Says Who Sports with John Dauphin

Episode 36: The Best of Says Who Sports, Season 1!

It's been a year since the first episode of Says Who Sports in March of '24...fast time. Strong guests galore, including numerous legends, have joined Says Who Sports to share their observations and insight. So, we at SWS thought it fitting to put together a "greatest hits" collection of guest quotes and anecdotes to highlight the first season. From first guest, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach Bob Hurley Sr., to Bob Costas to Oscar Winners Billy Bob Thornton and Cameron Crowe, from Lou Holtz to "The Rocket" Roger Clemens to multi-time Emmy Award-winner Michele Tafoya and all legends in between, this episode of Says Who Sports is a taste of the best of those conversations.  And of course, you can find all of the first-season episodes of Says Who Sports on Apple and Spotify and the Says Who Sports YouTube channel. Please "like" and subscribe and leave a five-star review...no cost to you, and it helps to spread awareness of Says Who Sports.  Thank you, as always, and enjoy!

Episode 35: Sarah Thomas, Longtime NFL Official, Visits with Says Who Sports

NFL Official Sarah Thomas, who worked Super Bowl LV and has been in the league for a decade, visits with Says Who Sports to share her thoughts on a variety of topics, including the Philadelphia Eagles blowout of the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Thomas says that, aside from Super Bowl-specific preparation, NFL game officials prepare for battle year-round, including multiple offseason clinics and constant rules/situational testing by the league. Thomas details the hectic atmosphere of her Down Judge positioning along the line of scrimmage during a game, including the requisite ability for unwavering focus and execution on every play.   Thomas, a former college athlete, recalls her disdain for game officials as a player, and discusses the newfound understanding and respect she gained for the job after attending her first-ever officials meeting at the local amateur sports level in her native Pascagoula, Mississippi. The meeting fueled her interest in officiating and launched a career that has now spanned three decades, including many years as an official in D1 college football in Conference USA and being selected to work multiple bowl games and Senior Bowls.  She has worked numerous high-profile NFL contests including Monday Night Football, multiple playoff games and Super Bowl LV between the Chiefs and Buccaneers. Thomas talks about the excitement of receiving word from legendary NFL official Wayne Mackie that she’d earned the honor of officiating in Super Bowl LV, and the emotion of sharing the news with her parents. Thomas also discusses the inspirational impact made on her by Jill Upton, her aunt and the coach of the U.S. Women’s Basketball team at the World University Games in Moscow in 1973 (the team included a young player named Pat Summitt). Upton encouraged Thomas, who loved playing basketball, to try out for the fifth-grade boys basketball team because there was no girls’ team at the time. Thomas made the squad. She went on to play college basketball at the University of Mobile. Thomas has blazed an inspirational trail en route to becoming an official at the highest level of professional sports, and discusses the strong foundation of faith, work ethic and accountability (no excuses) instilled in her and her siblings by her parents. Plus, much more!

Episode 34: Michele Tafoya, Four-Time Emmy-winning Sports Reporter, Talks with Says Who Sports

Michele Tafoya, who was the sideline reporter for NBC Sunday Night Football from 2011-22 and worked five Super Bowls and multiple Olympics for NBC, including the poolside reporter role during Michael Phelps’s last Olympics at Rio in ’16, joins Says Who Sports to discuss a variety of topics, including the upcoming Super Bowl, the intensity of an NFL sideline and the necessity of being able to adjust on-the-fly to ever-changing storylines during a game and relay key information at a moment’s notice to viewers during a television broadcast. Tafoya, who grew up in Southern California in a family of San Francisco 49ers fans (her parents were from the Bay Area), recalls the excitement of trips to old Candlestick Park to watch the Joe Montana-era Niners play, and the thrill of meeting Montana for the first time early in her career. Tafoya talks the importance of preparation, keys to improvement (including willingness to accept criticism) and the work ethic needed to succeed for decades at the highest level. She shares the excitement of covering Phelps, Katie Ledecky and company at the Rio 2016 Games, including the added joy of being able to share it with her family, who accompanied her on the trip. Tafoya, who left NBC Sports in ’22 to become host of The Michele Tafoya Podcast, shares the reasons behind her move, discusses her concern for the slide of sports media coverage into activism and identity politics, and shares her perspectives on keeping our minds right to overcome life's challenges.

Episode 33: Mark Floreani, Co-founder/CEO of FloSports, Visits with Says Who Sports

Mark Floreani, Co-founder and CEO of FloSports, joins Says Who Sports to discuss the sports media company’s commitment to coverage of sports, athletes and events with strong fan bases he believes had been previously underserved in the sports media marketplace. From exclusive coverage of the Chili Bowl Nationals, the signature event in Dirt Midget racing, to the UCA and UDA College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships, to track and field, wrestling, racing and more, FloSports has built a streaming service rights-and-partnerships portfolio that includes production, content and coverage of more than twenty sports and thousands of events.  Floreani shares the stories behind the earliest days of Austin-based FloSports, including a ten-thousand-dollar budget and months spent traveling the country by van to provide coverage of track and field and wrestling events. Floreani, who grew up in Chicago and attended the University of Texas, talks lessons learned from his days as a member of the track and field team at UT that continue to drive him as a competitor in the sports media industry.  Floreani discusses the key fundamentals of the FloSports business model, the company’s approach to rights acquisition, his perspectives on the current-and-future sports media/streaming landscape, and finding ways to help partners win for the long-term when it comes to building awareness and growth of their sports, athletes and events.

Episode 33: Ryan Patton, Tire Carrier for Hendrick Motorsports Famed No. 24 Chevrolet in NASCAR Cup Series, Talks with Says Who Sports

Ryan Patton, Tire Carrier for Hendrick Motorsports famed No. 24 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Cup Series, talks with Says Who Sports about the thrill of winning the Daytona 500 with driver William Byron in '24, making the Championship 4 in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs for a second year in a row last season, his championship expectations for ’25, and how he and his pit crew teammates on the No. 24 team are readying for a shot at a repeat Daytona 500 win in February. Patton recalls his rookie season at Hendrick Motorsports as a member of the pit crew for Jimmie Johnson and Crew Chief Chad Knaus on the legendary No. 48 Chevrolet in 2013, including what it was like to win his first Daytona 500 and Cup Series Championship that season and learn under the tutelage of Knaus.  Patton, who grew up in a racing family in small-town Delphos, Ohio, graduated from Ohio State and was a member of the strength and conditioning team for the Ohio State football program under Eric Lichter, shares the powerful story of the visit to Hendrick Motorsports in 2011 that changed his life and launched a career as a competitor with the winningest organization in NASCAR history, as witnessed by the organization’s record 300-plus Cup Series wins and 14 Cup Series championships.   Patton explains how many of the same core skills and fundamentals necessary to become an elite college football player are essential to being a pit crew member on a premier team in the NASCAR Cup Series, especially as the evolution of pit stops has led to drastically lower stop times and made pit crew athletes possessing a hybrid combination of top-level speed and mobility a must-have for success. Patton also shares stories about a few of the craziest happenings he has experienced on pit road, his favorite NASCAR tracks and why, watching his favorite driver Dale Earnhardt win the first Cup race he ever attended at Michigan International Speedway, the leadership influence on him of HMS owner Rick Hendrick and former Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel, importance of passing on insight gained from many years in the sport to the next wave of youngsters in the developmental pit crew funnel at Hendrick Motorsports, and much more!