Mike Ryan

It's a compliment. We still go to him occasionally when we just say we need a smart person on this topic. He's probably among the smartest we know. No, definitely among the smartest we know. Sarah Spain was a good example. Oh, she terrifies me.

It's a compliment. We still go to him occasionally when we just say we need a smart person on this topic. He's probably among the smartest we know. No, definitely among the smartest we know. Sarah Spain was a good example. Oh, she terrifies me.

Was a good example of what this show, during that golden era of the show, having some influence and power in that we would see people around the network that weren't getting utilized, that I thought were super talented, that weren't being properly utilized under the ESPN on And Sarah Spain immediately, she was a contributor when I was watching Numbers Never Lie. I thought she was so smart.

Was a good example of what this show, during that golden era of the show, having some influence and power in that we would see people around the network that weren't getting utilized, that I thought were super talented, that weren't being properly utilized under the ESPN on And Sarah Spain immediately, she was a contributor when I was watching Numbers Never Lie. I thought she was so smart.

I very clearly wanted to also have a woman because I've gone through a lot of names right now, no women. And I wanted to make sure that women's sports was starting to rise to prominence. And we had some blind spots and we were talking about all these things that was happening in sports where women were victims and we were just guys weighing in. And it was a huge blind spot for our show.

I very clearly wanted to also have a woman because I've gone through a lot of names right now, no women. And I wanted to make sure that women's sports was starting to rise to prominence. And we had some blind spots and we were talking about all these things that was happening in sports where women were victims and we were just guys weighing in. And it was a huge blind spot for our show.

So I saw Sarah Spain and I thought she was super sharp. And then I was really stunned to learn, oh, she's an update anchor on ESPN Radio Chicago. I'm like, what? I want to get her in for an entire show. Let's fly her down. So Amanda Gifford allowed me to fly Sarah Spain down. And immediately I was stunned by how she was the alpha in the room. This was also a challenge because we had no idea.

So I saw Sarah Spain and I thought she was super sharp. And then I was really stunned to learn, oh, she's an update anchor on ESPN Radio Chicago. I'm like, what? I want to get her in for an entire show. Let's fly her down. So Amanda Gifford allowed me to fly Sarah Spain down. And immediately I was stunned by how she was the alpha in the room. This was also a challenge because we had no idea.

Even Bomani, he would still kind of defer to this is Dan's show. And he would defer to the dynamic. Sarah shows up. Sarah is going to be the alpha in that room. She was pounding me. First episode. She was a bully. I think she would say in retrospect, she was probably too hard on everybody. But you have to understand her climb. Look, she was super talented. Sarah Spain was a massive talent.

Even Bomani, he would still kind of defer to this is Dan's show. And he would defer to the dynamic. Sarah shows up. Sarah is going to be the alpha in that room. She was pounding me. First episode. She was a bully. I think she would say in retrospect, she was probably too hard on everybody. But you have to understand her climb. Look, she was super talented. Sarah Spain was a massive talent.

And she was, this is sexist in my opinion, doing an update anchor role at ESPN Chicago when she was capable of so much.

And she was, this is sexist in my opinion, doing an update anchor role at ESPN Chicago when she was capable of so much.

She came in with a bit of a callous already because the entire medium had been cruel to her.

She came in with a bit of a callous already because the entire medium had been cruel to her.

She knows she's damn good. Yes, she is. And she's had to fight up until that point for all of her opportunities that I think it almost caught her by surprise. Like, no, no, no. We're here to lift you up. We're not against you. You don't have to be tough with us. We're here to get the most out of you and put you in the best possible light. I think she then picked up on that.

She knows she's damn good. Yes, she is. And she's had to fight up until that point for all of her opportunities that I think it almost caught her by surprise. Like, no, no, no. We're here to lift you up. We're not against you. You don't have to be tough with us. We're here to get the most out of you and put you in the best possible light. I think she then picked up on that.

And then we got to really see her really soar within our show because she felt comfortable enough to do things like create a freestyle rap. And she really shined. She let her guard down.

And then we got to really see her really soar within our show because she felt comfortable enough to do things like create a freestyle rap. And she really shined. She let her guard down.

She let her guard down and she was such a huge deal for this show because there were challenges. We've never had a woman on our show before. She's the commish.

She let her guard down and she was such a huge deal for this show because there were challenges. We've never had a woman on our show before. She's the commish.