001 Inaugural episode

·24 min·2 clips

Dave recalls whacking Steelers star Ben McGee after a game, sparking a glare that almost made him pee his pants.

This inaugural episode of the Old Guy Sports Podcast is hosted by Dave Molnar, who establishes the show's focus on sports memories and history over current events. Molnar explains the podcast was inspired by nostalgic conversations with a friend and a visit to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He details how viewing exhibits, like the bust of Steelers linebacker Jack "Count Dracula in Cleats" Lambert, sparked a flood of personal memories from growing up in Pittsburgh during the 1970s. The episode's first main segment revolves around Molnar's personal introduction to football as a child in the 1960s. He recalls listening to Steelers radio broadcasts with announcers Myron Cope and Radio Rich while waiting for his brother during orchestra rehearsals at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall. Molnar names players he remembers from that era, including Dick Hoak, "Cannonball" Butler, Ronnie Shanklin, and defensive lineman Ben "Big Ben" McGee. He shares a story about attending his first live Steelers game around 1969, where he saw rookie quarterback Terry Hanratty play against the Green Bay Packers. The most vivid memory involves meeting Ben McGee on the field after the game, where a young Molnar, encouraged by his father, nervously hit the player on the shoulder pads. In the history segment, Molnar shifts to the early days of the NFL, originally called the American Professional Football Association when founded in 1920. He lists original franchises like the Dayton Triangles, Akron Pros, Canton Bulldogs, and Decatur Staleys, noting the Racine Cardinals are the oldest continuous franchise now known as the Arizona Cardinals. Molnar describes the league's first official game on October 3, 1920, where the Dayton Triangles defeated the Columbus Panhandles 14-0 before 4,000 fans paying $1.75 each. He details the Triangles' origins as the St. Mary's Cadets in 1912 and their sponsorship by industrialists Edward Deeds and Charles Kettering. A surprising claim is that free agency and salary challenges, often considered modern issues, significantly affected early NFL teams like the Dayton Triangles. Molnar recounts that the Triangles' first manager, Carl Stork, served unpaid for 21 years and later became the league's acting president. The episode reveals the Triangles were eventually purchased by a New York syndicate in 1930 and moved to Brooklyn to become the Dodgers. Molnar's personal anecdote about whacking Ben McGee provides a memorable moment of childhood awe meeting a sports hero, complete with McGee's initial glare softening into a smile. The tone is conversational, nostalgic, and meandering, as the host frequently admits to rambling and shares personal asides about his wife, Amy. The style is educational when covering historical facts but deeply personal during memory segments. This episode would greatly appeal to older sports fans who enjoy nostalgic reminiscing and obscure historical footnotes about early professional football. Listeners seeking analysis of current sports events or a fast-paced, tightly edited format would likely want to skip it.

As heard by us

A patient sports-memory piece built on Pittsburgh nostalgia and old broadcast voices.

Old Guy Sports settles into a patient, warmly rambling account of the memories Dave Molnar wants to keep alive: youth sports, old heroes, radio calls, and the kind of sports history that lingers for years.

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Why you'd press play

You want a warm, local sports memory before the first whistle.

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