The Grueling Truth

Join Mike Goodpaster and John Raspanti as they preview the Lopez vs Taylor fight this weekend. They also talk Spence/Crawford, and will give you the latest boxing news from the heavyweight division.

The highly anticipated TGT Podcast presents an exclusive interview with NFL legend Levon Kirkland, a former All-Pro linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Kirkland's remarkable career and impact on the game come to life as he takes center stage on this captivating show. Listeners are treated to a deep dive into Kirkland's journey, from his rise to stardom with the Steelers to his enduring legacy in the NFL. With his wealth of knowledge and insights, Kirkland shares memorable anecdotes, insider stories, and valuable lessons learned throughout his illustrious career. This episode is a must-listen for football fans eager to hear from one of the game's true icons.

The TGT Podcast presents a captivating interview with Larry Farmer, a legendary figure in the realm of college basketball, particularly associated with the esteemed UCLA Bruins. In this engaging conversation, listeners are transported into the world of basketball greatness as Farmer shares his remarkable journey and experiences. Drawing upon his extensive knowledge and insights, he reflects on his time playing under the legendary coach John Wooden and the storied UCLA dynasty. Farmer's anecdotes and perspectives provide a unique window into the evolution of college basketball, offering fans a deep appreciation for the sport's rich history. With each word, this interview epitomizes the timeless allure and enduring legacy of the Legends of College Basketball.

Today in boxing History 1 0 1, we're gonna talk about Norman Selby, the Crazy life of Norman Selby, also known as Charles Kid McCoy. McCoy was one of the great fighters of the early 20th, late 19th century, and we're gonna look at him today, and he is a dude that. I don't know what's the best way to put it. He was a little bit off. He's a little bit crazy, but he was an absolutely great fighter. And when we look back at the career, the career history of the real kid, McCoy Norman SBE was his real name, but of course he is better known as Kid McCoy. He was controversial in and out of the ring, and frankly, I doubt he would've had it any other way.

In this retrospective Podcadst, Mike Goodpaster delves into the intriguing journey of Scott LeDoux, a heavyweight boxer from the 1980s who unexpectedly earned a shot at the WBC Heavyweight Championship against Larry Holmes. LeDoux's notoriety grew as he displayed explosive behavior on national television, catching the attention of Howard Cosell and the public. He had a history of clashes with familiar adversaries, as seen in his surprising attack on Johnny Boudreaux during an interview. Despite his exclusion from Don King's roster, LeDoux continued to compete against Duane Bobick and Olympic gold medalist Leon Spinks, often falling short in critical moments. His split decision loss to Ron Lyle left many believing he deserved victory. However, LeDoux's resilience showed in subsequent fights, including a draw with Ken Norton and a win against Marty Monroe. While the path to his title contention was complex, LeDoux's determination and boxing skills played a significant role in his remarkable journey.

On November 14, 1970, a chartered jet carrying most of the Marshall University football team was involved in a plane crashnear Tri-State Airport in Kenova, West Virginia, killing all onboard. They had just returned from playing East Carolina University that day, losing 17-14. Thirty-seven Marshall football players, along with their coach, doctors, athletic director and 25 team boosters from Huntington, were aboard; "[the whole] fabric and heart of Huntington [were aboard]." A citizen later wrote.This crash was just one of many tragic events to befall Marshall football since 1960, when their stadium, which hadn't been renovated since World War II, was condemned, and their playing surface became too unsafe to use. From 1966 through mid-1969, Marshall had not won any games. Worse yet, the NCAA had suspended them for over 100 recruiting violations (and expelled them from the Mid-American Conference as well). But Marshall seemed to be back on track: It had fired all its dishonest coaches, built an Astroturf field, and started winning games again. On February 14, Marshall narrowly lost to East Carolina but looked forward to an exciting campaign the following season.Huntington residents recall the plane crash as similar to President Kennedy's assassination: everyone knows where and what they were doing when they heard of its news. Immediately afterwards, mourning ensued throughout town: shops and government offices closed; businesses on Huntington's main street draped their windows with black bunting; the university held a memorial service in its stadium the next day before canceling Monday classes; funerals had to be spread out over weeks due to so many being performed; one particularly heartbreaking ceremony saw six unidentified players being laid rest for eternity at Spring Hill Cemetery on a hill overlooking their university home: six players buried together after having gone without identification were interred there on a hill overlooking Huntington - an act which caused no small amounts of regretment among its many inhabitants whose lives would forever change them all for evermore.Marshall hired Jack Lengyel from the College of Wooster in Ohio as their new football coach and began rebuilding their squad. The NCAA allowed Lengyel to put freshmen onto his varsity squad; thus creating an eclectic mix of first-years, walk-ons, and nine veteran players who hadn't been involved with the plane crash that night. Although Marshall lost its opening game of 1971 against Ohio Xavier University 15-13 with a dramatic last-second touchdown against them, Marshall eventually went on to win nine more under Lengyel during his four year stint with us but none as emotionally.

The Hoosiers score a big one! Join Mike Goodpaster, Steve Risley and Brian Mohr as they discuss the Hoosiers' newest addition Mackenzie Mgbako! The Hoosiers look like a Top ten team now headed into the 2023-24 season!Mackenzie Mgbako from Roselle Catholic (New Jersey) signed his letter of intent with Indiana on Friday evening.Mgbako initially committed to Duke in October before opening up his recruitment in April and visiting St. John's, Kansas and Indiana before selecting Indiana as his destination. Mgbako considered Louisville but decided against visiting.According to 247Composite, this 6-foot-8 forward is currently ranked as the No. 8 player in the 2023 class.He became the highest-ranked high school recruit to commit under Mike Woodson, now in his third season in Bloomington.According to RSCI rankings, Indiana has only attracted top-10 recruits since 1998: Eric Gordon, Romeo Langford, Noah Vonleh, Jared Jeffries and Cody Zeller are the only five.Mgbako joins Gabe Cupps and Jakai Newton as three high school players that will join Indiana for the 2023-24 season. Indiana also recently welcomed three transfers - Kel'el Ware from Oregon, Anthony Walker from Miami and Payton Sparks from Ball State - as part of its 2023-24 roster.\Do the Hoosiers now have a roster that can bring Indiana back to national relevance? Only time will tell, but Cosck Woodson is doing a great job of stacking the Hoosiers roster with talented and athletic players.Indiana looks on paper at least as a top ten contender to win a National Championship in the upcoming season; the Hoosier's last National Championship was in 1987, and the teams last Final Four appearance was in 2002 so Coach Woodson has his work cut out for him. Still, Friday was a huge step in the right direction!Make sure to tune in to the Indiana Basketball Weekly show with Steve Risley all year long for the latest Hoosier content.

Joe Walcott (not "Jersey Joe") terrorized opponents with every bit of force a name like that suggests; many called him the "Barbados Demon", and that title wasn't given without reason.He was an unstoppable force with extraordinary strength.Walcott faced numerous notable opponents during his 166-fight career, such as Sam Langford and Philadelphia Jack O'Brien (Hall of Fame Heavyweight/Light Heavyweight). Additionally, world light heavyweight champion George Gardner and colored heavyweight champion Frank Childs shared the ring together.Walcott only towered 5'1".He was a puzzle to all but himself - from his appearance and fighting style right down to how great of an individual he became.Walcott was an unlikely welterweight at 6 feet 1 inch but boasted incredible muscularity, as evidenced by research conducted by Monte D. Cox (National Police Gazette Oct 27, 1894). According to Monte's findings, Walcott had an extraordinary 18-inch neck circumference and 41-inch chest expansion (National Police Gazette October 27 1894).Nate Fleischer said it best, calling Walcott an incarnation of Hercules cut in half." The so-called Barbados Demon was made from solid stone and seemed terrifying to observers.Imagine such an individual stepping into the ring against towering heavyweights to fight.Walcott was known for taking aggressive attacks against opponents by leaping hooks at them from above and springing forward so that he could reach them.But where the line between fiction and reality, genius and insanity really blurs is in Walcott's unexpected success in the ring.Walcott was so eccentric (and difficult to comprehend) that he defied logic; standing just two inches taller than Jacob Matlala with only 65" reach (three inches shorter than featherweight Eugene Criqui), yet managing to defeat Tommy West, Dan Creedon, Mysterious Billy Smith three times (despite outweighing him by 17 pounds), Joe Grim Young Peter Jackson Rube Ferns Joe Choynski held his own with world beaters like Sam Langford and Joe Gans before holding onto his title for three years. before dropping down to featherweight and earning title defence against Mysterious Billy Smith - yet somehow managed all these achievements against an opponent with whom nobody understood or could match up against him!Walcott achieved an astounding record, boasting 104 wins to 32 losses, with 15 coming due to an accidental gun injury that severely disfigured his right hand.His fight style would never be the same again.Walcott, in his prime, was a demon; an adult trapped inside of a child's body; full of anger and hate for humanity. His aggression would often come out in violent fights against men who dared step into the ring with him.Walcott's violence and greatness knew no bounds - unintimidated by anyone, Walcott even issued a challenge against James Jeffries, the heavyweight champion of the world.Jeffries declined, and that, my friends, is as strange as it can get.

Miami Heat's defense will be tested going against Jayson Tatum who is coming off a 51-point performance, setting an NBA Game 7 scoring record and setting up their win over Philadelphia on Sunday. Jalen Brunson scored 41 points despite various defensive looks employed against him on Friday; Miami found its salvation from their scoring helplessness by the other Knicks.Might Boston Revert to Their Starting Lineup? Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla had an inspired idea before Game 6 against the Sixers by starting big man Robert Williams III alongside Al Horford rather than spacing out their use over time. It worked last spring and again against Philadelphia, while against Miami they might benefit more by returning to Derrick White starting alongside Tatum, Brown, Horford and Marcus Smart instead of Robert Williams III in tandem with Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo Max Strus and Gabe Vincent instead of using Caleb Martin instead as Kevin Love.Mazzulla, 34, was expected to have some difficulty competing against Sixers coach Doc Rivers - widely considered one of the league's premier mentors - during his initial year on the job. Now he faces one of its premier teachers: Spoelstra's teams frequently exceed and often surpass expectations during series and game adjustments and comeback efforts from Play-In Tournament status; few outside Miami's film room expected them to reach this round while anything less than reaching the Finals would be seen as disappointing for Boston.I expect the Celtics depth and Tatum to be the reason the Celtics will advance to another NBA Finals, but it wont be easy as the Heat are a battle-tested group and could easily take this series deep. The Celtics will have to be at their best to win this series and I expect they will be. Celtics take this series in six games.

Join Mike Goodpaster as he previews the Western Conference Finals between the Nuggets and the Lakers and gives you his best bet for winning the series.The Denver Nuggets managed to avoid much of the drama experienced by the Los Angeles Lakers throughout this season. Denver did not experience numerous injuries, kept its core players intact and needed no trade deadline help, thus securing home-court advantage throughout playoffs by earning the best record in the West (second-best home record in the league) with Nikola Jokic nearly winning Kia NBA MVP, having proven stronger, tougher and hungrier than LeBron James and Anthony Davis during this season - its time for Jokic to get a championship ring himself!This 2020 Western Conference Finals rematch played in Orlando features three stars once more. At that time, LeBron and AD were hungry to add another ring each; their experience gave them an edge against Denver as the Nuggets were making history without making it as far. Denver had much to prove as they never before reached either Finals or won an NBA title despite coming this far; though, with LeBron standing between them again, does this bring them any closer?The Lakers can be considered the team with more momentum right now. Their postseason victories against the No. 2 seed Grizzlies and defending champion Warriors have been more impressive than Denver's thus far. Simply put, L.A. offers more compelling stories with LeBron closer than ever to an appearance in 11 Finals tournaments.No matter, as each series and game brings with it its own personality, problems, heroes and storylines. One thing's certain - this won't be an easy series between Lakers and Nuggets; give both clubs enough credit.Jokic and Murray may be the hungrier players headed into the series, and in a close series, that could be a difference-maker.

Join Mike Goodpaster as he gives you the story of Boxer Billy Miske, who found out as a teenager that he had a terminal disease but continued to fight on. Miske retired in 1923 because his disease was so debilitating that he could no longer train anymore. He would return a year and a half later to fight Heavyweight contender Bill Brennan because he wanted to give his family one last great Christmas. Billy won the fight while dying and being unable to train. The fight was November the 7th, his family had one last great Christmas, and Billy passed away a week later.The story of Billy Miske shows that people can overcome any adversity, and we live in a day and age where guys like Billy Miske are almost non-existent. Miske was a man that in October 1924 was on his deathbed and couldn't even train but requested one last fight on November 7th so his wife and kids could have one last great Christmas. Not only did he fight that fight, he won that fight! On top of all that, he died one week later on New Year's Day. Miske had fought most of his career with a debilitating disease that would eventually end his life. Miske's toughness through all of this was incredible and hard even to fathom.Make sure you bookmark this page for even more content like this that you will not get anywhere else. We do not talk politics on The Grueling Truth; we talk sports which is the way a sports network should be. You can find all of our shows on almost every outlet that carries sports podcasts, including Spotify and iHeart radio. And if you love Boxing check out our boxing podcast page, where you will find stories like this plus a weekly boxing show with up to date news and all of our legends of Boxing podcast!

Join Mike Goodpaster and Dan Kornhauser as they welcome Draft expert Sam Teets to the show to breakdown the winners and losers of the 2023 NFL Draft! There were many fascinating tales to come out of the 2023 NFL Combine. Georgia EDGE Nolan Smith ran faster 40-yard dashes than Saquon Barkley; USC offensive lineman Andrew Voorhees managed the highest bench press rep total at any event (38 reps!). All while suffering a torn ACL! However, Anthony Richardson of Florida Gators fame was the focal point of attention during this week in Indianapolis. Richardson stood 6-foot-4 and 244 pounds - just an inch shorter and four pounds lighter than Can Newton out of Auburn - and put up testing numbers most QBs can only dream about. Officially, he completed a 4.43-second 40-yard dash and recorded a 40.5-inch vertical and 10-foot-9 broad jump - all three were top marks at his position in the 2023 NFL combine and the broad jump was the best ever by a quarterback since 2003. Richardson's impressive performance propelled him up the draft boards. The only issue for the Colts is that Richardson does not effectively throw the ball. What teams had the best draft, will the guys break that down and the Colts despite the Richardson mess up still had a nice draft. The Bengals, Ravens and Steelers all got stronger, while the Bills got weaker and the Eagles just added depth to one of the best rosters in the NFL. The guys also give you the top 3 teams in the NFL Post draft. Who makes that list? The Bengals, Chiefs and Eagles are easy picks, but which teams will surprise in the upcoming season? Teams like the Colts and Cardinals looked doomed to pick in the top five yet again next year. All this and more on The Grueling Truth's NFL show.

Join Mike Goodpaster and Ty Robbins as they welcome NFL Draft Expert Sam teets to the show to break down each and every Bengals draft pick and look at how they will fit into the scheme of things with the Bengals. Needless to say, Myles Murphy's selection at No. 28 astounded everyone in the draft room. Duke Tobin and his staff held him in high regard, thinking this visit would mark his farewell visit a few weeks prior; surely this guy wouldn't drop out of the top ten? Tune in to find out!

Mike Good Pastor is hosting a special NBA playoff betting preview on Druley Drew Sports Network. The Knicks have won a playoff series for the first time in a decade and have set up a second round matchup with the Miami Heat. The Knicks are led by Jalen Brunson, Julius Randall, RJ Ferret, and Josh Hart, and advanced past the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games. The Heat have reignited one of the 1990s best rivalries, and the Knicks are led by Jalen Brunson, Julius Randall, RJ Ferret, and Josh Hart. The Heat and Nixon will face each other in a seven game series at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks had the edge in the regular season, winning three out of four matchups against the Heat. The Knicks had the edge in the playoffs, winning three out of four matchups against the Heat.

The Nuggets and Suns are facing off in the Western Conference Semi-Final, with Denver having the second-best net rating and Phoenix having the ninth. The Suns have more depth, with Durant and Booker leading postseason minutes, while Monty Williams encourages two starters to stay out at once. Chris Paul has 147 postseason appearances, while Jamal Murray has 39 career playoff games. Murray averaged 26.3 points, 6.8 assists and 6.0 rebounds per game as Denver's No.1 scoring option. Booker and Durant may spend most of their time guarding Murray, leaving Paul as an effective fourth option. Booker leads the NBA in postseason scoring (37.2 ppg) and career playoff games scoring 30 or more points (19). Durant may be assigned guarding Porter Jr. Booker's only concern is carrying an immense workload.

Boxing Weekly is hosted by Mike Cleveland and co-hosted by John Raspanti. Tonight, Mike and John will discuss the book they wrote with Jerry Fitch titled 'A Few More Rounds'. Jerry Fitch is a Cleveland boxing historian and author, and Mike is worried that he might be a Browns fan. They will also talk about the Hat Club, an inside photo inside hat show, and how they met 10-12 years ago when Jerry came out with his Jimmy Bivens book. ''We had a lot of similarities as far as our likes and dislikes and the history of boxing. The idea to collaborate and come up with this book came about when John said he was interested in doing something with a co-author and I said something like, oh really? Do you really want to do this?''

In college basketball, Gene Banks is known to be one of the biggest Duke legends. He was the guy that got his team all started in 1977, 78, when Duke played Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament. He remembers being nine years old watching the game and cheering for Indiana. He also remembers the ACC having a special game in 1974, where Maryland and NC State were fourth and fifth in the country, and only one of them could go to the tournament. He also talks about his tournament experience in 1978, when there were only 32 teams in the tournament and more in this thrilling podcast!

Join James Ernest and Mark Fightmaster as they look ahead to a top 25 Showdowns between the Tulane Green Wave and the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Join Joe Spilman, and Steve Risley, as they preview tomorrow's playoff race at Talladega.

Join Mike Goodpaster and John Raspanti as they look ahead to a great DAZN card headlined by Usyk/Joshua 2. Can Joshua turn the tables or will Usyk prove to be the true Heavyweight Champion? Plus a look back at6 the career of Tommy Morrison.