Chicago Sports Talk with The Sportscaster and Her Son

Covid-19 forced states like Illinois to cancel most high school fall sports. In turn athletes are moving out of state to play and gain the experience they say is needed for college scholarship opportunities. One High School All American, Quarterback JJ McCarthy transferred out from hi Illinois State champion team, giving up his senior year to get the experience he needs in Florida at IMG Academy. McCarthy is committed to play QB for the Michigan Wolverines and he says IMG Academy will give him the experience and reps needed for the next step in college. An interesting conversation with Jim McCarthy, JJ's Dad in what is a hot topic playing High School sports.

The Chicago Bears enter the 2020 season under Covid-19 with big expectations. A team that traded up for QB Mitch Trubisky is hoping this is the season he breaks out. ESPN's Bears reporter Jeff Dickerson breaks it all down as well as giving hysterical stories about e-learning at home with his young son. Also co-host Jason joins the show from his dorm room at UT-Austin! Enjoy this football & parenting podcast!

it's time. After a year and a half of podcasting with mom starting at the age of 16 Jason is off to college. Before he starts his freshman year, Peggy & Jason talk about leaving for school in Covid-19 and an emotional goodbye.

This is truly an example of the generation gap between mother and son when it comes to following sports in the age of new media. In this episode Peggy lets Jason pick the guest, and she's not particularly happy with his choice. You see, Peggy is a traditionally trained and educated sports reporter while her son Jason is a Generation Z sports blogger. It creates tension for sure, but Jason tries to bring his mom around with guest "WhiteSox Dave" from Barstool Sports. It's a conversation Peggy is not comfortable with, but like many parents is open to finding out what it is her teenage son sees in such a controversial blog site.

Just in time for the NHL summer playoffs, the Chicago Blackhawks greatest season ever takes you behind the scenes to an historic season that turned Chicago into a hockey town. The 2010 Stanley Cup winners bring home the cup to Chicago after 49 years & Blackhawks Teammates Brian Campbell & Colin Fraser recall the games, their teammates, the hated rivalries, the behind the scenes antics and more in this fun look back. You don't need to be a puck head to appreciate how a team can turn around a city. It's Hockey Baby!

Four months after sports shut down in the United States, professional and college teams and leagues are slowly returning to play. But how will it work? Will it last? What are the pitfalls? What is the one sport that is not likely going to return just yet? Joining the podcast is WSCR 670 The Score morning show host David Haugh to break it all down with Jason and Peggy.

If you were a fan of Chicago Radio in the 90's this episode is for you! Get ready to laugh KevHeads as Peggy calls her old radio partner Kevin Matthews and they reminisce about the radio bits with Doc, Puglsy, Geli, Jerome. A groundbreaking radio show that talked about race relations in a comedic way with Doc, and gay rights with "Dan, the Gay American". From the Kevin Matthews Golf outings to Chicago sports figures, rock stars and actors. It's the Kevin Matthews show revisited!

A Father's Day edition of the podcast as Jason & Peggy talk about their favorite father & son duos in sports from Peggy's generation to Jason's today. Kathy Sloan Wood joins the show to share stories about her late father Jerry Sloan. The former coach of the Utah Jazz & original Chicago Bull died during Covid-19 of Lewy body Dementia and Parkinson's disease. Hear about his early days in Southern Illinois to Chicago and then Salt Lake City as a Dad, an NBA player, coach and collector.

Chicago Bears Hall of Famer Brian Urlacher joins the podcast to look back twenty years ago to when he was drafted. The NFL Combine and the run there that changed everything. Urlacher also speculates on why not getting recruited out of HS by big name colleges actually HELPED his eventual Hall of Fame career. And he shares some laughs about some of the funniest pranks by his teammates. A fun romp through one of the more recent eras of Chicago football.

Listen to some great behind the scenes stories on Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. Tom Smithburg from Teamworks Media takes us behind the curtain of the NBA Champions. Great stories from the White House calling to Arnold Palmer. And yet another Dennis Rodman journey away from the team that was not on The Last Dance! Join us as we re-live the three peat Bulls and the tales that were NOT told!

Two months without professional sports during Covid-19 has Jason and Peggy reminiscing about what they are missing. MLB would have celebrated Jackie Robinson day but they couldn't, so Peggy reaches into the Chicagoland TV archives for an interview with White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf who saw #42's baseball debut. Then White Sox announcer & ESPN broadcaster Jason Benetti joins the show to talk about baseball and what the White Sox were looking like before sports went silent. Peggy finishes the show with a memorial to her late friend ESPY's producer Maura Mandt.

The Covid-19 Pandemic with major sports leagues shutdown hit hard in our household. Jason the typically co-hosts the podcast sits this one out as Peggy calls on her eleven year old daughter to help scroll through contacts to find someone to interview. Phone a Friend results in the reunion of Peggy and an old Chicago Bears coach. Listen in as they catch up on the old days at Halas Hall: the media, Brian Urlacher and how Covid-19 hit home to this former Coach.

Covid-19 hit and suddenly sports stopped in March 2020. The NCAA tournament canceled, the NBA & NHL seasons were postponed, and MLB spring training halted. Jason, like many struggled to fill the void. Peggy, like many parents tried to keep perspective. But the truth is we have never been through anything like this ... until we talked to Grandpa Poppy. Peggy's Dad & Jason's grandfather, 85 year old Ed Kusinski shares stories of what it was like without sports when he was 8 years old during WWII. An interesting perspective and a message of hope any generation can relate to.

March 2020 International Women's Day is celebrated with an historic sports broadcast by NBC Sports. An all women's crew produced, directed & broadcast the NHL game with the Blackhawks and the Blues. Kate Scott was the play by play announcer for the historic broadcast and talks about the significance of that game. While, Jason & Peggy discuss other female sports broadcasters and predictions for what it means in the future.

In this mini episode Jason makes his long talked about college decision. From over a dozen applications, half a dozen school visits, and lots of anguish the wait is over! How often will he let Peggy visit? How far away will he be? What conference will he now be a fan of? The answer, Jason will be attending ...