Sports Spectrum Podcast

Episode 336 Matt Forte and Justin Forsett joined us on this episode of the Sports Spectrum podcast.  Matt was selected in the 2nd round of the 2008 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears and played 8 seasons in Chicago and then signed with the New York Jets, where he played two more seasons before announcing his retirement with Sports Spectrumin March of 2018. He is a 2-time Pro Bowler in 2011 and 2013. Justin was selected in the 7th round of the 2008 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks and played 9 NFL seasons with the Seahawks, Colts, Texans, Jaguars, Ravens, Lions and Broncos. He was named to the Pro Bowl after rushing for a career-high 1,266 yards with Baltimore in 2014.  On this episode of the podcast, we talk to Matt and Justin about retirement, adjusting to life after the NFL, idolatry as a football player, keeping Jesus in the conversation, and being all in for Christ.  For more, log on to http://SportsSpectrum.com   

Episode 335 Bethany Hamilton is our guest today on the show. She was thrust in the spotlight at just 13 years old when she was attacked by a 14-foot Tiger Shark and losing her arm. The traumatic injury seemingly ended her dream career as a professional surfer.  However, one month after the attack, Bethany returned to surfing and within two years had won her first national surfing title. Bethany’s foundation of faith has been her backbone; her source of truth, hope, and strength. At 17 years old, she realized her dream of surfing professionally and she is still an active surf competitor to this day. Bethany has been able to touch a large number of people with her faith message, charitable efforts, and overall spirit. Her greatest joy is being a wife and mother, and she continues to touch and inspire lives globally as a professional surfer, author and motivational speaker. She currently has her own blogon helping others become unstoppable. Her latest project is a new film called "Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable," which released in theaters July 12, 2019.  On this episode of podcast, we talk to Bethany about the new film "Unstoppable," why she felt it was important to release the documentary on her career, how her faith in Christ has grown from her early teen years to now, living life as a public figure in the media spotlight, and why she lives a life unashamed of sharing the Gospel.  For more, log on to http://SportsSpectrum.com 

Today on the podcast we throw it back to February 2018 and a conversation we had with 3-time NAIA Division II National Champion coach Greg Tonagel of Indiana Wesleyan.  Coach Tonagel just finished his 14th season as the head coach of the Wildcats and is a 3-time NABC/NAIA Division II National Coach of the Year. On this throwback edition of the podcast, we talk to Coach Tonagel about discipleship in his program and teaching his players the "I am Third" model, Jesus first, others second, ourselves third. You can listen to the entire interview with Coach Tonagel from Episode 84 by searching on this podcast app or by clicking on our website here.   

Episode 334 Jimmy Mellado is the president and CEO of Compassion International. Compassion is a sponsor of our podcast and partner with us as we help them release children from poverty. Jimmy is a graduate of SMU where he was a member of the Division 1 Track and Field championship team in 1983.  He competed in the 1987 Pan American Games and the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea as a decathlete. Representing his birth nation of El Salvador, he set national records for the highest ever performance in the decathlon, men's high jump, 100m high hurdles and pole vault.  In 2013, Jimmy was named CEO and President of Compassion and has dedicated his life to helping children around the world, who are living in poverty and providing them with hope and a way out.  On this episode of the podcast, we learn about Jimmy's journey, moving around from country to country as a youth, why failure is such a great teacher, trusting God when things don't go well, competing in the Olympics and how he came to join Compassion International. For more, log on to http://SportsSpectrum.com 

Episode 333 Zerbin Singleton has experienced the highs and lows of life. The Marine Corp Major was born to a mom addicted to drugs in a home surrounded by domestic violence, drugs, poverty and even homelessness. At the age of ten, Zerbin's mother was incarcerated.  At the age of fifteen, Zerbin met his father for the first time. Just seven days before graduating from high school, he was in a head-on-collision caused by a drunk driver. Despite a broken collar bone, he graduated Valedictorian from his high school.  Football was a big part of Zerbin's life and he would walk-on to the Georgia Tech football squad before transferring to the Naval Academy, where he would play running back and win the Disney's Wide World of Sports Spirit Award and the FedEx Orange Bowl Courage Award in 2007. Today, he is an officer in the United States Marine Corps, flyng the AH-1Z Cobra Attack Helicopter. On this episode of the podcast, you'll hear the incredible story of Zerbin Singleton, overcoming obstacle after obstacle to become a football player for the Naval Academy and a Marine pilot. Zerbin says "misery is your ministry" and his marvelous story is sure to inspire you.  For more podcasts and stories like this, visit our website at http://SportsSpectrum.com 

Episode 332 Patrick Dimarco is a fullback with the Buffalo Bills. He played his college football at South Carolina under Steve Spurrier before entering the NFL in 2011 as an undrafted free-agent. His football journey would take him from San Diego to Kansas City and then to Atlanta, where he would spend 4 seasons with the Falcons. In 2016, he helped the Falcons to the NFC Championship and a berth in Super Bowl LI against the Patriots. Dimarco's tenure with Atlanta also included a Pro Bowl berth and making the NFL's All-Pro Second-Team in 2015.  Dimarco signed a 4-year deal with the Buffalo Bills in March of 2017 and has remained a member of Bills Mafia ever since.  On this episode of the podcast, we talk with Pat about Bills Mafia, being a fullback in the 2019 version of the NFL, his grind in making it to the NFL and the powerful story of how his career almost ended before it began. For more, log on to http://SportsSpectrum.com 

Episode 331 Chris Norton went from talented 18-year-old college football with a promising future to flat on his back with a broken neck and a 3% chance of ever moving or feeling anything below his neck, much less walking again. Determined to prove the doctors wrong and to find love, Chris pushed himself through grueling, daily workouts until four years later, when he walked across the stage to receive his college diploma.  Chris would marry his wife Emily and at his wedding, would tackle the seven longest yards of his life, walking down the wedding aisle and into a new life. They tell their story in the new book "The Seven Longest Yards," released July 9, 2019. Tim Tebow wrote the foreword.  On this episode of the podcast, we talk to Chris about his incredible story, how his faith sustained him after his football accident, God's better plan, walking the seven longest yards at his wedding, and why adoption is something he and his wife Emily have dedicated their lives to.  For more, log on to http://SportsSpectrum.com   

Today we look back to Episode 7 of the podcast from May of 2017 with Ernie Johnson from TNT.  A 3-time Emmy award winner, Johnson joined TNT in 1989 and is most notable for his hosting of the NBA on TNT with Charles Barkley, Shaquille O'Neal and Kenny Smith.  On this throwback edition of the podcast, we talk to Ernie about adoption and his son Michael, whom he and his wife adopted from Romania and why adoption is so important to him. You can listen to the entire interview of Episode 7 with Ernie by searching for it on this podcast app or by clicking on our website here.

Episode 330 Casey Sadler is living the life of a professional baseball pitcher right now. He is currently with the Los Angeles Dodgers organization at AAA Oklahoma City.  He played his college baseball at Western Oklahoma State University before being drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 25th round of the 2010 MLB Draft. After going through the grind of the minor leagues, Sadler made his MLB debut on May 2, 2014 with Pittsburgh. After pitching in 7 games total over two seasons with Pittsburgh in 2014 and 2015, Casey would miss the 2016 season after having Tommy John surgery.  After spending all of 2017 in the minor leagues, Casey made it back to the majors in 2018 with Pittsburgh and again in 2019 with Tampa before being traded on July 3 to the Los Angeles Dodgers and optioned to AAA Oklahoma City.  On this episode of the podcast, we talk to Casey about the crazy life of a yoyo pitcher going up and down from the minors to the majors, the crazy story of driving 15 hours in an RV to arrive and pitch for the Rays, coming back to Christ after falling away, and how having Tommy John surgery tested his faith.  For more stories and interviews on the intersection of sports and faith, visit our website http://SportsSpectrum.com   

Episode 329 Life hit Harvard team chaplains Pat and Tammy McLeod hard when their son Zach collapsed on a high school football field—he had sustained a severe brain injury. Two emergency brain surgeries later, Zach began waking up. Slowly the entire family woke up to the reality that life would never again be the same. The fallout of his injury would reshape their marriage, their family, their future and their faith in ways they never saw coming. What would it take for them to navigate the endless fallout of their son’s life-transforming injury? How could they reconcile their grief over the life Zach lost, with gratitude for the life that remained? And how does a couple move forward together in their search for hope, rather than letting indefinable loss drive them apart? Hit Hard releases todayand is the true story of the McLeods’ journey through ambiguous loss—both having and not having their son. It’s the story of a family who faced unexpected heartbreak, a story that offers us all glimpses of how we can pick up the pieces, redefine expectations, and find hope in the midst of unresolved pain. On this podcast, we hear Zach McLeod's story, learn from Pat and Tammy about ambiguous loss, why they wanted to tell Zach's story, what it is like to grieve the loss of their son when he's still alive, and safety on the football field in 2019.  For more, log on to http://SportsSpectrum.com