Episodios

  • Rory Doubles Up! NBA Play-in games went crazy

    Rory Doubles Up! NBA Play-in games went crazy
    Apr 17 2026
    We're fresh off a phenomenal Masters that put our picks to the test! We checked in on our previous Masters predictions and found we were successful in predicting our "disappointments," which led to an "incredible reverse jinx". Rory McIlroy, Rich's disappointment pick, won back-to-back, and James Mundia's pick, Scottie Scheffler, also performed well. The guys are now demanding $25,000 each from McIlroy and Scheffler for motivating them.
    The main event was a deeper dive into the Masters' outcome, specifically Rory McIlroy's victory, which James observed was due to a change in his demeanor and mentality, making him seem more focused on "completing the job". This result suggests a more even playing field heading into the PGA tournament and the rest of the majors. We also covered headlines suggesting that LIV Golf may be closing shop, noting Brooks Koepka is currently the only player who has formally gone through the "paying your penance" process to return to the PGA. We also reminded Marcus, our intern of 20 years, to create a spec script for a sporting episode of the podcast.
    Shifting gears, we dove headlong into the unexpectedly dramatic NBA play-in games. Rich discussed the intensity of the Charlotte Hornets' game against the Miami Heat, referring to the Hornets as "America's team," a fan club James has now officially joined. Both of us stressed the critical importance of this playoff experience for the Hornets' growth, noting that unlike other sports, NBA success often requires this progressive exposure to the postseason environment. We also solidified the plan to complete the NBA playoff bracket tomorrow night before the first round starts on Saturday
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    59 m
  • The Masters is here! March Madness wraps up. BURRITO DEBATE!

    The Masters is here! March Madness wraps up. BURRITO DEBATE!
    Apr 10 2026
    We are live for "Christmas in April," checking in on the Masters, which is already testing our predictions. We fact-checked our draft picks. James is already committed to two trips to Fish Camp after losing the NFL pick 'em league and the March Madness bracket challenge to Rich Abernethy, and it could be quadruple or nothing with the Masters AND World Cup picks to come!

    Our main event was the surprising hire of Michael Malone as the new head coach at the University of North Carolina. We agreed the move offers a strong recruiting and branding edge, but Rich Abernethy emphasized that today's recruits are drawn more by "the commas and the zeros" than the "legends and heroes" of the "Carolina Way".

    Shifting gears, we dove into a heated debate on fast-casual burritos: Rich Abernethy is a "big Kdoba guy," asserting it's superior to Chipotle, while James declared Moe's Southwest Grill "the GOAT"—a claim Rich strongly refutes. We had to exclude Taco Bell from the discussion, classifying it as a "different weight class".

    Finally, we looked at "America's team," the Charlotte Hornets, currently sitting in the 9-seed for the NBA playoffs. Rich Abernethy is concerned the successful season could end as a "big tease" if they lose the play-in games.

    That’s a wrap! The Word Sports News and Stuff program is available on all major podcast platforms, and you can follow us on twitter.com/@thewordpodcast and Instagram/@thewordpodcast. We'll catch you next week with a full NBA playoff preview once the matchups are finalized!
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    1 h y 26 m
  • March Madness Stages of Grief, Politics = Sports, Spring Sports Are Here!

    March Madness Stages of Grief, Politics = Sports, Spring Sports Are Here!
    Apr 3 2026
    The Final Four is set! On this episode we take some time to go over the insane end of the Duke - UCONN Elite Eight game last weekend, which dovetails nicely into our talk on why we do this to ourselves as sports fans.

    With the hoops season over for the majority of the field, it's that time of year where athletes give their perfunctory answers as to whether they are coming back next season. We talk about why are we even asking these questions, much the same as how no one really takes anything a politician takes seriously, but we still ask them the same things over and over!

    Staying with our New Year's Resolution of keeping things positive, there are a lot of things coming down the pipe in the next few weeks in the sporting world, so we go over a few of them, including a "Tradition unlike any other..."

    We conclude with our Master's "draft", tune in to see how we tweak the format a little bit.
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    1 h y 18 m
  • More March Madness, Davis is out at UNC! Hornets are America's team, 90's nostalgia bait

    More March Madness, Davis is out at UNC! Hornets are America's team, 90's nostalgia bait
    Mar 30 2026
    We are live for March Madness, and we’re legally viewing the Texas versus Purdue game—Purdue is up 72-70—but as Rich said, this score will be old news by the time you hear it, proving we are an ethical, if slightly delayed, broadcast!

    We dive headfirst into the “bombshell event” that rocked Tobacco Road: Hubert Davis is no longer the head coach at UNC. As alumni, we had a lot to say, especially James, who knew Davis's great family personally but still "never understood the hire". We agreed it was a necessary move due to a lack of consistent success and modernization, but Rich noted that Davis felt like a “fall guy” for deeper program issues. We question the program's direction, the baffling list of potential candidates (Brad Stevens?), and how UNC plans to find a new identity without losing the “family aspect” in the NIL-driven, transfer-portal era.

    Shifting gears, we celebrated the Charlotte Hornets for finally being “America’s team,” playing some great ball, and attributed their success to strong organizational alignment, smart moves, and investment in staff. This led us to a full-on old-man-yells-at-cloud session about the NFL, where we lamented the move to an 18-game season that’s “degrading the quality of the product”. We discussed the baffling logic of spending huge money on players only to risk them on injury-prone turf fields, like the one where RG3 got hurt. We also expressed disdain for billionaire owners holding cities "hostage" to demand taxpayer-funded stadiums.

    Before we wrapped up, James confessed to being 10 points behind Rich in the bracket challenge, we took a wild, nostalgic detour into 90s pop culture (shoutout Carson Daly and Fred Durst), and reminisced about the unbelievably helpful UNC associate AD for communications, Steve Kersner, hoping the next coach has a good relationship with him.

    That’s a wrap! Rich needs to watch the rest of the second half, and James is pulling an all-nighter to edit and render—we’ll catch you next time\!
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    1 h y 28 m
  • Kash'in out at the Olympics, NBA Playoff Push, HORNETS!, Luka & JJ

    Kash'in out at the Olympics, NBA Playoff Push, HORNETS!, Luka & JJ
    Mar 6 2026
    We're back to cover the fallout from FBI Director Kash Patel partying with the USA Men's Hockey Team.

    It's playoff push time in the NBA and Rich's own Charlotte Hornets are making a statement!

    The recent benchside dustup between Luka and JJ gives us a chance to discuss Reddick as a coach and our unique connection to him via Tobacco road.

    With the transfer portal and NIL, we talk about how college sports fandom has evolved, given how nebulous rosters have become lately, which also led to us talking about the necessary guardrails in college sports.

    This year for March Madness, we're going double or nothing on the Skyline Chili / Fishcamp challenge! Bracket loser has to go to the opposing restaurant TWICE. Stay tuned for details on how to sign up for our March Madness Bracket Challenge.
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    1 h y 16 m
  • Superbowl Recap! Pick'em League Results! Costco is our Apocalypse HQ

    Superbowl Recap! Pick'em League Results! Costco is our Apocalypse HQ
    Feb 14 2026
    • Super Bowl Recap: We break down a Super Bowl that one of us called "boring and completely forgettable," discussing the Patriots' "hapless" offense and Sam Darnold's career arc that saw him win a Super Bowl after his infamous "seeing ghosts" moment. One of us even takes credit for calling the "first half under" bet.
    • "Empathy is Dead" Rant: A frustrating trip to Costco sparks a broader sociological analysis on public behavior. We lament the "death of empathy" and the general disregard for others, connecting it to experiences like speakerphone use in public and the "charged environment" at Costco, ultimately concluding, "We’re cooked" as a society.
    • Pick'em League & More: We invite you to join the word podcast pick them league, which promises "only punishments" like eating Skyline Chili for the loser.
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    51 m
  • New Year, New Us! NFL Divisional Round. Gambling scandals galore. New Years Sports Resolutions

    New Year, New Us! NFL Divisional Round. Gambling scandals galore. New Years Sports Resolutions
    Jan 16 2026
    We're back after a medium hiatus for our first annual "Jones vs. Beans Intrasquad Scrimmage" to get ready for the season.

    With the NFL divisional round this weekend, we look back on the end of the regular season and give our picks for the weekend schedule.

    Speaking of NFL, you'll get the official results of our first ever Pigskin Pick'em Challenge, where the loser has to indulge the winner by dining at a restaurant with them that they othewise wouldn't ever go to. For Rich this is Skyline Chili and for James it's basically any "fish fry" based establishment.

    There's a deep dive into a few of the recent sports gambling scandals (just pick one!) and how this may have an effect on the NIL landscape going forward.

    And while we are still doing our "Old Men Yell at Cloud" segment, we're also trying to sprinkle in some more positivity to the show this year, so we wrap up with our "New Years Sports Resolutions".
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    1 h y 21 m
  • Ryder Cup Madness! 3 Bold Statements Check-in. UNC football is dunzo.

    Ryder Cup Madness! 3 Bold Statements Check-in. UNC football is dunzo.
    Oct 12 2025
    We're back after a brief hiatus to tackle the madness that was the recent Ryder Cup, the early returns in the NFL season, and the improbable collapse of UNC football in the first season under Bill Belichick.

    With the NFL season underway, we have a chance to review our 3 bold statements from before the season began.

    Let's not forget that this is the first annual TWP Pick 'Em Fantasy League, where there is a lot on the line: If James wins Rich has to eat at Skyline Chili, where as a Rich victory means James has to go to a traditional southern fish fry. The stakes are high!
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    1 h y 29 m