Thursday Night Tailgate

In this week's Spotlight on the Positive segment hear why Miami Dolphins OLB Jerome Baker is their Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee. He's doing great work for the Boys & Girls Club, victims of the Haiti earthquake, and much more. We also Spotlight Rob Gronkowski and his 4 brothers for establishing Gronk Nation. They're doing great things to help kids get the resources they need for their education and extracurricular activities. They helped raise $1.2M to renovate the Charlesbank Playground in Boston and $70,000 for Boston schools to get new sports equipment for their female sports programs.

Leonard Marshall, Tony Collins, Mike Pritchard, Mark Collins, & Vance McDonald Join Us... Leonard Marshall started off talking about his admiration of former AFL star DT Ernie Ladd, who it turns out was married to Leonard's second cousin. We also get his thoughts on the Giants hiring Bryan Cox as a new Assistant Defensive Line Coach, what the Giants need to do in order to compete for an NFC East Division title, why LSU had to fire Head Coach Ed Orgeron, and why Leonard isn't in the Giants Ring of Honor. We wrapped up our season Prognostication Championship with Tony Collins this week. Tony fell just short, being caught from behind by Bob for this year's title after Tony went with the Bengals in the Super Bowl. Mike Pritchard shared his thoughts on the Super Bowl and what makes Cooper Kupp such a great WR. He also shares his insights on the Raiders season, and how fragile success is in the NFL. Mark Collins talked about his memories of winning 2 Super Bowls with the Giants in 1986 & 1990. Mark also talked about what it was like dealing with the extended half-times in Super Bowls, what has driven him to be successful in college, the NFL, and broadcasting. We also get some happy memories of his block that sprung George Martin's 75 yard pick-six against Denver and his own 78 yard pick-six against former teammate Jeff Hostetler when Mark was in Kansas City and Jeff was with the Raiders. Vance McDonald rounded out the show. We talked with Vance about how he ended up playing his college ball at Rice. We also hear about his day as a long snapper, and what it was like being drafted by the 49ers as they were coming off the loss to the Ravens in the Super Bowl. Vance also the story of when he found out he was traded to the Steelers, the Steelers/Ravens rivalry, his legendary stiff arm on the Bucs Chris Conte, and why he walked away from the game at age 31.

Rocky was the 2nd ever guest on this show back in September of 2011 and he's been a wonderful guest and friend ever since. He talks about rekindling the Super Bowl memories every year at this time. We hear about the miserable weather conditions they played in during the 1979 AFC Championship Game against the Houston Oilers. We talk about how the Rams in '79 were actually the first team to have home-field advantage in the Super Bowl back in 1980. They played their home games in the LA Colisseum which was 30 minutes from the Rose Bowl, site of Super Bowl XIV. In that game, the Rams not only had home-field advantage, they also had 3 former Steelers coaches on their staff. Rocky talks about having to face the coaches that knew them well. We also hear about the TD he scored in Super Bowl XIII that came on a broken play, plus Terry Bradshaw's disdain for short passes.

Tony Collins shares memories from his experience playing in Super Bowl XX against the Bears plus leads us through our picks for this year's Super Bowl.   

Yale Head Coach Tony Reno shares his thoughts on last season and what it will take to win the Ivy League title in '22. We hear his thoughts on the privilege of not only playing for Yale but going to school there as well. We also hear how he recruits athletes with a passion for football who also meet the school's educational qualifications. Finally, we discuss how he teaches his players to represent the University and themselves when they're away from the football field.  

Kevin Chalfant is the Former Lead Singer of the Journey spin-off band The Storm. Kevin is currently touring with The Voices of Rock Radio and took time from that to join us. Kevin is a Chicago native and we get his thoughts on the Bears season, his admiration for Tom Brady, and the Cubs who broke his heart growing up. We also learn about his relationship with several members of Journey and my hope that one day he's fronting the band.  

In this week's Spotlight on the Positive segment hear how Vikings OLB Anthony Barr is helping single parents through his Raise The Barr Foundation. He's partnering with single-parent students and their children to increase their opportunity and economic mobility through education. His Foundation supports college success among single-parent students in order to improve racial, ethnic, and gender equity in higher education access. We also Spotlight Raiders TE Darren Waller and his Foundation which is helping kids with addictions get the inpatient treatment they need plus help positively influence kids so they don't go down that path.

Singer/Song Writer Kevin Chalfant, former Patriots Pro Bowl RB Tony Collins, Yale Head Coach Tony Reno, and Steelers Legend Rocky Bleier join us. Kevin Chalfant is the Former Lead Singer of the Journey spin-off band The Storm. Kevin is currently touring with The Voices of Rock Radio and took time from that to join us. Kevin is a Chicago native and we get his thoughts on the Bears season, his admiration for Tom Brady, and the Cubs who broke his heart growing up. We also learn about his relationship with several members of Journey and my hope that one day he's fronting the band. Tony Collins shares memories from his experience playing in Super Bowl XX against the Bears plus leads us through our picks for the Super Bowl.  Yale Head Coach Tony Reno shares his thoughts on last season and what it will take to win the Ivy League title in '22. We hear his thoughts on the privilege of not only playing for Yale but going to school there as well. We also hear how he recruits athletes with a passion for football who also meet the school's educational qualifications. Finally, we discuss how he teaches his players to represent the University and themselves when they're away from the football field. Rocky was the 2nd ever guest on this show back in September of 2011 and he's been a wonderful guest and friend ever since. He talks about rekindling the Super Bowl memories every year at this time. We hear about the miserable weather conditions they played in during the 1979 AFC Championship Game against the Houston Oilers. We talk about how the Rams in '79 were actually the first team to have home-field advantage in the Super Bowl back in 1980. They played their home games in the LA Colisseum which was 30 minutes from the Rose Bowl, site of Super Bowl XIV. In that game, the Rams not only had home-field advantage, they also had 3 former Steelers coaches on their staff. Rocky talks about having to face the coaches that knew them well. We also hear about the TD he scored in Super Bowl XIII that came on a broken play, plus Terry Bradshaw's disdain for short passes.