There’s drama in the MLB playoffs, excitement in the NFL, preseason games in the NBA, dismal play by the USMNT, and that was talking sports. Another week, another profile of someone in the sports media world who was No. 1 on Houston sports radio several times over on as many stations, Lance Zierlein!
Before we get into Episode 87, as a reminder, The Bridge is broadcast as a one-hour radio show every Wednesday night at 7 ET and again at 8 ET on Sports Radio America. Once the dust settles from that live broadcast, the show is released as a podcast on iTunes and on this website the following day on Thursday. You can listen to the show every Wednesday on Sports Radio America here or through the TuneIn app, and find some bonus content, including a weekly gambling segment, when the show comes out in podcast form.
- “Sports News Read Like Real News” Flashback: Remember when the NFL was just known as the “No Fun League?” This week, a flashback to this time last year when the NFL prohibited its teams from posting stadium highlights on social media, perhaps putting the use of memes in doubt (2:16).
- The Bridge Question of the Week is: What team is your favorite to win the World Series, and why? Leave a voicemail or text in your answer to 929-BRIDGE7, that’s 929-274-3437, and you’ll make it on the next show.
- This week’s guest is Lance Zierlein, an NFL Draft analyst for NFL.com and longtime co-host of No. 1 morning shows in the Houston market. Lance has football in his blood from a young age, as his father is a longtime coach currently serving as an assistant line coach in the NFL. He would make his way into sports media, eventually doing sports radio in the Houston market, where he would work his way to the No. 1 spot in morning shows several times, and doing so at three different stations. Lance announced in June that he would let his contract run out to focus on his family and his NFL work, but you can still hear him on the podcast airwaves. We’ll chat about how he got into sports media and his path to sports radio, getting on the air in Houston and what contributed to his success in sports radio, a quick un-retiring of some of his best impressions from those radio days, what he’s up to now and some thoughts on the 2018 NFL Draft and Houston sports.
- Follow Lance on Twitter -> @LanceZierlein. The interview starts at the 7:48 mark.
– In the interview, we discuss:
If growing up as the son of a football coach influenced him getting into sports (8:15), how he got started in sports media using handicapping and ending up in sports radio (10:26), the importance of having chemistry with co-hosts (14:12), what contributed to getting the No. 1 morning show in Houston (16:27), what drew him to morning radio (18:43), the biggest challenge he faced doing sports radio (20:20), the biggest change in sports radio since he started (25:02), the story behind, and brief un-retiring, of some of his best radio impression and characters (29:23), the decision to leave sports talk radio (33:10), what he does now as an NFL Draft analyst (35:02), an early prediction for the 2018 NFL Draft (35:50), having Deshaun Watson as the QB for the Texans (38:24), if the Astros can make the World Series (41:46) and what listeners can find on his Off the Script podcast (42:53).
- “The Toll Bridge with Donnie RightSide.” Donnie is a professional handicapper who knows a thing or two about the lines of the sports world and joins The Bridge for a weekly segment to help us get on the right side of those lines, based on his years of numbers, strategy and overall knowledge of the market. This week, Donnie offers up some of his best bets to correspond with The Bridge Fade of the Week, where listeners are urged to completely go in the opposite direction of the show. You can find Donnie at DonnieRightSide.com and SportsBookReview.com and follow him on Twitter @RightSideVP. And remember, this segment is for entertainment purposes only (45:59).
- “Five Minutes in the Film Room” with Joe Baress, former star of the prestigious John and Joe Sports Show, breaks down “American Assassin,” which Rotten Tomatoes describes as the rise of Mitch Rapp, a CIA black ops recruit under the instruction of Cold War veteran Stan Hurley. The pair is enlisted by a CIA Deputy Director to investigate a wave of apparently random attacks on both military and civilian targets. Together the three discover a pattern in the violence leading them to a joint mission with a lethal Turkish agent to stop a mysterious operative, intent on starting a World War in the Middle East (52:06). You can follow Joe on Twitter @dukemich and read his movie reviews, previews and ratings at cupof-joe.com.
Call in or text the show 24/7 at 929-BRIDGE7, that’s (929) 274-3437. Contact the show with your questions, comments, stories or hot takes and you might be featured in the next installment of The Bridge.
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Show music: ‘Actionable’ and ‘Epic,’ courtesy of www.bensound.com.
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