Phantom Island

Early in the evening of April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered at the Lorraine Motel. The NBA and NHL were in the middle of the playoffs, Major League Baseball was nearly to Opening Day, and many other sports had space lined up on the calendar. Steven Godfrey and Ryan Nanni review how each league responded to the assassination of the civil rights leader, where the relationship athletes had to King influenced reactions, and what, if anything, we might learn from the past about how teams and leagues handle events like the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Phantom Island is presented by Homefield and produced by Michael Surber.

Somehow, Louisiana Tech's lawsuit against Conference USA leads to a discussion about scheduling irregularities involving the MAC, the Mountain West, and various FCS programs. (Ryan is still not confident he understands what's going on.)
This is a preview of the full episode, which is available to paid subscribers – go to phantomisland.show to sign up today. Phantom Island is presented by Homefield and produced by Michael Surber.

On this edition of Phantom Island's regular mailbag, Steven Godfrey answers listener questions about the anxiety of rooting for TCU, the weariness of pulling for Wisconsin, how oddball coaches function with boosters and players, what Godzilla teaches us about parenting, and Minor League ballpark advice.
This is a preview of the full episode, which is available to paid subscribers – go to phantomisland.show to sign up today. Phantom Island is presented by Homefield and produced by Michael Surber.

Expansion in the Big Ten and SEC gets analyzed through a football-first lens, but what have Oregon, Washington, UCLA, USC, Texas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and Missouri done to raise the fortunes of their conferences in other sports? Ryan Nanni walks Steven Godfrey through the last couple years of gymnastics, soccer, basketball, volleyball, baseball, and softball to see which conference wins this part of the battle. Phantom Island is presented by Homefield and produced by Michael Surber.

A Phantom Island subscriber asks Ryan Nanni and Steven Godfrey whether labor discussions in sports will change the way we think about the topic in the broader world, and that prompts a much longer conversation between the two about media work as advocacy, sports as an escape from the burdens of politics, and, yes, the Josh Pate interview of Trump.
This is a preview of the full episode, which is available to paid subscribers – go to phantomisland.show to sign up today. Phantom Island is presented by Homefield and produced by Michael Surber.