Football Is Back, Wisconsin HC Luke Fickell, USC HC Lincoln Riley, Rutgers HC Greg Schiano + Mt Rushmore of Things You Hated As A Kid But Love As An Adult
July 29, 2026
AI Summary
5 min read"Damn man, you a fucking loser. And I had the same damn feeling every day I walked through the door with the Jets." Plaxico Burress dropped that quote on a podcast, comparing his time in prison to his tenure with the New York Jets, and it set the tone for a sprawling episode of Pardon My Take that was equal parts football preview, locker-room confession, and absurdist Mount Rushmore debate. Hosts PFT Commenter, Big Cat, and the crew cycled through Big Ten Media Week interviews with three head coaches—Wisconsin’s Luke Fickell, USC’s Lincoln Riley, and Rutgers’ Greg Schiano—before pivoting to their signature audience game: the Mount Rushmore of Things You Hated as a Kid But Love as an Adult. The throughline was the return of football, but the real substance was in the coaches’ candid talk about rebuilding, adapting, and the strange rituals that define their programs.
Luke Fickell: Doubling Down in Madison
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What you'll learn
- 1 Timestamped Navigation Outline
- 2 (00:38) **Football Is Back & NFL Camp Chatter** - Hosts celebrate the start of training camp and discuss the first meaningless updates of the season
- 3 (05:55) **Buccaneers Drama: Todd Bowles on the Hot Seat** - The hosts examine the strange vibes around Tampa Bay after keeping their head coach while losing key players
- 4 (10:53) **Kyle Shanahan's Car Accident & LeBron to Philly** - New details emerge about Shanahan's eye injury, and LeBron's move to the 76ers sparks relocation speculation
- 5 (18:21) **MLB Lockout Fears & Trade Deadline Confusion** - Jeff Passan reports owners think there's a 0% chance baseball is played next year, and the hosts panic
- 6 (24:05) **Hot Seat Cool Throne: Jets = Prison, Bills Jerseys, Justin Herbert** - Plaxico Burress compares playing for the Jets to being in prison, and the Bills release terrible alternates
- 7 (39:34) **More Hot Seat Cool Throne: Patriots, Jacoby Brissett, Jersey Patches** - The hosts continue with the Patriots' low expectations, Notre Dame and Ohio State selling jersey patches, and Liv Golf's collapse
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Football is back as every team has now officially reported to camp. We talk entrances and training camp storylines with some re-signings and more (00:00:00-00:33:04). Hot Seat/Cool Throne including Justin Herbert’s engagement, LIV is dead and more (00:33:04-00:51:16). Mt Rushmore of things you hated as a kid but love as an adult (00:51:16-01:10:13). Wisconsin Head Coach Luke Fickell joins the show to talk about the future of the Badgers program, the first 3 years and not running from the fight, the last time he wrestled and tons more (01:10:13-01:41:12). USC Head Coach Lincoln Riley joins the show to talk about his 5th year at USC, Heisman QB’s, his brisket cooking, Mike Leach and more (01:41:12-01:59:57). Greg Schiano joins us to talk about his second go around at rebuilding Rutgers, chopping wood, being a new cat owner and more (01:59:57-02:15:10). We finish with guys on chicks
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