1. Before we start, please email me (Jimmy.Traina@si.com) or tweet me any and all questions you may have for this week’s SI Media Mailbag. Thanks.)
On Aug. 29, 2021, Bishop Sycamore High School played IMG Academy in a football game televised on ESPN. The final score was IMG 58, Bishop 0. Bishop Sycamore was so noncompetitive that ESPN broadcasters openly questioned what was going on during the game.
It turned out A LOT was going on, and an investigation found that Bishop Sycamore High School was completely fake, and the school was found to be operating as a scam.
HBO takes a deep dive into this scandal with the new documentary, BS High, which debuts tonight at 9 p.m. ET and can be streamed on Max.
The 1-hour-and-40-minute program will take you through a series of emotions as you get insight into how the scam came about and then played out. It will leave you completely dumbfounded.
You will be disgusted at the actions of Roy Johnson, the “head coach” who orchestrated the scheme and doesn’t show a hell of a lot of remorse. You will be heartbroken for the kids on “the team,” innocent victims who were hurt physically and mentally because of the scam, and still feel the effects of the damage done to them. And you will be impressed by how well done the documentary sucks you in and keeps you riveted to the story.
At points throughout the film, I wondered whether we really needed to give Johnson this platform. Especially since he comes off horribly in his interviews. The more Johnson tried to explain his actions, the more I had one word going through my mind: sociopath.
But this story needed to be told for the kids. By the end, you so badly want redemption for these victims. You desperately wish they eventually end up in a better spot. You hope some people in the football world watch this documentary and give these young men a legitimate opportunity.
2. This was a great live TV moment on Tuesday’s Good Morning Football when Kyle Brandt derailed a segment on quarterbacks by going off on his appearance in a graphic, which left his cohost Jamie Erdahl in tears.
We were gonna talk about Joe Burrow...
— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) August 22, 2023
but this graphic really derailed things (and brought @JamieErdahl to tears) pic.twitter.com/PfXmigDSp9
3. Phillies shortstop Trea Turner gave his team a 4–3 win over the Giants on Tuesday night thanks to a two-run single in the bottom of the ninth. During his on-field postgame interview, a couple of teammates tried to hand Turner some beef jerky, but he wasn’t having it. The conclusion here is that more postgame interviews should involve players giving one another random food items.
WAYGU ONLY FOR THIS MAN. pic.twitter.com/tLx8WYxeln
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 23, 2023
4. This season, ESPN/ABC will feature five doubleheaders that aren’t really doubleheaders but overlap games, but we’re going to call them doubleheaders for convenience. Here’s how the broadcast assignments will look those weeks.
Week 2:
7:15 p.m. ET, ESPN, Saints at Panthers: Chris Fowler, Dan Orlovsky, Louis Riddick
8:15 p.m., ET, ABC, Browns at Steelers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman
Week 3:
7:15 p.m. ET, ABC, Eagles at Buccaneers: Buck, Aikman
8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN, Rams at Bengals: Fowler, Orlovsky, Riddick
Week 4:
9:30 a.m. ET, ESPN+, Falcons at Jaguars: Fowler, Orlovsky, Riddick
8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN, Seahawks at Giants: Buck, Aikman
5. SiriusXM radio host, Chris “Mad Dog” Russo tried to order NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube yesterday. He had a lot of problems. The result was him ranting and raving for most of his three-hour show Wednesday. And it was outstanding.
Legendary Hall of Fame radio host @MadDogUnleashed tried to order NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube today. It did not go well, which led him going crazy for the first 15 minutes of his SiriusXM show. Here is a 2 minute snippet. Enjoy. pic.twitter.com/2BgD2uY0Cd
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) August 22, 2023
Here you go. https://t.co/ZFW7h69sEx pic.twitter.com/F1OAO3nguy
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) August 23, 2023
6. The latest SI Media With Jimmy Traina podcast features a conversation with Peter Schrager from Good Morning Football and Fox NFL Kickoff.
Schrager discusses what his travel schedule is like during the season, when he has to commute from New York City to Los Angeles every weekend, what his goal is when reporting for Fox NFL Kickoff, and the huge broadcast and media changes coming to the NFL for the 2023 season.
Other topics covered include why this is set up to be a great NFL season, a sleeper MVP candidate, Netflix’s Quarterback series and much more.
Following Schrager, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV in New York joins me for our weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week, we discuss our early opinions on NFL team win total over/unders, why giving up fantasy football is a great life decision, the Blind Side controversy, the Johnny Manziel Netflix documentary and more.
You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.
You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on YouTube.
