Sports Spectrum Podcast

Jacob House is a former professional baseball player who is currently serving with Sports Spectrum as a marketing integration manager.  In college, Jacob played baseball with Arkansas in the SEC and Texas A&M in the Big 12. In his two seasons with the Aggies, House hit over .300 twice and had 108 RBI in 128 games played and helped his team to a Big 12 Championship in 2011 as well as a birth at the Men's College World Series that same year."  In 2012, Jacob was selected in the 20th round of the MLB Amateur Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks. He would play just one season in Single A ball in the minor leagues, hitting .281 in 36 games before walking away from the game he played since he was a kid. Today on the podcast, we talk to Jacob about his baseball journey, serving in sports ministry, his time at Texas A&M, his testimony of faith, walking away from his baseball dream and finding his true identity and purpose. Receive our 10-day Sports Spectrum Devotional written by professional athletes for FREE when you sign up for our Sports Spectrum Weekly Email Newsletter. Sign up here. 

Jeremy Affeldt pitched in the big leagues for 14 seasons from 2002-2015. He was originally a third round pick in the 1997 MLB Draft by the Royals and made his MLB debut five years later in April 2002 with KC.  He spent time with Kansas City from 2002-2006, then Colorado from 2006-07, Cincinnati in 2008 and the San Francisco Giants from 2009-2015. He is a three-time World Series champion and owns a career 0.86 ERA in his postseason career.  Today on the podcast, we talk to Jeremy about the pressure of postseason baseball, his favorite postseason memory and then we pivot to the trial he has walked through the past few years and why he felt God led him to the 'Buffalo Mentality' launch a brewery.  Receive our 10-day Sports Spectrum Devotional written by professional athletes for FREE when you sign up for our Sports Spectrum Weekly Email Newsletter. Sign up here. 

Today Sports Spectrum continues our seven week series, "I ONCE WAS" where athletes share their transformation story of going from lost to found. This podcast takes you deeper into each athlete's "I ONCE WAS" story and today we hear from two-time Pro Bowl linebacker Lorenzo Alexander.  You can watch Nick's "I ONCE WAS" video here. You can order "I ONCE WAS" merchandise here. 

Melanie Collins is a sideline reporter covering the NFL for CBS Sports. Each Sunday in the Fall, she covers an NFL game with the broadcast team of Kevin Harlan and Trent Green.  Prior to her time at CBS Sports, Collins worked at the Golf Channel, Yahoo Sports, NBA-TV, Turner Sports and many more after finishing up her college degree at Penn State.  Today on the podcast, we talk to Melanie Collins about her job as a sideline reporter, the work she puts in each week, the Christian conference she attended this summer and why it led her to make a decision to be baptized.  Receive our 10-day Sports Spectrum Devotional written by professional athletes for FREE when you sign up for our Sports Spectrum Weekly Email Newsletter. Sign up here. 

Nick Blankenburg is a defenseman with the Columbus Blue Jackets in the NHL. After going undrafted, he signed with Columbus and made his NHL debut on April 13, 2022. Eleven days later, he scored his first NHL goal on April 24th in a 5-2 victory over Edmonton. In college, Nick excelled at the University of Michigan where he led his team to the Frozen Four his senior year scoring 14 goals with 15 assists in 38 games. In July of 2022,  Nick signed a two-year contact to return to Columbus and continue his NHL career. Today on the podcast, we talk to Nick Blankenburg on his 2022 hockey journey, playing in the Frozen Four, signing with Columbus, making his NHL debut, scoring his first goal and then playing for the United States at the World Hockey Championships. He also discusses his walk with Christ and what it means to play for an audience of one. Receive our 10-day Sports Spectrum Devotional written by professional athletes for FREE when you sign up for our Sports Spectrum Weekly Email Newsletter. Sign up here.   

Al Horford is a member of the reigning Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics. He was selected third overall in the first round of the 2007 NBA Draft by the Atlanta Hawks. After ten seasons with Atlanta, he signed with Boston for three seasons, Philadelphia for one season and then to Oklahoma City for one season before returning to the Celtics in a trade prior to the 2021-22 season.  In the 2022 playoffs, Horford helped lead the Celtics to their first NBA Finals appearance in over a decade. In Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Milwaukee Bucks, he had a playoff career-high 30 points and helped the Celtics to a 116-108 win to even the series 2-2. In the final game of the NBA season, Game 6 of the Finals, Horford had 19 points and 14 rebounds in a Celtics loss to the Warriors.  On today's podcast, we talk to Al Horford about his journey of faith, the excitement he has for the upcoming NBA season, the lessons learned from his father Tito, and the importance of talking about Christ publicly to others.  (EDITOR'S NOTE: Interview was recorded a few days before the Celtics suspension of their head coach Ime Udoka) Receive our 10-day Sports Spectrum Devotional written by professional athletes for FREE when you sign up for our Sports Spectrum Weekly Email Newsletter. Sign up here. 

Today Sports Spectrum continues our seven week series, "I ONCE WAS" where athletes share their transformation story of going from lost to found. This podcast takes you deeper into each athlete's "I ONCE WAS" story and today we hear from two-time MLB Gold Glove winning shortstop Nick Ahmed.  You can watch Nick's "I ONCE WAS" video here. You can order "I ONCE WAS" merchandise here. 

Mike MacIntyre is the head coach of Florida International University's football team. Before coming to FIU, he was with Memphis as their defensive coordinator from 2020-2021 and Ole Miss as their defensive coordinator in 2019.  From 2013-2018, MacIntyre was the head coach at the University of Colorado, where he led the Buffaloes to two bowl games and won the 2016 Grant Teaff National Coach of the Year award for leading his team to a 10-4 mark and their first ever appearance in the Pac-12 Championship Game.  Coach Mac also has five years of NFL coaching experience as an assistant coach with the Dallas Cowboys and New York Jets from 2003-2007.  Today on the podcast, Coach Mac joins us to talk about the importance of Christ in his life, helping his assistant coaches in their growth, his new role at FIU and lessons learned from coaching in the NFL.  Receive our 10-day Sports Spectrum Devotional written by professional athletes for FREE when you sign up for our Sports Spectrum Weekly Email Newsletter. Sign up here. 

Mike Lightfoot is a former college basketball coach who currently is a regional director with the Nations of Coaches. For 30 years, he was the head coach at Bethel College in Indiana, where led his club to three NAIA Division II national championships and four NCCAA national titles.  Lightfoot was a former player and assistant coach at Bethel College under head coach Homer Drew and took over the head coaching job when Drew left for another position. As a head coach, Mike Lightfoot was a six-time national coach of the year and in 2009 was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame with legendary coach John Wooden.  Today on the podcast, we talk to Mike Lightfoot about his 39 years of coaching, his ministry with Nations of Coaches, the biggest struggle with coaches and why he is guided by his faith in Jesus.  Receive our 10-day Sports Spectrum Devotional written by professional athletes for FREE when you sign up for our Sports Spectrum Weekly Email Newsletter. Sign up here. 

Scott Twardoski is entering his 14th year as an NBA official. He has worked over 600 NBA regular season and playoff games.  Today on the podcast, we talk to Scott about living his faith out as an NBA referee, the 2020 NBA bubble, praying during games, and watching his kids grow in their faith.  Receive our 10-day Sports Spectrum Devotional written by professional athletes for FREE when you sign up for our Sports Spectrum Weekly Email Newsletter. Sign up here.