker 1: Remember when they asked the starting safety to take a

1075
00:49:01,239 --> 00:49:03,640
Speaker 1: pay cut.

1076
00:49:03,440 --> 00:49:05,920
Speaker 2: But not only that, And I wish you would have

1077
00:49:05,920 --> 00:49:07,719
Speaker 2: said no.

1078
00:49:08,280 --> 00:49:11,440
Speaker 3: But not only that. Our Golden's specialty was linebacker. Yeah,

1079
00:49:11,480 --> 00:49:13,880
Speaker 3: and then come in your draft two linebackers who have

1080
00:49:13,920 --> 00:49:17,080
Speaker 3: been awful. You move on from Logan Wilson. Yeah, it's

1081
00:49:17,160 --> 00:49:20,120
Speaker 3: just it's And then on the backdrop on the offensive side,

1082
00:49:20,160 --> 00:49:22,640
Speaker 3: we talk about the offense so much, and yet you

1083
00:49:22,719 --> 00:49:25,200
Speaker 3: look back on this season, you don't get to see

1084
00:49:25,280 --> 00:49:29,040
Speaker 3: Jamar Tray, Chase Chase Brown, and Joe Burrow together a lot.

1085
00:49:29,440 --> 00:49:31,239
Speaker 3: And when you do, it's like, man, that's what it

1086
00:49:31,280 --> 00:49:33,360
Speaker 3: can be. At some point, they get they got to

1087
00:49:33,400 --> 00:49:36,279
Speaker 3: get on the field together for more than three or

1088
00:49:36,320 --> 00:49:37,160
Speaker 3: four games the season.

1089
00:49:37,160 --> 00:49:39,000
Speaker 2: You know, we did the segment of high points, and

1090
00:49:39,080 --> 00:49:40,800
Speaker 2: in a weird way, the high point of the Bengal

1091
00:49:40,880 --> 00:49:43,399
Speaker 2: season was the Jamar and t press conference. Yeah, because

1092
00:49:43,400 --> 00:49:45,719
Speaker 2: that day felt great. Yep, that day felt great, and

1093
00:49:45,800 --> 00:49:48,399
Speaker 2: unfortunately every other day afterward didn't feel great.

1094
00:49:48,880 --> 00:49:51,440
Speaker 4: Yeah. And what I've learned in this Bengals season is

1095
00:49:51,480 --> 00:49:54,000
Speaker 4: that it can always get worse. I mean that defense,

1096
00:49:54,120 --> 00:49:57,080
Speaker 4: it did get worse and way worse. And Tony brings

1097
00:49:57,160 --> 00:49:59,480
Speaker 4: up the point they hire Al Golden and then all

1098
00:49:59,480 --> 00:50:02,760
Speaker 4: of a sudden, basically every linebacker he's coached here is gone.

1099
00:50:03,000 --> 00:50:05,320
Speaker 4: Logan Wilson gets traded, Joe Batchi's out the door of

1100
00:50:05,360 --> 00:50:07,600
Speaker 4: Keem Davis Gate there has gone. Jermaine Pratt gets let

1101
00:50:07,680 --> 00:50:13,920
Speaker 4: go car Guys get drafted, and I remember during the

1102
00:50:14,000 --> 00:50:17,360
Speaker 4: draft thinking they're reaching on these guys because they've painted

1103
00:50:17,360 --> 00:50:19,719
Speaker 4: themselves in a position to where they have to take

1104
00:50:19,880 --> 00:50:23,839
Speaker 4: need over best player available. And again it showed up

1105
00:50:23,840 --> 00:50:25,520
Speaker 4: in a big way on the defensive side of the ball.

1106
00:50:25,600 --> 00:50:28,240
Speaker 1: It can always get worse. Should be a Sinsey shirts

1107
00:50:28,360 --> 00:50:31,479
Speaker 1: worst Josh need so that to hit the perfect. Sure

1108
00:50:31,719 --> 00:50:34,560
Speaker 1: do we remember the day that Shamar Stewart registered his

1109
00:50:34,600 --> 00:50:39,240
Speaker 1: first quarterback hit by hitting Joe Burrow? And what happened

1110
00:50:39,280 --> 00:50:40,640
Speaker 1: that day? Oly cow?

1111
00:50:40,840 --> 00:50:43,680
Speaker 2: Because I remember going like, the offensive line should take

1112
00:50:43,719 --> 00:50:46,080
Speaker 2: him to dinner because he's that day of practice, the

1113
00:50:46,080 --> 00:50:48,759
Speaker 2: offensive line was terrible, and I said, the offensive line

1114
00:50:48,800 --> 00:50:50,440
Speaker 2: should take him to dinner. And if they want to

1115
00:50:50,440 --> 00:50:53,480
Speaker 2: give him a talking to, that's fine because they've taken

1116
00:50:53,520 --> 00:50:56,840
Speaker 2: the attention away from how bad they were in protecting

1117
00:50:56,880 --> 00:51:00,120
Speaker 2: their quarterbacks. And then, you know, to me, the way

1118
00:51:00,160 --> 00:51:02,400
Speaker 2: the season has ended, first of all, the real nineties

1119
00:51:02,400 --> 00:51:04,960
Speaker 2: feel of billboards, right, you know those of us hold

1120
00:51:05,040 --> 00:51:06,879
Speaker 2: enough for remember the nineties that this is the sort

1121
00:51:06,880 --> 00:51:10,040
Speaker 2: of stuff that unfolded then. But we get the added

1122
00:51:10,080 --> 00:51:15,240
Speaker 2: dose of unending psychoanalysis of the quarterback, which I frankly

1123
00:51:15,280 --> 00:51:15,719
Speaker 2: am over.

1124
00:51:16,000 --> 00:51:20,480
Speaker 3: I'm over, But if I'm the Cincinnati Bengals, I want

1125
00:51:20,480 --> 00:51:22,360
Speaker 3: to make sure that it's clear to Joe Burrow this

1126
00:51:22,400 --> 00:51:24,160
Speaker 3: offseason that you can win a super Bowl here, and

1127
00:51:24,200 --> 00:51:25,719
Speaker 3: you can win a super Bowl without having to be

1128
00:51:25,719 --> 00:51:29,120
Speaker 3: perfect every single time you take the field. The Buffalo game,

1129
00:51:29,160 --> 00:51:32,080
Speaker 3: he made two bad plays and he got crushed for it.

1130
00:51:32,560 --> 00:51:34,279
Speaker 3: You need to show Joe Burrow that you can win

1131
00:51:34,320 --> 00:51:36,359
Speaker 3: a title here, and you can do it without being

1132
00:51:36,360 --> 00:51:38,879
Speaker 3: perfect here, and that's going to take a lot this

1133
00:51:38,960 --> 00:51:42,360
Speaker 3: offseason to get to. But if you want your quarterback

1134
00:51:42,760 --> 00:51:44,840
Speaker 3: to lock in and get back to the goal of

1135
00:51:44,920 --> 00:51:47,560
Speaker 3: trying to win multiple Super Bowls here, you need to

1136
00:51:47,560 --> 00:51:50,320
Speaker 3: take care of that. And you can't let yourself playing

1137
00:51:50,400 --> 00:51:55,160
Speaker 3: out the string, get caught against quin Ewers and Jacoby

1138
00:51:55,200 --> 00:51:58,040
Speaker 3: Brissett and Shador Sanders and in three weeks from now

1139
00:51:58,080 --> 00:52:01,359
Speaker 3: saying they're not that far away on defense, they only

1140
00:52:01,400 --> 00:52:02,520
Speaker 3: need to make a couple changes.

1141
00:52:02,560 --> 00:52:05,400
Speaker 1: We mentioned the Trey Hendrickson hold out in the visual

1142
00:52:05,520 --> 00:52:09,520
Speaker 1: of the Bengals practicing and Trey standing in golf gear,

1143
00:52:10,160 --> 00:52:14,680
Speaker 1: a golf shirt and holding a press conference and out

1144
00:52:14,719 --> 00:52:17,440
Speaker 1: of that in Austin. You've mentioned this before. I think

1145
00:52:17,440 --> 00:52:19,920
Speaker 1: we've all mentioned it. While all this was going on.

1146
00:52:20,080 --> 00:52:22,960
Speaker 1: As much as his teammates seemed to rally around getting

1147
00:52:23,040 --> 00:52:26,200
Speaker 1: Jamar paid and te paid and other guys paid, it's

1148
00:52:26,239 --> 00:52:28,520
Speaker 1: like everybody just kind of sat back and watched Trey

1149
00:52:28,600 --> 00:52:31,160
Speaker 1: b Trey and there was never really any public support

1150
00:52:31,200 --> 00:52:33,600
Speaker 1: offered from within forgetting Trey a deal.

1151
00:52:33,760 --> 00:52:36,160
Speaker 4: Yeah, and even when Joe Burrow was asked about it,

1152
00:52:36,239 --> 00:52:38,759
Speaker 4: he would never go nearly to the same links as

1153
00:52:38,760 --> 00:52:41,200
Speaker 4: he did, even about a guy like Mike Gesicki, And

1154
00:52:41,239 --> 00:52:43,839
Speaker 4: I've always thought that was really telling. And prior to

1155
00:52:43,880 --> 00:52:46,799
Speaker 4: this season, Trey was never voted a team captain. I mean,

1156
00:52:46,840 --> 00:52:48,920
Speaker 4: how many four time Pro bowlers have never been a

1157
00:52:48,960 --> 00:52:51,080
Speaker 4: team captain before? And then all of a sudden, all

1158
00:52:51,080 --> 00:52:54,279
Speaker 4: the veteran guys leave, Von Bell, Mike Hilton, all the

1159
00:52:54,320 --> 00:52:57,120
Speaker 4: Sam Hubbard, those guys are all gone, and the Bengals

1160
00:52:57,120 --> 00:52:59,359
Speaker 4: players are like, well, Trey's been here, will vote him

1161
00:52:59,440 --> 00:53:01,920
Speaker 4: to be a cat And I think maybe behind the

1162
00:53:01,920 --> 00:53:04,440
Speaker 4: scenes he has been that guy at least in training

1163
00:53:04,440 --> 00:53:06,160
Speaker 4: camp he showed up, which I think it was all

1164
00:53:06,200 --> 00:53:08,680
Speaker 4: for show when he finally did show up, and then

1165
00:53:08,719 --> 00:53:10,920
Speaker 4: he was over on the side working with Shamar Stewart

1166
00:53:10,960 --> 00:53:14,439
Speaker 4: and all that other stuff. It doesn't seem like it's

1167
00:53:14,480 --> 00:53:16,840
Speaker 4: going to be a relationship with Trey Henderson and the

1168
00:53:16,840 --> 00:53:18,040
Speaker 4: Bengals going into next show.

1169
00:53:18,120 --> 00:53:20,560
Speaker 1: And I was always bugged by what I thought was

1170
00:53:20,600 --> 00:53:23,000
Speaker 1: the mixed messaging of the decision to go with two

1171
00:53:23,040 --> 00:53:25,600
Speaker 1: rookie linebackers and all the growing pains that were going

1172
00:53:25,640 --> 00:53:28,439
Speaker 1: to come with that in a season that mattered had

1173
00:53:28,480 --> 00:53:31,160
Speaker 1: super Bowl hopes and dreams, and you did that. I mean,

1174
00:53:31,320 --> 00:53:33,320
Speaker 1: things got so desperate they went out and traded for

1175
00:53:33,400 --> 00:53:36,160
Speaker 1: Joe Flacco to try to save the season, and yet

1176
00:53:36,160 --> 00:53:38,839
Speaker 1: they were content to start two rookie linebackers who had

1177
00:53:38,840 --> 00:53:43,040
Speaker 1: no business playing. And it just it never made super

1178
00:53:43,040 --> 00:53:46,359
Speaker 1: Bowl hopes and dreams. Two rookie linebacks never made me say.

1179
00:53:46,520 --> 00:53:49,440
Speaker 2: But I go back to the offseason, where it was, Okay,

1180
00:53:49,480 --> 00:53:53,040
Speaker 2: they've got to fix the defense. Free agency, okay, well

1181
00:53:53,480 --> 00:53:56,200
Speaker 2: it's TJ. Slayton and Orn Burke's Okay, Well, the draft,

1182
00:53:56,200 --> 00:53:57,879
Speaker 2: we're gonna get some guys who can help. Right now,

1183
00:53:57,920 --> 00:54:00,879
Speaker 2: in the moment you watched Demetrius Night and Barrek Carter,

1184
00:54:00,960 --> 00:54:03,560
Speaker 2: you thought this isn't going to happen. I keep coming

1185
00:54:03,600 --> 00:54:05,879
Speaker 2: back to how they just it felt like they sat

1186
00:54:05,920 --> 00:54:09,520
Speaker 2: out the offseason and then for a franchise that's supposed

1187
00:54:09,560 --> 00:54:12,560
Speaker 2: to be in this championship window, that they just kind

1188
00:54:12,560 --> 00:54:15,680
Speaker 2: of let this opportunity pass by not addressing a major

1189
00:54:15,680 --> 00:54:16,839
Speaker 2: deficiency from last year.

1190
00:54:16,880 --> 00:54:20,040
Speaker 4: You talk about the psychoanalysis of the quarterback, it's because

1191
00:54:20,120 --> 00:54:23,000
Speaker 4: there's precedent both with Andrew Luck and what he'd went

1192
00:54:23,040 --> 00:54:25,480
Speaker 4: through in Indianapolis, and with what Carson Palmer went through

1193
00:54:25,480 --> 00:54:28,840
Speaker 4: here before, the president of those things leads Bengals fans

1194
00:54:28,880 --> 00:54:31,600
Speaker 4: to thinking, oh no, here we go again, and it's

1195
00:54:31,680 --> 00:54:33,640
Speaker 4: up to the Bengals to prevent that from happening.

1196
00:54:33,719 --> 00:54:37,000
Speaker 1: Still ahead, we'll get into the season that has been

1197
00:54:37,080 --> 00:54:40,759
Speaker 1: for the UC football program, a little college basketball.

1198
00:54:40,320 --> 00:54:42,320
Speaker 3: And we'll always listen to the most you'll walk.

1199
00:54:43,120 --> 00:54:45,279
Speaker 1: As we were all on with the Sports Dog Year

1200
00:54:45,320 --> 00:54:56,000
Speaker 1: and Review and look Ahead Show here on seven hundred WLW. Oh,

1201
00:54:56,080 --> 00:54:58,719
Speaker 1: let's sen how happy and festive that music is.

1202
00:54:59,239 --> 00:55:04,200
Speaker 4: And now we're going to talk about the Bearcats, Grinch.

1203
00:55:04,800 --> 00:55:09,680
Speaker 1: Merry Christmas. Everybody you're hanging out with John Cunningham, Lace McAllister,

1204
00:55:09,800 --> 00:55:13,160
Speaker 1: Austin Elmore, Tony Pike, and Moeger are sports Dog Year

1205
00:55:13,160 --> 00:55:16,560
Speaker 1: in Review and look Ahead Show here on seven hundred WLW. Now,

1206
00:55:16,600 --> 00:55:18,919
Speaker 1: in and around all of our conversation, we've talked about

1207
00:55:18,920 --> 00:55:22,600
Speaker 1: the YouTube, mule log and Christmas bags. As the elder

1208
00:55:22,640 --> 00:55:25,359
Speaker 1: statesman of the group, I want to stress to you

1209
00:55:25,440 --> 00:55:27,839
Speaker 1: what I have learned as we approach a period where're

1210
00:55:27,880 --> 00:55:30,799
Speaker 1: going to take your Christmas trees down. I would ask

1211
00:55:30,840 --> 00:55:33,600
Speaker 1: that you follow my model and what I've learned, and

1212
00:55:33,680 --> 00:55:36,560
Speaker 1: that is, rather than taking the Christmas tree down, packing

1213
00:55:36,560 --> 00:55:38,600
Speaker 1: all the ornaments, taking them back down to the basement,

1214
00:55:38,640 --> 00:55:42,080
Speaker 1: bring him back up next season. I have mastered moving

1215
00:55:42,120 --> 00:55:46,840
Speaker 1: the Christmas tree with the ornaments up into Casey's old bedroom,

1216
00:55:47,200 --> 00:55:50,120
Speaker 1: leaving it there during the year, and at Thanksgiving the

1217
00:55:50,160 --> 00:55:52,880
Speaker 1: following year, bringing it back down. And I did not

1218
00:55:53,040 --> 00:55:56,520
Speaker 1: drop a single ornament off the tree in this moving process.

1219
00:55:56,520 --> 00:55:58,719
Speaker 3: And anytime you're in need of just the Christmas spirit,

1220
00:55:58,760 --> 00:56:00,359
Speaker 3: you can just just walk into Casey's old room.

1221
00:56:01,120 --> 00:56:01,560
Speaker 4: There you go.

1222
00:56:01,680 --> 00:56:04,600
Speaker 2: Does Casey ever like crash in his old room and.

1223
00:56:04,520 --> 00:56:07,680
Speaker 1: Go, No, he's got the basement when crash. Yeah, I

1224
00:56:07,719 --> 00:56:10,400
Speaker 1: want you to understand. And that's a big ass Christmas tree.

1225
00:56:10,520 --> 00:56:12,600
Speaker 1: And I grabbed it and I carried it down and

1226
00:56:12,640 --> 00:56:16,320
Speaker 1: carried it up. Not a single ornament fell off. I'd

1227
00:56:16,320 --> 00:56:18,560
Speaker 1: like to try this finest thing I did. I'm trying

1228
00:56:18,560 --> 00:56:20,040
Speaker 1: to think of where we would put it, but I

1229
00:56:20,040 --> 00:56:20,560
Speaker 1: I'd like to.

1230
00:56:20,760 --> 00:56:22,279
Speaker 4: Say, not a lot of room in my eight hundred

1231
00:56:22,320 --> 00:56:23,160
Speaker 4: square foot apartment.

1232
00:56:24,640 --> 00:56:25,640
Speaker 2: Put it in Crossing.

1233
00:56:27,400 --> 00:56:31,520
Speaker 1: Yeah night, All right, that's the fun. Let's get to

1234
00:56:31,600 --> 00:56:36,399
Speaker 1: UC football. You see, lost to Nebraska to open the season.

1235
00:56:36,080 --> 00:56:40,680
Speaker 2: Neutral site game, neutral Yeah, and what was the makeup

1236
00:56:40,680 --> 00:56:43,840
Speaker 2: at that point five million dollar check Ye for moving

1237
00:56:43,840 --> 00:56:45,440
Speaker 2: that game to Kansas City.

1238
00:56:45,640 --> 00:56:48,320
Speaker 1: Yes, and then ripped off seven straight wins.

1239
00:56:48,480 --> 00:56:49,279
Speaker 4: I did one.

1240
00:56:49,920 --> 00:56:51,960
Speaker 3: I don't think I've ever been an environment like that

1241
00:56:52,040 --> 00:56:55,040
Speaker 3: in Kansas City as loud as it was for Nebraska.

1242
00:56:55,160 --> 00:56:58,080
Speaker 3: And I remember Dan dan Hort said, I've been to

1243
00:56:58,320 --> 00:57:01,319
Speaker 3: Bengals Chiefs games that were not as loud as what

1244
00:57:01,360 --> 00:57:05,160
Speaker 3: this was tonight. It was incredible and for the most part,

1245
00:57:05,560 --> 00:57:08,520
Speaker 3: UC's defense was really good and they ran the ball

1246
00:57:08,800 --> 00:57:11,920
Speaker 3: really well. Sworsby struggled in that game. I remember going

1247
00:57:11,920 --> 00:57:14,280
Speaker 3: into the game, Man, they've revamped a wide receiver room,

1248
00:57:14,640 --> 00:57:16,560
Speaker 3: and he had like thirty eight yards passing going into

1249
00:57:16,560 --> 00:57:18,680
Speaker 3: the final drive of the game, made one of his

1250
00:57:18,720 --> 00:57:21,200
Speaker 3: worst throws of the game. You look back now, that

1251
00:57:21,280 --> 00:57:23,800
Speaker 3: wasn't a good Nebraska team. It wasn't a team as

1252
00:57:23,840 --> 00:57:26,520
Speaker 3: good as they thought they were going to be. Man,

1253
00:57:26,560 --> 00:57:29,200
Speaker 3: the seven straight wins, you started to believe, you started

1254
00:57:29,240 --> 00:57:32,840
Speaker 3: to buy in, and then another collapse down the stretch

1255
00:57:32,880 --> 00:57:37,040
Speaker 3: of a season in a unenviable, unenviable ball opponent coming.

1256
00:57:36,840 --> 00:57:39,200
Speaker 2: Out it was I think a game that night in

1257
00:57:39,240 --> 00:57:41,880
Speaker 2: Kansas City emblematic of what has been the hallmark of

1258
00:57:41,920 --> 00:57:44,520
Speaker 2: this program for three years, which is they just can't

1259
00:57:44,520 --> 00:57:47,360
Speaker 2: make the play. They just can't make the play that

1260
00:57:47,720 --> 00:57:49,440
Speaker 2: puts him over the top or really gives them a

1261
00:57:49,520 --> 00:57:52,600
Speaker 2: chance to win. And the theme of the season for

1262
00:57:52,680 --> 00:57:54,800
Speaker 2: me offensively, Tony, and you and I have talked about

1263
00:57:54,800 --> 00:57:57,080
Speaker 2: this dozens of time. You and I sat in Kansas

1264
00:57:57,120 --> 00:57:59,040
Speaker 2: City the night before the game, and we talked about, like,

1265
00:57:59,120 --> 00:58:00,920
Speaker 2: this is a night for Joe Royer, right, because the

1266
00:58:00,920 --> 00:58:04,480
Speaker 2: Bearcats were unproven at wide receiver. Nebraska has good corners,

1267
00:58:04,640 --> 00:58:07,280
Speaker 2: They're gonna feed Joe Royer. They didn't that night. They

1268
00:58:07,280 --> 00:58:10,240
Speaker 2: didn't all season long. Among the many things that troubled

1269
00:58:10,240 --> 00:58:12,240
Speaker 2: me about the way the season unfolded at the end

1270
00:58:12,960 --> 00:58:14,720
Speaker 2: was the fact that you have a guy that everybody

1271
00:58:14,800 --> 00:58:16,880
Speaker 2: with that program will claim is the best tight end

1272
00:58:16,880 --> 00:58:19,000
Speaker 2: in the country. He had twenty six catches this year.

1273
00:58:19,240 --> 00:58:23,120
Speaker 3: You also mentioned that the Nebraska game. For me, looking

1274
00:58:23,160 --> 00:58:25,760
Speaker 3: back on the season, I didn't know it at the time.

1275
00:58:26,120 --> 00:58:28,200
Speaker 3: I appreciated that the night we got to have we

1276
00:58:28,520 --> 00:58:31,160
Speaker 3: sat in the hotel lobby with Jim Kelly. Yes for

1277
00:58:31,720 --> 00:58:34,919
Speaker 3: how long just and you don't know at the time, Yep,

1278
00:58:35,160 --> 00:58:37,160
Speaker 3: what was going on or how it was going to be.

1279
00:58:37,240 --> 00:58:39,440
Speaker 3: But looking back now at the time we had with

1280
00:58:39,520 --> 00:58:42,080
Speaker 3: him that trip, it was just like Jim. He liked

1281
00:58:42,080 --> 00:58:44,760
Speaker 3: hanging out in the lobby, liked interacting with fans, and

1282
00:58:44,960 --> 00:58:46,760
Speaker 3: we got to do it that night. And I remember

1283
00:58:46,880 --> 00:58:47,880
Speaker 3: that more than anything about that.

1284
00:58:47,960 --> 00:58:50,200
Speaker 2: I'll paint the picture really quick. So we were in

1285
00:58:50,280 --> 00:58:52,320
Speaker 2: Kansas City. It was the Wednesday night before the game.

1286
00:58:52,360 --> 00:58:54,120
Speaker 2: We went to dinner. Jim did not go with us.

1287
00:58:54,160 --> 00:58:56,040
Speaker 2: We knew he wasn't feeling great. We're hanging out in

1288
00:58:56,040 --> 00:58:58,680
Speaker 2: the hotel and then like Willis Reid there he is yep,

1289
00:58:58,880 --> 00:59:01,560
Speaker 2: and he sat down and had a beer and god knows,

1290
00:59:01,560 --> 00:59:03,320
Speaker 2: we didn't know he was going to pass so quickly.

1291
00:59:03,360 --> 00:59:05,880
Speaker 2: But I've thought about that often. That season began, we

1292
00:59:05,920 --> 00:59:09,240
Speaker 2: got that night with Jim, and I think he's sort

1293
00:59:09,240 --> 00:59:11,200
Speaker 2: of new, like I need to hang out with those guys,

1294
00:59:11,280 --> 00:59:12,520
Speaker 2: and he did, and I'm grateful for it.

1295
00:59:14,120 --> 00:59:18,880
Speaker 1: The college basketball season, to me, what I think, you see,

1296
00:59:18,640 --> 00:59:22,720
Speaker 1: I think losing it home to Eastern Michigan, and I

1297
00:59:22,760 --> 00:59:26,600
Speaker 1: remember and I think trailing thirty to five to Clemson,

1298
00:59:26,960 --> 00:59:29,680
Speaker 1: and as we walked in, we had mentioned that Eastern

1299
00:59:29,680 --> 00:59:33,080
Speaker 1: Michigan beat Right State this week, which kind of sums up.

1300
00:59:33,120 --> 00:59:37,280
Speaker 1: What has happened to this UC basketball season already?

1301
00:59:37,560 --> 00:59:40,040
Speaker 2: I think of and you've talked about this a lot, Lance,

1302
00:59:40,160 --> 00:59:42,760
Speaker 2: I think of all the players from last year's team,

1303
00:59:42,800 --> 00:59:46,960
Speaker 2: which collectively underwhelmed, that have gone on to thrive for

1304
00:59:47,160 --> 00:59:50,480
Speaker 2: high major programs or at least contribute to high major programs.

1305
00:59:50,520 --> 00:59:52,160
Speaker 2: And I think at the end of last year, I

1306
00:59:52,160 --> 00:59:55,160
Speaker 2: know Tony and I talked about this as diehard Bearcat fans. Okay,

1307
00:59:55,440 --> 00:59:57,880
Speaker 2: those are good players, but they couldn't make the pieces fit.

1308
00:59:57,960 --> 01:00:00,320
Speaker 2: What they'll do with the roster this year is bild

1309
01:00:00,360 --> 01:00:03,560
Speaker 2: a roster and fit guys into certain roles, and they'll

1310
01:00:03,600 --> 01:00:06,200
Speaker 2: make the pieces fit better. That hasn't happened.

1311
01:00:07,240 --> 01:00:11,560
Speaker 3: It's been one of the more demoralizing UC basketball seasons

1312
01:00:11,560 --> 01:00:13,680
Speaker 3: I can remember. And I'll be the first to tell you,

1313
01:00:13,680 --> 01:00:16,520
Speaker 3: as Mo Will, I'm as big a UC fan as

1314
01:00:16,560 --> 01:00:18,280
Speaker 3: anything else in my life. That's what I grew up

1315
01:00:18,280 --> 01:00:21,640
Speaker 3: on and the thing that bothers me most about U

1316
01:00:21,640 --> 01:00:24,040
Speaker 3: see basketball right now, You see that I grew up

1317
01:00:24,040 --> 01:00:28,280
Speaker 3: knowing toughness. I don't think they're tough like even the

1318
01:00:28,360 --> 01:00:30,560
Speaker 3: Huggins years, the Croning years. They might not have been

1319
01:00:30,560 --> 01:00:32,960
Speaker 3: the most talented, but you knew coming in against that

1320
01:00:33,000 --> 01:00:34,520
Speaker 3: team you were going to be in a dog fight,

1321
01:00:35,000 --> 01:00:38,520
Speaker 3: and it's not that. Right now, I'm dreading twenty twenty six.

1322
01:00:38,920 --> 01:00:41,040
Speaker 3: I'm dreading the new year. I'll tell you what I'm dreading.

1323
01:00:41,800 --> 01:00:43,960
Speaker 3: You want to talk about. You want to talk about

1324
01:00:44,480 --> 01:00:49,040
Speaker 3: a weekend UC versus Navy on January second. Navy has

1325
01:00:49,280 --> 01:00:52,040
Speaker 3: zero holdouts. No one is skipping that bowl game. That

1326
01:00:52,120 --> 01:00:53,960
Speaker 3: is a super Bowl to Navy. I don't know see

1327
01:00:53,960 --> 01:00:56,720
Speaker 3: players are gonna play. I know Tysonviite's three three five

1328
01:00:56,760 --> 01:00:59,480
Speaker 3: defense isn't gonna bow very well against that. And then

1329
01:00:59,520 --> 01:01:01,560
Speaker 3: the very next day he's going to start their Big

1330
01:01:01,600 --> 01:01:06,120
Speaker 3: Twelve conference playing basketball by welcoming Houston into fifth third Arena.

1331
01:01:06,440 --> 01:01:07,640
Speaker 3: I'm not looking forward to that.

1332
01:01:08,200 --> 01:01:10,720
Speaker 4: Every Bearcat basketball game in the West Miller era feel

1333
01:01:10,720 --> 01:01:13,240
Speaker 4: has been the exact same game, and the team makeup

1334
01:01:13,280 --> 01:01:16,160
Speaker 4: and all their shortcomings has been the exact same And

1335
01:01:16,200 --> 01:01:18,160
Speaker 4: that's just hard for me to fathom. And then you

1336
01:01:18,280 --> 01:01:19,840
Speaker 4: look at a team like Xavier and they're in a

1337
01:01:19,880 --> 01:01:23,400
Speaker 4: year of transition after Sean Miller leaves, and it feels

1338
01:01:23,480 --> 01:01:25,919
Speaker 4: like even through the first seven eight games, they're going

1339
01:01:26,000 --> 01:01:29,120
Speaker 4: up into the right and Richard Patino is tinkering and

1340
01:01:29,160 --> 01:01:32,440
Speaker 4: moving stuff around and getting his team into shape. Now

1341
01:01:32,440 --> 01:01:35,280
Speaker 4: they may get, you know, destroyed throughout the Big East schedule.

1342
01:01:35,320 --> 01:01:37,200
Speaker 4: I think a lot of people are expecting that, but

1343
01:01:37,280 --> 01:01:40,200
Speaker 4: it already felt like in ten games Richard Patino had

1344
01:01:40,200 --> 01:01:42,200
Speaker 4: figured out more about his team than West Miller has

1345
01:01:42,240 --> 01:01:44,760
Speaker 4: the last few years. And that's a major indictment on him.

1346
01:01:44,760 --> 01:01:46,920
Speaker 1: And I think it's one of the interesting fun stories

1347
01:01:46,920 --> 01:01:48,919
Speaker 1: that's developed, and I want to see how it goes

1348
01:01:48,920 --> 01:01:51,040
Speaker 1: from here. But Travis Steel and the Miami RedHawks are

1349
01:01:51,040 --> 01:01:54,120
Speaker 1: out to a thirteen and oh start schedule has been questionable,

1350
01:01:54,160 --> 01:01:57,160
Speaker 1: and Evanepsorrow, their fine point guard from Cubcath has torn

1351
01:01:57,200 --> 01:01:59,680
Speaker 1: his acl and they'll be without him. But they're thirteen

1352
01:01:59,720 --> 01:02:01,280
Speaker 1: and oh. They shoot the ball well, they score a

1353
01:02:01,320 --> 01:02:02,960
Speaker 1: lot of points. They're fun to watch. I want to

1354
01:02:02,960 --> 01:02:05,080
Speaker 1: see what happens with mac play still ahead.

1355
01:02:05,120 --> 01:02:07,200
Speaker 2: You know, you had Travis on your show a week

1356
01:02:07,320 --> 01:02:08,880
Speaker 2: or so ago and you said to him, I'm so

1357
01:02:08,960 --> 01:02:11,120
Speaker 2: happy for you, And I can't think of anybody who

1358
01:02:11,160 --> 01:02:13,800
Speaker 2: doesn't feel that way, even Xavier fans. It didn't work out.

1359
01:02:13,920 --> 01:02:16,240
Speaker 2: It didn't work out for a variety of reasons. Travis

1360
01:02:16,240 --> 01:02:18,960
Speaker 2: Steel's a good guy and a guy worth rooting for.

1361
01:02:19,000 --> 01:02:20,080
Speaker 2: And I think a lot of us when he went

1362
01:02:20,120 --> 01:02:21,760
Speaker 2: to Oxford thought, you know what, that may work.

1363
01:02:21,840 --> 01:02:22,560
Speaker 4: And it took a year.

1364
01:02:23,120 --> 01:02:26,240
Speaker 2: And you know, in the NIL era, you wonder about

1365
01:02:26,240 --> 01:02:30,360
Speaker 2: the sustainability of programs in the Mid American Conference. But

1366
01:02:30,360 --> 01:02:33,160
Speaker 2: they're fun to watch. They play a fun brand of basketball.

1367
01:02:33,240 --> 01:02:35,720
Speaker 2: Travis had them on the doorstep of the NCAA Tournament

1368
01:02:36,000 --> 01:02:38,400
Speaker 2: last year. I'm hoping he can get there this year

1369
01:02:38,440 --> 01:02:40,240
Speaker 2: because just as a guy, I want that to.

1370
01:02:40,200 --> 01:02:40,760
Speaker 4: Happen for him.

1371
01:02:40,880 --> 01:02:43,600
Speaker 3: Xavier opens Big East Play and they get boat raced

1372
01:02:44,080 --> 01:02:46,720
Speaker 3: by forty one. Yep, they respond, Yes, they go on

1373
01:02:46,720 --> 01:02:48,640
Speaker 3: the road and be Georgetown. Yeah, that's all you want

1374
01:02:48,640 --> 01:02:50,080
Speaker 3: to see. You want to see your team getting better.

1375
01:02:50,080 --> 01:02:53,400
Speaker 3: It's the end of December and KRK CRISA didn't play

1376
01:02:53,400 --> 01:02:55,080
Speaker 3: in the second half of their last game. For you see,

1377
01:02:55,440 --> 01:02:57,760
Speaker 3: Seana Bie sat the last twelve minutes of the game.

1378
01:02:57,880 --> 01:03:00,920
Speaker 3: They still don't know a rotation with the University of Cincinnati.

1379
01:03:00,920 --> 01:03:04,560
Speaker 3: Here's what I do know. UK is healthy, and this

1380
01:03:04,760 --> 01:03:06,960
Speaker 3: UK healthy team is much different than the team we

1381
01:03:06,960 --> 01:03:10,160
Speaker 3: saw early in the year. Coming off wins against Indiana.

1382
01:03:10,800 --> 01:03:15,080
Speaker 3: UK also just beat Saint John's and what Pat Kelsey

1383
01:03:15,440 --> 01:03:19,080
Speaker 3: has done with Louisville. Louisville is a legitimate Final four contender,

1384
01:03:20,560 --> 01:03:23,680
Speaker 3: Very very very good to watch UK and Louisville right now.

1385
01:03:23,680 --> 01:03:25,800
Speaker 1: And I'll toss in Darren Horne and the Norris. We

1386
01:03:25,880 --> 01:03:28,400
Speaker 1: usually know there that team that follows that mode of

1387
01:03:28,400 --> 01:03:30,640
Speaker 1: getting better as the season goes on. They've been good

1388
01:03:30,640 --> 01:03:32,959
Speaker 1: at stages early and then it's three days in March.

1389
01:03:33,120 --> 01:03:34,600
Speaker 1: They're scoring a lot more than they have I had

1390
01:03:34,640 --> 01:03:36,439
Speaker 1: him on the other night. They're scoring twelve more points

1391
01:03:36,480 --> 01:03:38,840
Speaker 1: a game than they ever have it in KU. Defense

1392
01:03:38,920 --> 01:03:40,560
Speaker 1: is a little bit in question, but there are always

1393
01:03:40,600 --> 01:03:43,120
Speaker 1: that team come March that builds stewards. Can they win

1394
01:03:43,160 --> 01:03:45,080
Speaker 1: over three days to make the ncaa tur for.

1395
01:03:45,040 --> 01:03:47,240
Speaker 4: Those who may have forgotten. When you flip the calendar,

1396
01:03:47,280 --> 01:03:49,440
Speaker 4: it goes January February Norse.

1397
01:03:50,200 --> 01:03:52,120
Speaker 1: And on that note, we'll take a time out. It's

1398
01:03:52,160 --> 01:03:54,640
Speaker 1: a Sports Talks the years Year in Review in the

1399
01:03:54,680 --> 01:03:58,320
Speaker 1: look Ahead show right here on seven hundred a WLW

1400
01:04:04,840 --> 01:04:08,400
Speaker 1: all right down the stretch we go, Santa came down

1401
01:04:08,440 --> 01:04:12,000
Speaker 1: the chimney. It's the Sports Talk Year in Review and

1402
01:04:12,040 --> 01:04:15,120
Speaker 1: the look Ahead. This portion our final segment look ahead

1403
01:04:15,360 --> 01:04:18,320
Speaker 1: specifically to twenty twenty six. Some of the storylines things

1404
01:04:18,400 --> 01:04:21,960
Speaker 1: we will follow and wonder about Moeger, Tony Pike, Austin

1405
01:04:22,040 --> 01:04:25,320
Speaker 1: om or Lance McAllister. I will start my look ahead

1406
01:04:25,760 --> 01:04:29,960
Speaker 1: with a guy I think his performance the red season

1407
01:04:30,000 --> 01:04:32,440
Speaker 1: and outlook hinges on how he does. And that's if

1408
01:04:32,440 --> 01:04:35,520
Speaker 1: Matt McClain can bounce back and be anywhere near what

1409
01:04:35,560 --> 01:04:38,800
Speaker 1: we thought he was beginning to turn into his rookie

1410
01:04:38,880 --> 01:04:41,160
Speaker 1: season where he got Rookie of the Year votes. This

1411
01:04:41,200 --> 01:04:43,800
Speaker 1: lineup takes on a whole different look, But there was

1412
01:04:43,840 --> 01:04:46,520
Speaker 1: a pretty large sample size of last season where Matt

1413
01:04:46,600 --> 01:04:49,760
Speaker 1: McClain just he was not a serviceable major league player,

1414
01:04:49,840 --> 01:04:50,280
Speaker 1: a lot of.

1415
01:04:50,280 --> 01:04:52,840
Speaker 2: Value for him to be NLMVP in twenty twenty six.

1416
01:04:54,000 --> 01:04:55,800
Speaker 2: How I want to take a look at it now.

1417
01:04:55,560 --> 01:05:00,280
Speaker 2: How long's the leash and what's the option? Yeah, if

1418
01:05:00,320 --> 01:05:03,360
Speaker 2: you believe they've dipped their toes in the Catel Marte waters,

1419
01:05:03,400 --> 01:05:06,240
Speaker 2: does that reflect sort of the fact that they're looking

1420
01:05:06,240 --> 01:05:08,360
Speaker 2: for somebody else to be the starting second basement? What

1421
01:05:08,440 --> 01:05:10,560
Speaker 2: might that mean for Matt McClain. Look, at the end

1422
01:05:10,560 --> 01:05:12,880
Speaker 2: of the year, he was hitting ninth. He went from

1423
01:05:12,880 --> 01:05:15,880
Speaker 2: batting second every day to hitting ninth, So they did

1424
01:05:15,920 --> 01:05:19,440
Speaker 2: something with him. They can't go that deep into the

1425
01:05:19,440 --> 01:05:22,200
Speaker 2: season with him hitting the way he did last year.

1426
01:05:22,320 --> 01:05:24,120
Speaker 4: This year, it was to go into spring training with

1427
01:05:24,120 --> 01:05:26,560
Speaker 4: the assumption he's gonna be your opening day second basement, right, Like,

1428
01:05:26,760 --> 01:05:29,800
Speaker 4: it can't be like you have to consider all possibility.

1429
01:05:29,840 --> 01:05:32,280
Speaker 3: It was so weird last year because he was the

1430
01:05:32,280 --> 01:05:34,760
Speaker 3: only one that seemed untouchable. Yeah, everyone else can be

1431
01:05:34,760 --> 01:05:36,840
Speaker 3: sent down, everyone else can be benched for whatever reason.

1432
01:05:36,840 --> 01:05:39,520
Speaker 3: Matt McLain was the untouchable. I hope Matt McLain has

1433
01:05:39,560 --> 01:05:42,240
Speaker 3: a bounce back, but as an organization, you can't operate

1434
01:05:42,280 --> 01:05:44,200
Speaker 3: in that sense. You have to operate to make this

1435
01:05:44,280 --> 01:05:46,360
Speaker 3: line up better. And then if Matt McClain does have

1436
01:05:46,400 --> 01:05:48,680
Speaker 3: a bounce back, that's icing on the cake for you.

1437
01:05:49,000 --> 01:05:52,479
Speaker 3: But you can't operate hoping that he takes another step.

1438
01:05:52,560 --> 01:05:54,280
Speaker 2: That's what's the story going to be at Reds Fest.

1439
01:05:54,280 --> 01:05:57,560
Speaker 2: Matt McClain, what got new glasses? Went on a different diet?

1440
01:05:57,640 --> 01:06:00,840
Speaker 2: Like invariably, there's gonna be this like, well, here's what

1441
01:06:00,960 --> 01:06:03,400
Speaker 2: went wrong last year, here's how Matt McLean fixed it.

1442
01:06:03,640 --> 01:06:06,200
Speaker 2: And you better buy that MVP bet right now because

1443
01:06:06,240 --> 01:06:08,000
Speaker 2: he's poised for a big twenty twenty six.

1444
01:06:08,360 --> 01:06:10,560
Speaker 4: You know it really takes two years for shoulder injuries.

1445
01:06:10,680 --> 01:06:14,160
Speaker 2: Yeah right, yes, yeah, he was going through a lot

1446
01:06:14,200 --> 01:06:16,880
Speaker 2: off the field. There's gonna be something that we all glomb.

1447
01:06:16,600 --> 01:06:18,480
Speaker 4: On psychoanalysis of Matt McClean.

1448
01:06:18,800 --> 01:06:21,240
Speaker 3: Yeah, we're gonna have months off and we're gonna hear

1449
01:06:21,440 --> 01:06:23,520
Speaker 3: right before the start that Allie's still not one hundred percent.

1450
01:06:23,600 --> 01:06:24,479
Speaker 4: Yeah, of course. Yeah.

1451
01:06:24,480 --> 01:06:27,320
Speaker 1: Well, and the latest name churning through the rumor mill

1452
01:06:27,400 --> 01:06:31,440
Speaker 1: as the elusive bat is Luis Robert who now it

1453
01:06:31,480 --> 01:06:34,120
Speaker 1: will be in some way, shape or form, somebody who

1454
01:06:34,640 --> 01:06:37,400
Speaker 1: has had a couple of off off years, or is

1455
01:06:37,440 --> 01:06:40,680
Speaker 1: coming back from injury or needs a change of scenery.

1456
01:06:40,720 --> 01:06:44,040
Speaker 1: There there's something in them of one of those players

1457
01:06:44,080 --> 01:06:46,640
Speaker 1: that will churn through this rumor mill that will pop

1458
01:06:46,720 --> 01:06:48,000
Speaker 1: up onto the Red's ring.

1459
01:06:48,120 --> 01:06:49,840
Speaker 4: I just looked it up when the rumor came out,

1460
01:06:49,880 --> 01:06:52,400
Speaker 4: and he's not from Cincinnati, so I'm a little surprised

1461
01:06:52,520 --> 01:06:55,840
Speaker 4: that there is interest tickets by the Reds considering he

1462
01:06:56,240 --> 01:06:57,680
Speaker 4: won't be selling as mini tickets.

1463
01:06:58,720 --> 01:07:01,640
Speaker 2: I'm already prepping my self to look at Luis Roberts

1464
01:07:01,880 --> 01:07:05,360
Speaker 2: underlying metrics, because when you look at the overlying metrics.

1465
01:07:05,360 --> 01:07:07,520
Speaker 2: They're terrible, so you're you will be told you got

1466
01:07:07,640 --> 01:07:09,920
Speaker 2: to look at the underlying metrics. Okay, Well show me

1467
01:07:10,000 --> 01:07:12,320
Speaker 2: which ones to look at. It feels like they've been

1468
01:07:12,400 --> 01:07:14,840
Speaker 2: flirting with trading for Luise Robert for two years, and

1469
01:07:14,960 --> 01:07:16,959
Speaker 2: during that entire time, the White Sox have been waiting

1470
01:07:16,960 --> 01:07:19,280
Speaker 2: for him to play better so increases his value, and

1471
01:07:19,400 --> 01:07:21,280
Speaker 2: neither things have happened. They haven't traded for him, and

1472
01:07:21,360 --> 01:07:23,280
Speaker 2: he hasn't played any better. But I'm sure once I

1473
01:07:23,320 --> 01:07:25,720
Speaker 2: look at those underlying metrics, I'll talk myself into it.

1474
01:07:26,080 --> 01:07:28,200
Speaker 1: Well, you know, in terms of what we do on

1475
01:07:28,280 --> 01:07:30,920
Speaker 1: a daily basis, twenty twenty six is going to at

1476
01:07:31,000 --> 01:07:35,760
Speaker 1: some point include conversation about the future of West Miller,

1477
01:07:36,120 --> 01:07:40,240
Speaker 1: Scott Saderfield, Zach Taylor, maybe even Pat Noonan based on

1478
01:07:40,360 --> 01:07:42,360
Speaker 1: how much they spent last year and didn't go as

1479
01:07:42,360 --> 01:07:44,360
Speaker 1: far as they wanted. There's a whole lot of coaches

1480
01:07:44,400 --> 01:07:47,400
Speaker 1: in managerial, maybe not managerial, a lot of coaching of us,

1481
01:07:47,520 --> 01:07:49,840
Speaker 1: and who are going to be part of the conversation

1482
01:07:50,000 --> 01:07:50,320
Speaker 1: this year.

1483
01:07:50,360 --> 01:07:53,520
Speaker 4: I think you said managerial, I mean Francona. There's a

1484
01:07:53,640 --> 01:07:56,280
Speaker 4: lockout looming in Major League Baseball in twenty twenty seven.

1485
01:07:56,400 --> 01:07:58,080
Speaker 4: I don't know how long he's gonna do that, and

1486
01:07:58,160 --> 01:08:00,480
Speaker 4: the pressure that he feels on this ball club, So

1487
01:08:00,520 --> 01:08:02,080
Speaker 4: I think that's going to be a conversation at some

1488
01:08:02,160 --> 01:08:03,160
Speaker 4: point as well. Next year.

1489
01:08:04,400 --> 01:08:07,400
Speaker 2: I think I think Terry Francona is interesting because even

1490
01:08:07,480 --> 01:08:09,400
Speaker 2: last year there were a lot of folks who wondered, God,

1491
01:08:09,680 --> 01:08:12,440
Speaker 2: really want to do this? And you know, he never

1492
01:08:12,560 --> 01:08:15,120
Speaker 2: gave any indication that this is something he doesn't want

1493
01:08:15,160 --> 01:08:17,439
Speaker 2: to do, but he has had health issues. He is

1494
01:08:17,520 --> 01:08:19,479
Speaker 2: closer to the end of his career than the beginning.

1495
01:08:19,600 --> 01:08:21,880
Speaker 2: If things do go south with the club this year,

1496
01:08:22,400 --> 01:08:24,200
Speaker 2: I think that's going to be something that a lot

1497
01:08:24,280 --> 01:08:27,000
Speaker 2: of people talk about. And look, man, this is a

1498
01:08:27,080 --> 01:08:29,080
Speaker 2: season that's going to be judged by do the Reds

1499
01:08:29,439 --> 01:08:31,800
Speaker 2: not just make the postseason but advance so do they

1500
01:08:31,840 --> 01:08:34,519
Speaker 2: put themselves in a better position The Bengals not making

1501
01:08:34,520 --> 01:08:38,480
Speaker 2: the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year seems almost inconceivable,

1502
01:08:38,680 --> 01:08:42,360
Speaker 2: but we're confronting that reality. Things are very dark for

1503
01:08:42,360 --> 01:08:43,639
Speaker 2: the UC basketball program.

1504
01:08:44,240 --> 01:08:45,400
Speaker 3: The tournament or west Miller's gone.

1505
01:08:45,680 --> 01:08:49,000
Speaker 2: I mean there we're talking about them maybe losing fourteen

1506
01:08:49,080 --> 01:08:51,559
Speaker 2: fifteen games in the Big Twelve which is for year

1507
01:08:51,680 --> 01:08:53,559
Speaker 2: five unbelievable.

1508
01:08:53,000 --> 01:08:54,600
Speaker 3: As one of your favorite things to do.

1509
01:08:55,080 --> 01:08:59,000
Speaker 2: New Coach Radio, New Coach Radio Radio, Scott Sadderfield's in

1510
01:08:59,040 --> 01:09:01,479
Speaker 2: a real interesting place because they were better this year,

1511
01:09:02,000 --> 01:09:04,160
Speaker 2: not beloved by the fan base. They have to replace

1512
01:09:04,280 --> 01:09:06,840
Speaker 2: a lot of guys. I thought Chris and I thought

1513
01:09:06,880 --> 01:09:11,120
Speaker 2: that Chris Albright press conference last week was weird, right?

1514
01:09:11,479 --> 01:09:14,240
Speaker 2: Was weird that that As much as I think Pat

1515
01:09:14,400 --> 01:09:17,720
Speaker 2: Noonan is universally respected in that sport, as much as

1516
01:09:17,760 --> 01:09:20,400
Speaker 2: I think Chris and Pat have always had alignment, that

1517
01:09:20,560 --> 01:09:23,680
Speaker 2: press conference did not exactly sound like a ringing endorsement

1518
01:09:23,760 --> 01:09:25,400
Speaker 2: for the current state of that club.

1519
01:09:25,479 --> 01:09:28,759
Speaker 1: Yeah, talked about how it felt stale watching during the season.

1520
01:09:29,479 --> 01:09:31,200
Speaker 3: I think if you would have taken a lot of

1521
01:09:31,280 --> 01:09:33,800
Speaker 3: UC fans football wise going into the year and say

1522
01:09:33,840 --> 01:09:36,040
Speaker 3: seven wins, I think a lot of fans would have said, Okay,

1523
01:09:36,120 --> 01:09:39,120
Speaker 3: that's good, that's improvement. When you look at how it transpired,

1524
01:09:39,400 --> 01:09:40,960
Speaker 3: and then you look at the makeup of the roster,

1525
01:09:41,560 --> 01:09:45,120
Speaker 3: like you meant, Dante Corleone just a weird year, playing

1526
01:09:45,120 --> 01:09:48,120
Speaker 3: about fifty percent of the snaps. What happens to the

1527
01:09:48,160 --> 01:09:50,439
Speaker 3: three three five when you don't have an NFL caliber

1528
01:09:50,760 --> 01:09:54,960
Speaker 3: nose tackle Joe Royer was underutilized. Brendan Soaresby, say what

1529
01:09:55,120 --> 01:09:58,040
Speaker 3: you want, he's gonna make three or four million dollars

1530
01:09:58,080 --> 01:10:02,000
Speaker 3: playing somewhere next year. This team NFL talent and from

1531
01:10:02,000 --> 01:10:04,280
Speaker 3: a scouting department, they had high level scouts. Because they've

1532
01:10:04,320 --> 01:10:07,720
Speaker 3: been taken by other universities. I don't know how you

1533
01:10:07,880 --> 01:10:12,120
Speaker 3: make up for the loss of so many key members

1534
01:10:12,560 --> 01:10:15,280
Speaker 3: of this team and find a way to do better,

1535
01:10:15,320 --> 01:10:17,200
Speaker 3: because that, to me is the bar. If you're not

1536
01:10:17,280 --> 01:10:19,240
Speaker 3: better than seven wins next year, then I think you

1537
01:10:19,320 --> 01:10:20,280
Speaker 3: got to look for the next coach.

1538
01:10:21,360 --> 01:10:23,280
Speaker 1: You know what else I would aside from all of this,

1539
01:10:23,520 --> 01:10:26,080
Speaker 1: I'd like to I hope we see in twenty twenty six.

1540
01:10:26,520 --> 01:10:30,240
Speaker 1: I hope the Bengals have a catch up class of

1541
01:10:30,320 --> 01:10:32,479
Speaker 1: the Ring of Honor and admit we're we're going to

1542
01:10:32,600 --> 01:10:35,760
Speaker 1: change the process. We had good intentions to begin with.

1543
01:10:35,920 --> 01:10:38,400
Speaker 1: We understand there's a backlog. I would love to see

1544
01:10:38,439 --> 01:10:41,400
Speaker 1: pick the number of candidates. I'd say, anybody on the

1545
01:10:41,479 --> 01:10:43,439
Speaker 1: ballot the last time is eventually going to make it.

1546
01:10:43,520 --> 01:10:45,080
Speaker 1: I'm not so sure. I just wouldn't put them in

1547
01:10:45,320 --> 01:10:48,599
Speaker 1: as a celebration class as one and then change the process.

1548
01:10:48,760 --> 01:10:52,160
Speaker 1: Maybe it's every couple of years, but you're never sadly.

1549
01:10:52,400 --> 01:10:55,400
Speaker 1: Bob Trumpy is an example. It's just guys should be

1550
01:10:55,600 --> 01:10:58,160
Speaker 1: honored while they're alive. And there's just too many guys

1551
01:10:58,200 --> 01:10:59,320
Speaker 1: they're going to have to catch up on.

1552
01:10:59,479 --> 01:11:03,160
Speaker 4: And they said they're going to change or rethink the

1553
01:11:03,240 --> 01:11:05,120
Speaker 4: way they do that. What I think is interesting, twenty

1554
01:11:05,200 --> 01:11:07,919
Speaker 4: twenty seven is the sixtieth anniversary season of the Bengals,

1555
01:11:08,320 --> 01:11:10,560
Speaker 4: and that would be a great time to maybe restart it,

1556
01:11:10,720 --> 01:11:13,559
Speaker 4: refresh it, figure out a way, maybe, like you're saying,

1557
01:11:13,880 --> 01:11:15,880
Speaker 4: do a catch up class, and then restart at that

1558
01:11:16,000 --> 01:11:18,080
Speaker 4: sixtieth anniversary season with a different way.

1559
01:11:18,000 --> 01:11:19,960
Speaker 2: Of doing What is the harmon putting all those guys in?

1560
01:11:20,080 --> 01:11:21,760
Speaker 2: And I tried to make this case last year while

1561
01:11:21,800 --> 01:11:23,759
Speaker 2: Trump was still with us, because he and Lamar Parrish

1562
01:11:23,800 --> 01:11:25,840
Speaker 2: were the two oldest candidates. But I also wanted Lap

1563
01:11:25,960 --> 01:11:29,439
Speaker 2: to go in. Don't put Jim Breach up against Geno Atkins, right,

1564
01:11:29,600 --> 01:11:32,880
Speaker 2: don't put Max Montoya up against AJ Green. Sure, put

1565
01:11:32,920 --> 01:11:35,200
Speaker 2: all those guys in, and then it's your ring of honor.

1566
01:11:35,320 --> 01:11:36,840
Speaker 2: You can decide how you want to do it. You

1567
01:11:36,880 --> 01:11:38,479
Speaker 2: could put a guy in a year, you could put

1568
01:11:38,479 --> 01:11:40,160
Speaker 2: a guy in a game, you could decide to take

1569
01:11:40,280 --> 01:11:42,280
Speaker 2: years off, like the Reds Hall of Fame does. You

1570
01:11:42,360 --> 01:11:44,080
Speaker 2: can make it up as you go along. But I

1571
01:11:44,160 --> 01:11:47,439
Speaker 2: think when Bob passed away and Lance you talked about

1572
01:11:47,479 --> 01:11:49,920
Speaker 2: him extensively and understandably so. But one of the very

1573
01:11:50,000 --> 01:11:52,320
Speaker 2: first things I thought of is when he goes into

1574
01:11:52,320 --> 01:11:53,800
Speaker 2: the Ring of Honor, he's not going to be there,

1575
01:11:53,840 --> 01:11:56,200
Speaker 2: and that sucks because I'm not sure there's anybody who

1576
01:11:56,200 --> 01:11:58,000
Speaker 2: would have enjoyed it more, and I'm not sure there's

1577
01:11:58,000 --> 01:11:59,599
Speaker 2: anybody who would have had more to say out.

1578
01:12:02,560 --> 01:12:04,519
Speaker 3: I think good float out. I think twenty twenty six

1579
01:12:04,680 --> 01:12:09,160
Speaker 3: is very simple. Reds Bengals, Bearcats, f C Cincinnati. When

1580
01:12:09,200 --> 01:12:13,080
Speaker 3: we're doing this, God willing, next year, they've all had

1581
01:12:13,120 --> 01:12:17,200
Speaker 3: better seasons. They all have to take major strides forward

1582
01:12:17,680 --> 01:12:19,639
Speaker 3: that the Bengals can't be on the outside looking into

1583
01:12:19,680 --> 01:12:22,479
Speaker 3: the playoffs. The Reds can't miss the playoffs, you know,

1584
01:12:22,600 --> 01:12:24,240
Speaker 3: you see, can't be talking about not going to the

1585
01:12:24,360 --> 01:12:28,280
Speaker 3: NCAA Tournament or winning six games and barely making Bowl eligibility.

1586
01:12:28,960 --> 01:12:32,439
Speaker 3: F C Cincinnati's got to take the next step. The teams,

1587
01:12:32,479 --> 01:12:34,479
Speaker 3: and you would think Xavier under Richard Patino in year

1588
01:12:34,520 --> 01:12:36,240
Speaker 3: two will do that the standard year.

1589
01:12:36,400 --> 01:12:39,480
Speaker 4: The standards should always be an aggressive pursuit of a championship,

1590
01:12:39,640 --> 01:12:42,920
Speaker 4: and until that's reached, fans in this city should not be.

1591
01:12:42,960 --> 01:12:45,840
Speaker 2: Having And there's all there's so much like uncertainty, like

1592
01:12:46,000 --> 01:12:48,439
Speaker 2: we are, we're closing in. We're in the second half

1593
01:12:48,439 --> 01:12:50,160
Speaker 2: of the decade. Now Burrow's not going to be a

1594
01:12:50,200 --> 01:12:52,800
Speaker 2: Bengal forever. You mentioned the lockout twenty twenty seven. Now

1595
01:12:54,000 --> 01:12:58,719
Speaker 2: this coming baseball season we're nil. And where college sports

1596
01:12:58,760 --> 01:13:00,960
Speaker 2: are going and how that affect to local teams. There's

1597
01:13:01,000 --> 01:13:04,000
Speaker 2: so much uncertainty. But I feel like this year we

1598
01:13:04,200 --> 01:13:06,400
Speaker 2: often felt stuck in the mud as it relates to

1599
01:13:06,479 --> 01:13:09,120
Speaker 2: these teams, even during that stretch where they're not getting Schwarber,

1600
01:13:09,160 --> 01:13:12,000
Speaker 2: the Bengals lose, the Bearcats lose. There's got to be

1601
01:13:12,160 --> 01:13:14,840
Speaker 2: something or someone who pulls us out of this. I

1602
01:13:14,880 --> 01:13:16,960
Speaker 2: don't know who it's going to be, but it's got

1603
01:13:17,080 --> 01:13:17,400
Speaker 2: to happen.

1604
01:13:17,600 --> 01:13:21,719
Speaker 1: Merry Christmas, gentlemen, Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas. Thanks for spending

1605
01:13:21,760 --> 01:13:24,080
Speaker 1: your morning with us. This has been the Sports Talk

1606
01:13:24,240 --> 01:13:26,960
Speaker 1: Year in Review and look Ahead show. Thanks to Drew

1607
01:13:27,000 --> 01:13:30,920
Speaker 1: Wester Heidi for Yeah Waller job ding the scenes This

1608
01:13:31,439 --> 01:13:33,000
Speaker 1: is seven hundred WLW