Happy Hour with John Gaskins

There aren't too many athletes who have come out of Sioux Falls with more national and international acclaim and achievement than O'Gorman alumnus Bergen Reilly.
And she's not yet 21 years old. (Her birthday is next month).
A two-time All-American on two NCAA Final Four teams at four-time national champion Nebraska, Reilly is the first player in Big Ten volleyball history to be the league's Setter of the Year in each of her first two seasons. She's also a four-time member of USA teams, including the 2022 national team as 17-year-old.
So what is life like at the top level of her sport in a place where volleyball players are "celebrities" and to come back home a newfound celebrity, spawning thousands of new Nebraska volleyball fans in South Dakota?
What kind of NIL deals does she have, and what opportunities — fun and (literally) taxing — has that afforded her?
What is it like to play in front of 92,000 fans — blasting the record for the largest crowd to witness a women's sport in United States history — in one of college football's most hallowed stadiums? And how does she feel when people tell her she plays at a "volleyball school?"
And how, in any way, are these sorts of experiences similar to her existence at O'Gorman, where Reilly was a three-time Gatorade South Dakota Player of the Year and two-time state champion, plus a state basketball champ her senior season?
Reilly remained delightful in answering all those questions in a 42-minute chat with Happy Hour host John Gaskins, but seemed to relish most the chance to talk about her relationship with older sister Raegan, whose Div. I volleyball career just ended with Big Ten rival Illinois in a season that included two showdowns with long-time teammate sisters staring each other across the net.

Looking for the rare feel-good story to come out of the "portal combat" window in college basketball?
 
Look no further than Fargo, where the Summit League women's player of the year announced Thursday she is returning to NDSU for her senior year.
 
Wait. That probably doesn't feel good for Jackrabbits and Coyotes fans. 
 
Koenen, the Bison's third all-time leading scorer, cited the loyalty and support shown by Bison teammates, coaches and fans in an interview with WDAY-TV's Dom Izzo on Friday.
 
She also mentioned "unfinished business," referring to NDSU falling short of a Summit League Tournament championship and NCAA berth after winning the conference regular season title.
 
South Dakota State and a partisan SLT crowd in Sioux Falls again stood in Koenen's way. With Jacks legend Brooklyn Meyer now out of eligibility, how strong of a favorite are the Bison in 2026-27?
 
This is just one of many questions for the Happy Hour host and Sioux Falls Live sportswriter Trent Singer to ponder over beers at Orion Pub in downtown Sioux Falls.
 
But Happy Hour beamed north to gain more insight into Koenen's decision with veteran Fargo Forum NDSU writer Jeff Kolpack. 
 
What kind of money is she turning down? Why is Koenen and most of the Bison sticking around while the men's squad that won the conference regular season and tourney titles is losing all of its starters?
 
And, you can't talk NDSU without mining for insight into the football team's sudden leap from FCS to FBS. Kolpack has early observations from the first practices as a Mountain West team, fundraising, and fan buzz.
 
Some will predict the Bison to win the league right away. But why might Kolpack think those fans should put down the Kool-Aid?
 
Before the chat with Kolpack, the host and Trent Singer discuss the Koenen move from the home-away-from-home office at Orion Pub in downtown Sioux Falls.
 
Other topics covered:
 
* Rascal Flatts
* Hawaiian shirts
* Tornado watches
* Stampede hockey 
* Trent's Mount Rushmore of movie shirts

Looking for the rare feel-good story to come out of the "portal combat" window in college basketball?
 
Look no further than Fargo, where the Summit League women's player of the year announced Thursday she is returning to NDSU for her senior year.
 
Wait. That probably doesn't feel good for Jackrabbits and Coyotes fans. 
 
Koenen, the Bison's third all-time leading scorer, cited the loyalty and support shown by Bison teammates, coaches and fans in an interview with WDAY-TV's Dom Izzo on Friday.
 
She also mentioned "unfinished business," referring to NDSU falling short of a Summit League Tournament championship and NCAA berth after winning the conference regular season title.
 
South Dakota State and a partisan SLT crowd in Sioux Falls again stood in Koenen's way. With Jacks legend Brooklyn Meyer now out of eligibility, how strong of a favorite are the Bison in 2026-27?
 
This is just one of many questions for the Happy Hour host and Sioux Falls Live sportswriter Trent Singer to ponder over beers at Orion Pub in downtown Sioux Falls.
 
But Happy Hour beamed north to gain more insight into Koenen's decision with veteran Fargo Forum NDSU writer Jeff Kolpack. 
 
What kind of money is she turning down? Why is Koenen and most of the Bison sticking around while the men's squad that won the conference regular season and tourney titles is losing all of its starters?
 
And, you can't talk NDSU without mining for insight into the football team's sudden leap from FCS to FBS. Kolpack has early observations from the first practices as a Mountain West team, fundraising, and fan buzz.
 
Some will predict the Bison to win the league right away. But why might Kolpack think those fans should put down the Kool-Aid?

Looking for the rare feel-good story to come out of the "portal combat" window in college basketball?
 
Look no further than Fargo, where the Summit League women's player of the year announced Thursday she is returning to NDSU for her senior year.
 
Wait. That probably doesn't feel good for Jackrabbits and Coyotes fans. 
 
Koenen, the Bison's third all-time leading scorer, cited the loyalty and support shown by Bison teammates, coaches and fans in an interview with WDAY-TV's Dom Izzo on Friday.
 
She also mentioned "unfinished business," referring to NDSU falling short of a Summit League Tournament championship and NCAA berth after winning the conference regular season title.
 
South Dakota State and a partisan SLT crowd in Sioux Falls again stood in Koenen's way. With Jacks legend Brooklyn Meyer now out of eligibility, how strong of a favorite are the Bison in 2026-27?
 
This is just one of many questions for the Happy Hour host and Sioux Falls Live sportswriter Trent Singer to ponder over beers at Orion Pub in downtown Sioux Falls.
 
Other topics covered:
 
* Rascal Flatts
* Hawaiian shirts
* Tornado watches
* Stampede hockey 
* Trent's Mount Rushmore of movie shirts

There's no crying in baseball!
 
I don't want your life!
 
My team is on the floor.
 
Up your butt, JoBu!
 
Those four lines could be on the Mount Rushmore of all-time sports movie one-liners. And, absolutely, there are plenty more classic or memorable ones you might remember. 
 
That's the thing about Mount Rushmore lists — there's only room for four.
 
And, that's the fun. 
 
For Wednesday's Happy Hour, the host and video producer give their Mount Rushmores of sports movies. In other words, their own personal favorites.
 
It was a segment inspired by the back-to-back anniversaries of the theatrical release dates for two movies on the host's list: *Major League* (37th) and *Hoosiers* (40th).
 
With an age gap of almost 20 years (host is 47, producer is 28), naturally, there wasn't one match between these two lists.
 
Hopefully, you find the trips down memory lane and their accompanying epic clips entertaining and relatable.
 
Before that, the host found a remark about Chase Mason from South Dakota State offensive coordinator Eric Eidsness that should excite Jackrabbit fans about Mason's second season as starter.
 
Plus, if you are screaming at the clouds about the nearly 3,000 players in college basketball that have entered the transfer portal — more than half of them — perhaps the perspective of one of the most respected analysts of the game will calm and quiet you down.