Author: Running It Back

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Tua’s Concussion and the Warrior Ethos of the NFL

Tua Tagovailoa

Tarlin and Mike are back to talk about their guilty pleasure, the NFL, in light of the concussion(s) to Tua Tagovailoa in recent games–within four days from Sunday to Thursday night. We explore Tua’s extensive injury history and find parallels in other players like Austin Collie who also displayed the “fencing position” after a concussion and who never returned to the same level afterwards.

We also reflect on the NFL’s tendency to be reactive to situations like this and anticipate changes to the NFL concussion protocols in light of the Tua incident. Are they exhibiting “an abundance of caution” or are they ultimately driven by their bottom line? How did Coach Mike McDaniel, the Players Association, and the NFL respond and what lessons can we learn from there? And what do we think about the future of Thursday night games? We cover all of this and reflect on the joys of a good night’s sleep. Don’t miss it!

Subscribe to Running It Back wherever you get your podcasts. Visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more lessons learned from the world of sports.

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Running It Back – Season 3 Kickoff

Season 3

Tarlin and Mike are back. This time to kick off our third season of Running It Back with a far-reaching crossfade across the various narratives and lessons learned capturing our attention from the sports universe.

We talk about Serena and Roger moving on from tennis and how Roger’s range may be a dwindling resource in an age of early specialization. Hat-tip to David Epstein’s book Range for some of our perspectives there. Then we look to the NFL for quarterback controversy and think through how the Trey Lance and Jimmy G. saga might analogize to CEO succession planning. We touch on the Mets and Dodgers from baseball as well as the Robert Sarver affair in the NBA before a few parting shots regarding the LIV Tour in golf in a free-ranging survey of the topics we’ll be digging into as we come back strong for Season 3 of Running It Back. Thanks for joining us for the ride!

Subscribe to Running It Back wherever you get your podcasts. Visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more incredible lessons learned from across the wide world of sports.

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Running It Back – 50th Episode Celebration

50th Episode Celebration

WE MADE IT!!!

Tarlin and Mike are back to celebrate our 50th episode of Running It Back, the Lessons Learned from Sports Podcast. What began as an outlet for us in the midst of the sports-starved days of the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic has now grown into a real body of work, an oeuvre, and a platform to grow.

We share highlights from our favorite episodes including Mike’s son Matthew’s appearance, Tarlin’s Ode to Tiger, and much more. We let listeners in on our creative process as we learn from the data and spitball what topics to cover next. And of course, there’s plenty of talk of Space Jam, Scottie Pippen memoirs, The Rooney Rule, Black Quarterbacks and more. We even celebrate some great 50s before we wrap.

Thanks to everyone who’s been with us so far. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts to keep up with the latest. Visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more as we embark on our next 50. We look forward to you joining us for the ride!

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Title IX and the Overturning of Roe v. Wade

Tarlin and Mike are back. This time to remember the 50th anniversary of Title IX and its impact on equity and sports. Our taping occurred just after the decision by the US Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade to return reproductive rights to the states. We use the time to look for lessons from Title IX while processing the potential impact of the ruling. We read the 37 words preventing discrimination in education “on the basis of sex.”

How has Title IX led to the evolution of our cultural understanding of women as athletes, teammates, and leaders? How did the work of Patsy Mink and other lawmakers in 1972 set the stage for the ongoing fight for equity in women’s sports? What should we expect from athletes like Megan Rapinoe, Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka and others in light of the recent ruling? And how have we benefitted from the personalities and narratives we’ve followed in women’s sports since 1972.

We also take a moment to reflect on the impact of Title IX on male athletes like recent NBA Draft pick, Jaden Ivey, whose mother, Neile, benefitted from the opportunities afforded by Title IX to raise her son as a successful WNBA player and leader. Is this reflective of the experiences of other #boymoms everywhere? How should we understand how Title IX impacts men?

We conclude by thinking of the future of women as leaders in the coming years and how we can continue to push to provide more opportunity and access in these challenging times.

Subscribe to Running It Back wherever you get your podcasts. Visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more lessons learned from sports.

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Sports Protests in the Wake of Uvalde and Buffalo

Steve Kerr

Tarlin and Mike react to the powerful moments from sports leaders in response to the tragic shootings in Uvalde, Texas and Buffalo, New York. We listen to what Steve Kerr said and talk about what Gabe Kapler did as coaches and leaders of their teams respond publicly to the unthinkable events.

Then we run it back to the history of sports protests and activism ranging from Kaepernick, to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, to the leading role of the WNBA, the Brittney Griner situation, and Muhammad Ali’s historic protest of the Vietnam War, among others, as we try to make sense of the senseless. And there’s plenty of reference to famous soundbites from Marshawn Lynch, Rasheed Wallace, and Allen Iverson along the way to keep things lighter.

What lessons, if any, can we learn from all of this? How can we use sports narratives as tools to work through our response to the unthinkable? And what does this tell us about leadership and acts of conscience in these challenging times? We cover all of this and more on our latest episode. Listen in and enjoy.

Subscribe to Running It Back wherever you get your podcasts. Visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more.

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Lessons Learned from the 2022 NBA Season

NBA

Tarlin and Mike are back, this time just ahead of the NBA Finals where two teams will square off for all the marbles. We look for lessons learned from the NBA Season, the end-of-year awards, and what we’ve seen so far in the Playoffs.

We begin by talking about Marcus Smart, the 2022 Defensive Player of the Year. Tarlin runs it back to The Glove as we recognize the energy and other intangibles he brings to the Celtics. Mike explains why he likes the Celtics to take it all as we acknowledge what Ime Udoka, Brad Stevens, and a cohesive, defensively-minded unit from Boston.

From there, we talk Luka and what Jason Kidd and team are doing in Dallas, even though we don’t see them getting past Steph and the Ws. Tarlin fights back the tears as we look back at the disappointing performance of so-called Super Teams like the Lakers, Nets, and Sixers.

We talk about the Suns’ mysterious and embarrassing disappearance in Game 7 at home versus Dallas. We may never know what happened but it doesn’t keep us from speculating.

Tarlin wraps us up with our note of support for the Buffalo community, looking for inspiration from the many successes of Black Coaches in the NBA.

Thanks for listening. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

Visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more incredible lessons learned from sports.

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When’s the Right Time for an Athlete to Hang It Up?

Jim Brown

Get your red wine bath ready, Tarlin and Mike are back after a SXSW panel, a Good Morning America appearance, and a bout of Covid-19(!) to talk about the age-old question of what’s the right way to hang it up at the end of a long and successful sports career. Don’t call it a comeback, we’ve been here for (nearly two!) years and we’re not planning to retire any time soon.

We begin with Tarlin recounting conversations with his Dad about Tiger Woods playing past his prime and how he should’ve retired on top like Jim Brown. From there, we span multiple sports looking for heroes who have faced the end of their playing careers in various ways. What can we learn from Barry Sanders or Andrew Luck, who left their sports early? What can we learn from Shaq or Patrick Ewing or others who stuck around longer as their physical abilities began to fade? And what about GOATs who retired and then unretired like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Tom Brady? Plus we show our range by covering Shaun White, Jimmy Connors, Kelly Slater, Serena Williams, Sue Bird and more. We even talk Carl Lewis both as a track star and as a National Anthem singer in a free-flowing romp through the greener pastures of sports retirement. Don’t miss it!

Subscribe to Running It Back wherever you get your podcasts. Visit us at RunningItBack.com for more lessons learned from sports.

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SXSW Running It Back Highlights Show

SXSWEDU

In a special bonus episode, we bring you highlights from Mike and Tarlin’s live panel in Austin at the SXSW EDU conference. We’re joined by Terri Givens and Dan Harrison in an exploration of storytelling, sports as a microcosm of the broader world, and the mythic elements of sports in our culture. We focus on recent conversations about the Rooney Rule and the Flores Suit before showcasing some of our favorite moments on the podcast.

We remember how this all got started with highlights from our very first episode on the Last Dance Bulls, before sharing moments from our Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, Simone Biles, and Tiger Woods episodes before we wrap. We also reference our episodes on Scottie Pippen and Naomi Osaka in a free-ranging conversation that weaves together a lot of what we’ve been talking about over the past two years.

Subscribe to Running It Back wherever you get your podcasts. Visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more Lessons Learned from Sports.

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NBA All-Star Escapism and the NBA Top 75

All Star Weekend

Tarlin and Mike are back, talking solace in basketball this time on the heels of the NBA All-Star weekend in Cleveland. We reminisce over All-Star Weekends from times gone by, including 1988 and 1992 before fast-forwarding back to the present to talk about a dismal Slam Dunk Contest, the 3 Point Shooting Contest, and the display put on by Stephen Curry during the actual All-Star Game on Sunday. In front of most of the 76 Greatest Players of all time and despite those that couldn’t make it, Steph showed to be the star among stars. And the NBA is being transformed in the process.

We look for lessons in the Top 75 and in ESPN’s as the wet jump shot may be replacing the stunning dunk as the signature move in the NBA today. We discuss all of this, riff on variations of the screenplay for Space Jam 3, and even propose five modern players on the Mount Rushmore of the modern game. Listen in. You might hear some surprises.

Subscribe to Running It Back wherever you get your podcasts. Visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more lessons learned from Sports.

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The Flores Suit Pre/Post Super Bowl Hangover Edition

Brian Flores

Tarlin Ray and Mike Palmer are back to talk about the Flores Suit against the NFL and to follow up on our previous conversations about the shortage of Black Head Coaches in the League. Tarlin almost gets irate but keeps it on a simmer as we revisit questions about why Eric Bieniemy (of The State), Byron Leftwich, and Brian Flores still don’t have head coaching jobs even as Lovie Smith and Mike McDaniel have gotten the nod since our last episode.

What can we learn from the Flores suit and the response to it? How does this connect back to Curt Flood and Free Agency in Major League Baseball? And what behind-the-scenes references to Ben Simmons and James Harden is Mike using to “motivate” Tarlin before we start taping?

We cover all of this even and even share a few tricks of the trade as we start to pivot towards the NBA now that we’re shaking off our NFL Hangovers on our latest search for lessons from the sports stories that are capturing the global imagination.

If you like what you’re hearing, write us a review, subscribe where you get your pods, and visit us at RunningItBack.fm for more.