- 12 hours ago
Revisiting our debate about the face of Miami sports with National Radio Host Zach Gelb.
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00:00Zach Kelb, longtime radio host, you hear him on this station, you hear him on WFAN in New York, WEEI
00:06in Boston, a bunch of other stations along the Odyssey Spectrum.
00:12Tomorrow night, he'll be holding down studio duties for Thursday night football on Compass Media Networks.
00:19He's got Cowboys and Buccaneers.
00:22On Sunday, he'll have the Commanders and Giants.
00:26He's a very busy man.
00:28Usually, he joins us from his home studio in New York City.
00:31Doesn't seem to be there today, based on the video monitor.
00:34Where are you today, Kelby?
00:35I am on Long Island, about to go to a chiropractor to get my back aligned and get a little
00:41adjustment.
00:43You're a believer in chiropractors.
00:45I also have visited a chiropractor at times.
00:48Have you gone regularly for a long time?
00:56We seem to have lost his sound.
00:58Did you mute yourself, Kelb?
01:04We've lost you, Kelby.
01:06You're going to have to reconnect, bro.
01:09You had a Santero rubbing garlic on your inner thighs, and you don't believe in a chiropractor?
01:16No, I guess I lost hope in him.
01:18I don't believe in him.
01:19I lost hope in him because I went to him a bunch of times and nothing happens.
01:24Yeah, but do you wonder what it would have been like had you not gone?
01:27Maybe it would have been even worse.
01:29Now, I just tell my wife and kids to walk on my back.
01:32Seems to work.
01:33That's essentially what they're doing.
01:35I know.
01:36And I would go to the chiropractor because I do like being loose and limber, but there was something like
01:44that moment where, you know, he grabs you, and you know he's about to give you a big adjustment.
01:52You know it's coming.
01:53That anticipation would drive me crazy.
01:56Like, do you get that feeling, Kelby?
01:59We reconnected with him.
02:00You get that feeling?
02:01So I used to always go to a male chiropractor.
02:04This new chiropractor I'm going to is a female.
02:07She was excellent the other day.
02:09Oh, there's Sean Watson over here.
02:10But she still does the Sean Connery to you.
02:12She still grabs you like Sean Connery.
02:14I've seen that movie too many times.
02:16Oh, she definitely dominates me.
02:17There's no doubt about that.
02:19By the way, I'm blaming Channing for me somehow getting muted because I'm on to Channing Crowder.
02:26On the Buccaneers, they can't win a game.
02:29Then starts to root for Florida all of a sudden.
02:31They get smacked by Missouri.
02:32Says he's wearing a Panthers shirt.
02:34Marchand has that whole injury.
02:35And then also last week, this genius told me that Drake May sucks.
02:40Yeah.
02:40How do you like that now?
02:41Where's your mea culpa, big boy?
02:43Hey, Kelby, that low.
02:45You got to come back up sooner or later.
02:47Right.
02:47He looked good.
02:48You should go to Crowder's house and take that heat hat off his head because then something's
02:54going to happen bad if he keeps on supporting these teams.
02:57Let's go.
02:57Yeah.
02:57I have a track record lately of mushing things.
03:02We had a conversation.
03:03Speaking of Giannis, we had a conversation yesterday about who the face of Miami sports is.
03:08We were trying to determine, is it Giannis already?
03:10Is he the face of Miami sports taking front office out of it?
03:14Cause I would make the case.
03:15Pat Riley is, um, it can't be a Marlin.
03:18It can't be a dolphin right now.
03:20The only other options for face of Miami sports are probably Malachi, Tony, or a Panther, maybe
03:26like Sasha Barkov or Matthew Kachuk.
03:30Um, and then I want to ask you, cause you had texted me about Philly, the face of Philly
03:34sports, but what do you think about the face of Miami sports?
03:37I think it's Mario Cristobal.
03:39Cause like the problem with college is you say that, Oh, it's Malachi, Tony.
03:44You say that it's Darian Mensah.
03:45Those guys have a limit on how long they're going to be here.
03:48Mario Cristobal has revitalized and brought back this Miami program.
03:52And they were in the championship game last year.
03:54You know, they're, they're going to be a playoff team this year.
03:57They'll win the ACC barring some crazy injuries.
04:00So, and you see him after the game with words that I can't say on this very legendary radio
04:04station from Mario Cristobal.
04:06Also, I think nationally, the most recognized player would still be honest, but I think
04:12if you look locally, the face of Miami sports right now, I would say is head football coach
04:16of the U.
04:16And also it's like Miami hurricanes football means so much in this town.
04:22Like if the dolphins ever got going, whoever the quarterback is become the face, you know,
04:26it's not to belittle the other organizations.
04:28Like the Panthers are the best run organization in the state right now.
04:32And the heat means so much, but man, you get a Miami hurricanes championship this year,
04:36there's going to be no bigger star than Mario Cristobal.
04:38Somebody said it on this show though.
04:39Was it you Solana that, Hey, Mario, you got to win a championship before you're the face
04:44of Miami sports.
04:45But we're saying right now, like, you know, when I think of the Miami heat, I think of
04:51honestly, first Giannis and Pat Riley, before I think of Spoh, it's not taking anything away
04:56from Eric Spolstra.
04:58When you think of the Florida Panthers, you probably think of could Chuck first or Verhage
05:03instead of, you know, Zito and then Maurice.
05:06Like when I think of the Miami hurricanes, if you tell me that it's Tony or you tell me
05:10it's Mensa, well, like Mensa could be gone at the end of this year, right?
05:14He's gone at the end of this year.
05:15Tony's gone at the end of next year where Mario is the coach of the foreseeable future.
05:19Yeah.
05:19But that, that has to, that comes down to the, the, the, the type of sport and the way that
05:24the sport is set up.
05:26I mean, Gelby, I love Mario.
05:27And I was saying yesterday, like, I'm cool with somebody saying it's Mario Cristobal, but
05:32you can't pick a coach in this town who hasn't won a ring yet when you've got multiple coaches
05:37with some legitimate success throughout their careers.
05:40All I'm saying.
05:41Well, here's the thing.
05:42I was asked the question.
05:43I gave you the answer.
05:44I can say whatever I want.
05:45And that's what I said.
05:46It's Mario Cristobal.
05:47If you don't like it, you know, go cry about it.
05:49My, my, my thought on it is we haven't seen Giannis yet on ESPN with the heat Jersey on.
05:54We haven't seen Giannis dunk or drop 50 in a game.
05:57As soon as Giannis is known or the world sees him in a heat Jersey, he's going to take that
06:01over and overnight.
06:03Yeah.
06:04But the thing is, that's going to be difficult.
06:05And look, a lot of years have passed by since the Canes last championship.
06:10Like you look at the heat, Giannis is always going to be compared to Dwayne Wade.
06:13He's going to be compared to LeBron James.
06:16So, you know, like, yes, in terms of the national relevance, there's no player that is more well
06:22known right now nationally than, than Giannis Antetokounmpo in the Miami area.
06:27But if you ask me the face of Miami sports right now, I would still say that it's Mario Cristobal.
06:31So we had talked yesterday also about Philadelphia, because I was just saying, well, LeBron, because
06:36we were trying to say, you know, is Giannis the face because he's the best athlete right
06:41now, the best in his sport.
06:43And so LeBron is that, or was that for the longest period of time and now in Philadelphia
06:49and you had heard part of that and you said LeBron is what not the face of Philadelphia sports.
06:54Well, no, it is always the Eagles that are the heartbeat of that city.
07:00Like the Eagle, it used to be four for four in Philadelphia, right?
07:03Oh, we proudly represent all four teams.
07:06It's the Eagles.
07:07And then it's everybody else.
07:08Like the Sixers fan is a very fair weather fan.
07:12Like when they're bad, no one goes to Sixers games.
07:14I was there in Philadelphia when they were absolutely horrific and no one was at the games.
07:18You get tickets and sit like three rows off the bench for like, you know, like for 10
07:23bucks.
07:24And then, yeah, even last year, like there's limitations on how far that team could go.
07:29LeBron is a huge get for the Philadelphia 76ers.
07:32There's going to be so much tension, but that fan base will turn on you in a second.
07:36If you don't start to deliver where for the Eagles, they could be a four win team.
07:41And that's going to be a set up the link each and every week.
07:43And those fans are going to go crazy.
07:44You walk around Philadelphia every day.
07:46You see Eagles gear.
07:47You do not see Sixers gear each and every day.
07:50Do you think it's going to be a wild success in Philly with the roster they've put together?
07:56Or do you think it's going to fall short of expectations?
07:59I'm not saying a dumpster fire.
08:01I'm saying fall short of expectations.
08:04It depends what the expectations are.
08:06Like, can this group finally get out of the second round?
08:08Yes, I can.
08:09The expectations have to be a championship with that roster, right?
08:12Well, I don't think they're winning a championship.
08:14I don't.
08:15Like, they have a talented roster.
08:18There's no doubt about it.
08:19Joel Embiid is always hurt.
08:21Joel Embiid is always out of shape come postseason time.
08:23LeBron James, the last three, four years in Los Angeles, has had to miss games.
08:27And he suffered some injuries.
08:29Yes, that team is really damn good with Maxie, who's phenomenal.
08:32VJ Edgecombe, who's a really good young player.
08:35Jalen Brown coming on over.
08:37But let's not forget, Jalen Brown wanted to be the alpha in Boston.
08:41He ain't the alpha on this team, you know, in Philadelphia.
08:44Now, there's going to be a point where if you win a championship, you go stick it to Boston,
08:47you know, especially if Boston doesn't have a good year.
08:50But no, I'm not ready to say that the Sixers are definitely winning a championship this year.
08:54And I'll push back on the face of Philadelphia, because I understand Philadelphians.
09:00I see what you're saying.
09:01Football town.
09:02Go way back.
09:03If you think about Philadelphia sports right now from the outside looking in, it's LeBron.
09:08He's the biggest name.
09:08Jalen Hurts.
09:09I think if he goes to any city, he takes over as the face of that city because he's LeBron.
09:15And nobody hates LeBron.
09:17If it's Cleveland, absolutely.
09:19If it's L.A., ooh, LeBron or Otani, that's a good one.
09:23That's a good one.
09:24I would still lean LeBron.
09:27LeBron just because football in the United States is just more important than Major League Baseball in the year of
09:322026.
09:33But Jalen Hurts is the face of Philadelphia sports right now.
09:37And you know what's crazy?
09:38He's polarizing.
09:39Like every week they're ready to bench him.
09:42Then they're ready to go win a Super Bowl with him.
09:44So, yes, I'm not disagreeing with you, Crowder.
09:46LeBron's the biggest name.
09:48But when it comes to the face of Philadelphia, I still think the face has to be the quarterback of
09:53the Eagles.
09:54So, what's up with Jalen Hurts and the face of the Eagles?
09:56Because I watched this segment from a local telecast in Philly where people are walking out of the stadium and
10:02they're saying Sirianni sucks.
10:04Jalen Hurts doesn't have it.
10:06So, like, where are the Philadelphia fans with the Eagles right now because they're 2-2, brutal loss the other
10:13day, and they just don't look like a contending team?
10:16Yeah, it's so bizarre because Sirianni's been the coach there for, I think, five seasons right now.
10:19They made the playoffs each and every year.
10:21They've been to two Super Bowls and they've won a Super Bowl.
10:23But every year there's controversy and doubt, even the first year.
10:27You know, I was doing the show on CBS Sports Radio and I was like, oh, this guy may be
10:30one and done.
10:31And they ended up making the postseason.
10:33And even the year where they won the Super Bowl, you know, their second go-around winning the Super Bowl,
10:37people were out on them like eight weeks into the season.
10:40They just have never – they are just wildly inconsistent on offense.
10:45And Lane Johnson retires earlier in the week.
10:47They just traded Cam Juergens to the Baltimore Ravens.
10:50So, they got problems up front on the offensive line.
10:54And for years in Philadelphia, the offensive line was so great with Jordan Mailata and Jason Kelsey.
11:00You had Jason Peters there for years.
11:02You had Lane Johnson.
11:03And now that line is just not as good as what it once was.
11:07The quarterback has not been terrible, but that line needs to be better.
11:12The Dolphins have the Bengals on Sunday.
11:17I feel like this is a winnable game for the Miami Dolphins.
11:21I've seen improvement week after week.
11:24I don't think the Bengals are world beaters, although without, you know, Jack Jones and Storm Duck.
11:32Who?
11:33You're always a who?
11:34It's funny.
11:35When I was on hold, I heard him say that.
11:37And I said who?
11:38And then Crowder said it a second later.
11:39Jack Jones.
11:41Who?
11:42I think the Dolphins can beat the Bengals on Sunday.
11:45They're seven and a half point dogs at home.
11:47What do you think?
11:48Yeah, I wouldn't sit there and put my life savings on it.
11:51We'll also see if Jamar Chase or Tee Higgins are going to play because they were knocked out of the
11:55game last week.
11:57But I can't expect the Dolphins to win a game, but can they be competitive?
12:02That's a different story.
12:04And with Devon A. Chan out and to be competitive, that caught me by surprise.
12:09And, you know, I like the effort by the Dolphins.
12:12And under Tevington, just speaking about team 0-4, I'll say.
12:18Can't fire McDaniel.
12:20Like, you know, Halfley's okay.
12:21They know the contract stuff.
12:24What about the Texans?
12:25What about D'Amico Ryan?
12:27Is he in any kind of trouble in Texas?
12:28Because that's sad that he has that many good players at 0-4.
12:33Yeah, and here's the thing.
12:34The quarterback has actually made improvements.
12:36And the quarterback is not playing terribly.
12:38Like, if you look at his numbers, you would say, oh, I would never expect them to be 0-4
12:43because it was just about Stroud managing the game.
12:45That defense got issues, and it's wild.
12:47Todd Haley, before the start of the season, when I was doing a show for Odyssey on, you know,
12:52what was 6-10 and now they flipped to FM,
12:55the fan, and he said that this defense could be the 85 Bears.
12:59So, like, that's a huge claim, and that hasn't been the case.
13:03But, no, D'Amico Ryan isn't going to get fired, you know, has made the playoffs each and every year.
13:07They've won a playoff game each and every season.
13:09But, yeah, for a team that had Super Bowl aspirations to not have a win
13:13and then blow that game to the Cowboys, too, ugly, ugly, ugly.
13:16I guess they're saving graces.
13:18You look at that division outside of Jacksonville, it's not, you know, a bunch of world beaters inside that division.
13:24What about Mike McDaniel?
13:25Is he going to get fired if the Chargers don't win?
13:27Their schedule, we read it yesterday, is tough coming up the next couple of weeks.
13:31Like, there's a legitimate chance that they're 1-8 to start the season.
13:35Yeah, you may want to put the capris down, Mike.
13:38You're going to be sitting on the couch coming up soon.
13:41Oh, my God, what a disaster that is.
13:44And you know what?
13:45I couldn't stand Mike McDaniel when he was here.
13:47I told you three years ago that dude isn't going to last long, and he shouldn't be a head coach
13:51in this league.
13:52I thought it was a really good hire by the Chargers.
13:55But Justin Herbert and that football team right now with Mike McDaniel running that side of the ball
14:00have been an unmitigated disaster.
14:01I don't think they'll get rid of Harbaugh after the season.
14:04Like, I think he'll get a year back to redeem himself.
14:06But they're going to be sending Mike McDaniel to the unemployment line.
14:09There's no doubt about that.
14:10He's got to be the fall guy, right?
14:12Yeah, he's the fall guy.
14:12You can't blame it on Justin Herbert.
14:14You can't blame it on Harbaugh.
14:15You've got to blame it on Mike McDaniel.
14:17What a disaster, though.
14:19Oh, you know, I hate to see it.
14:21Elite disaster.
14:21And then also you've got Tua and Zach Wilson taking photos as the backups for their matchup last week
14:27and posted on Instagram with their wives or girlfriend.
14:30I'm not sure of the status of either one of them.
14:32Who's the worst team, though, in the NFL?
14:35There's Crowder had mentioned several winless teams.
14:38I'm guessing it's between Miami and Tennessee.
14:41Are those the two major combatants in this one?
14:45Yeah, I guess it is Tennessee.
14:47Cam Ward, man, for a guy that was, like, so easy to root for when he was with the Canes
14:53and, like, did everything right,
14:55he's getting into fights with the media, taking no accountability, and they have been a disaster.
15:03And Salah, oh, he stinks as a head coach.
15:07And Dayball, man, I thought that was going to be another good offensive coordinating hire.
15:11He may just be overrated, and that's the guy that he wanted the Giants to get a few years ago.
15:16But as bad as it is with the Dolphins, like, you knew it was going to be bad.
15:20In Tennessee, they thought they'd be a little bit better with the second year of their first overall pick,
15:24and that team has just been deplorable.
15:28What about the other side?
15:29Is it the Bills lost to your Patriots, but I still can't take the Bills out, at least the top
15:34three.
15:34There's no way.
15:36The best team in the AFC right now is the Kansas City Chiefs.
15:40It's got to be.
15:41And then in the NFC, right now it's looking like San Francisco.
15:46Brock Purdy right now is playing at an MVP level.
15:49And I think he's 13 touchdowns to one interception.
15:53Sleep on the Chicago Bears.
15:54Yeah, well, let's see when your quarterback is done crying after that hamstring injury
15:58where I thought he blew out his knee.
16:00When he gets back, let's see what they can do.
16:01But, yeah, no, Ben Johnson is an aggressive guy, and he is an offensive mastermind.
16:09He could rub people the wrong way and be a prick.
16:11But that Chicago defense, let's see what they do in the postseason
16:14when they go up against a team like San Francisco or Seattle.
16:18But, man, that Bears team, they're good.
16:20There's no doubt about it.
16:21And they also played the Jets last week, so let's not get crazy.
16:25Honestly, we could throw Channing out there right now and probably beat an Aaron Glenn team.
16:31Put Jimmy at fullback.
16:33He could get five yards in Aaron Glenn's defense.
16:35Oh, I would give Jimmy the ball any time in a short-yardage situation.
16:40You tell me who's bringing Jimmy down in a short-yardage situation.
16:43It ain't happening.
16:45No, but did Jim Harbaugh say who's got it better than us?
16:47Nobody.
16:47Who's bringing Jimmy down?
16:49Nobody.
16:50Nobody.
16:51Jimbo.
16:52Jimmy would hit the middle of that line.
16:54He would yell, I am Japanese.
16:57First down.
16:58I don't know about this one.
17:01Zach Gelb.
17:02I'm on social media.
17:03Z-A-C-H-G-E-L-B.
17:06Have a nice chiropractor session.
17:10Solana, never mute my microphone, by the way, in the beginning of the conversation.
17:13Never again.
17:13All right?
17:14Leo Messi.
17:15Leo Messi is the face of Miami sports.
17:16You were all wrong, including you.
17:18Who?
17:18It's Leo Messi.
17:19Who?
17:20I thought we were talking about athletes.
17:24There you go.
17:25Zach Gelb.
17:27Maradona.
17:27He yells out.