RADIO

Podcast introduction: Mass Chatter with J.C. & Joel is on the way

Life continues to be consumed by local sports writing for me. And I absolutely love that I’m able to make a living doing something I’m passionate about.

But during those moments not spent in a sports state of mind, I’m usually running around with my family, digging through my music collection or attending some sort of live event.

That’s where a new podcast collaboration with Joel Martinez comes into play. We’ll be talking about those sorts of things on a weekly basis beginning in January.

Until then, enjoy the debut episode of Mass Chatter. You’ll be introduced to us through the highs and lows we’ve experienced over the years during the holiday season. The episode features stories about a home-made haunted house, backyard football, and a Christmas tree left in the front lawn.

Click here to check it out…

Will NBA free agents flee Western Conference for easy road in East?

With the NBA Draft in our rearview mirrors the focus for basketball fans throughout the remainder of the summer turns to the dealings of free agency.

Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders joined Carnahan Chronicles on AM 740 The Game to discuss a handful of topics from around the National Basketball Association.

Among those is a story he wrote about marque players choosing to leave the Wester Conference in favor of teams in the East in hopes of an easier path to the NBA Finals.

“I think it’s very possible that we’ll see players that are out West coming to the Eastern Conference, or free agents that are in the Eastern Conference staying out East, because players understand that the Western Conference is brutal right now. It’s hard to make a Finals run. You can be on a loaded team in the West and still miss the playoffs,” Kennedy said.

( – Click here for J.C.’s interview with Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders – )

Kennedy touches on a handful of NBA topics throughout the segment with a focus on players and teams from both central Florida and northeast Ohio.

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Harold Hitt talks first baseball state title at Oviedo High School

Oviedo High School’s baseball team had made four trips to the state final four before this season but were never able to advance past the semifinals to play in a title game.

That all changed last week as the Lions pounded Plant City Durant 12-0 in a Class 7A semifinal Wednesday before claiming their first championship with a 9-5 triumph of Sarasota a day later.

I covered the Lions in a region title game for the Orlando Sentinel a week earlier as they hosted Tallahassee Chiles, a team they lost to in the playoffs in each of the past two seasons.

Oviedo coach Harold Hitt joined me on Carnahan Chronicles on AM 740 The Game Saturday morning to talk about the championship run by the Lions, the standouts on the team that helped make it happen, and the amount of quality baseball Central Florida has produced over the years.

( – Click here to listen to Coach Hitt and J.C. on AM 740 The Game – )

Oviedo, led this year by pitchers Cooper Bradford and Cameron Peppiatt, previously reached the state final four in 1986, 1992, 2001 and 2002.

Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders talks Alonzo Mourning and health of Chris Bosh & Larry Nance Jr.

Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders joined me Saturday to talk about recent stories he’s written about Alonzo Mourning’s thoughts on the game today, Chris Bosh recovering from blood clots, and Larry Nance Jr. hoping to play in NBA despite battling Crohn’s disease.

Kennedy got Mourning’s take on the state of the big man in the National Basketball Association and talked about how his own issues with blood clots and Crohn’s disease played a part in stories he wrote on both Bosh and Nance Jr.

( – Click here to listen to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders on Carnahan Chronicles – )

Adam Markowitz of ArenaFan talks Orlando Predators & bright future of Arena Football League

Adam Markowitz of ArenaFan joined me Saturday to talk about the resurgence of the Orlando Predators and Arena Football League, which recently opened its 28th season of operation with teams in 12 different cities.

Markowitz talked about the AFL record the Preds set on Friday on the road at Jacksonville and how former starting quarterback Bernard Morris played a key part. He also talked about how owner David Siegel has helped to revive the franchise in Orlando and how the AFL has plans in place to help the league continue to grow in the coming years.

( – Click here to listen to Adam Markowitz of ArenaFan on Carnahan Chronicles – )

Devon Jeffreys of Football Insiders talks Cowboys, Bills, Eagles, Buccaneers & Jaguars offseason

Devon Jeffreys of Football Insiders joined me Saturday to talk about recent stories he’s written about Dallas Cowboys linebacker Rolando McClain, Rex Ryan taking over the Buffalo Bills, and Chip Kelly’s offseason gambles with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Jeffreys also talked about what’s stood out to him as of late in regard to how close National Football League teams from the state of Florida are to making a return to the postseason.

( – Click here to listen to Devon Jeffreys of Football Insiders on Carnahan Chronicles – )

Orlando Sentinel prep editor talks rise of Montverde Academy basketball & No. 1 Olympia baseball

Buddy Collings of the Orlando Sentinel joined me Saturday to talk about the emergence of Montverde Academy as a national high school basketball powerhouse and the odds of Orlando’s Olympia High School, the No. 1 baseball team in the nation, at winning the state title this year.

Montverde Academy, led by LSU commit Ben Simmons, won its third national title in a row on Saturday. Collings also talked about how Simmons, named national player of the year by numerous organizations, lost out on the Mr. Basketball award in Florida to fellow LSU commit Antonio Blakeney of Orlando’s Oak Ridge High School.

( – Click here to listen to Buddy Collings of Orlando Sentinel on Carnahan Chronicles – )

UCF Sports publisher talks Breshad Perriman, UCF football, baseball & UCF Athletics Hall of Fame

Brandon Helwig of UCF Sports joined me Saturday to talk about the rising draft stock of former UCF wide receiver Breshad Perriman, the holes UCF is looking to fill this spring in the secondary and at wide receiver, and the current state of the No. 6 UCF baseball program.

Helwig rounded up the segment by talking about the upcoming UCF Athletics Hall of Fame induction of former football player Asante Samuel, football and baseball player Dee Brown, softball player Stephanie Best and the 1978 UCF volleyball team.

( – Click here to listen to Brandon Helwig of UCF Sports on Carnahan Chronicles – )

Carnahan Chronicles Radio: Sam Gardner of FOX Sports talks 1985 Villanova championship team

Three of the four NCAA Tournament games played in Jacksonville in the Round of 64 were decided by three points or less, highlighted by a memorable upset of No. 3 Baylor by No. 14 Georgia State.

Arkansas, North Carolina and Xavier also advanced and Sam Gardner of FOX Sports was there to see it all play out.

Gardner joined the show Saturday to talk about the start of the tourney. He also shared details about recent interviews he conducted with players and coaches from the 1985 Villanova men’s basketball championship team for an anniversary story that was published earlier this week.

Read about the improbable journey for that Villanova squad at FOXSports.com and keep up with Gardner on Twitter for more out of Jacksonville.

Carnahan Chronicles Radio: Interview with North Florida basketball’s Romelo Banks

The University of North Florida basketball team is likely to be one of the only programs in the state taking part in the NCAA Tournament when the games tip off this week.

Among the players that helped the Ospreys earn an automatic bid by way of claiming the Atlantic Sun title is 6-foot-11 sophomore Romelo Banks, who played at both Liberty and Celebration high schools while growing up in Kissimmee, Florida.

Banks joined me on the show Saturday to talk about advancing to the NCAA Tournament, the passing of his mother at a young age to cancer and how he’s used her memory as inspiration throughout his academic and athletic career.

North Florida joined the Division I ranks just a decade ago and will play in the NCAA postseason for the first time under head coach Matthew Driscoll.

Carnahan Chronicles Radio: Breaking down opening week of wild NFL free agency

A wild start to free agency this week has a number of players in the National Football League relocating to new parts of the country.

Among the surprising moves was one made by Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray, who opted for more money by joining the rival Philadelphia Eagles.

On Saturday we discussed the decision by Murray and broke down the moves being made this week by the local NFL teams in the state of Florida.

Carnahan Chronicles Radio: Will strike threaten start of MLS season?

The Orlando City Soccer Club is poised to open its inaugural Major League Soccer season on Sunday, March 8 against fellow expansion side New York City FC.

But there’s still plenty of uncertainty surrounding negotiations between the league and players’ union that could threaten a big opening weekend for MLS.

Valencia Voice and The Skyboat editor/contributor Danny Morales joined me on the show Saturday to talk about how a player strike might impact the hype locally surrounding OCSC and the start of the MLS season.

Orlando City announced Monday that they’ve sold 60,000 tickets for Sunday’s match at the Florida Citrus Bowl.

Carnahan Chronicles Radio: Soccer Futurist Ted Westervelt talks about state of the sport in United States

The Orlando City Soccer Club opens its Major League Soccer season March 8 after dominating the competition the past four years in the lower-division USL PRO.

That’s if players don’t strike while demanding free agency and fair wages from MLS as collective bargaining conversations continue this month.

On Saturday I was joined by “soccer futurist” Ted Westervelt of Soccer Reform and Pot Hunting on AM 740 The Game to talk about the current CBA situation, the lack of promotions/relegation in the US, and other soccer topics here stateside.

Be sure to follow Ted Westervelt on Twitter and take part in what you love and hate about his opinions. From my point of view, it’s safe to say he’s fairly acclimated to the abuse by now.

Carnahan Chronicles Radio: Super Bowl Sunday trouble, new football league, angry high school soccer dad and National Signing Day hype

I found myself caught up in a couple of crazy circumstances a week ago and decided to share those stories on the show this past Saturday.

For starters, my carelessness while running late to a Super Bowl party resulted in banging up the car of Mike Bianchi, columnist at the Orlando Sentinel and host of AM 740 The Game’s “Open Mike,” while in the parking lot at Ker’s WingHouse. We capped the opening segment by also talking about a new football league forming in 2016 that’s looking to bring yet another minor league team to Orlando next spring.

Then on Friday, while on assignment to cover a prep soccer game at West Orange High School in Winter Garden, I was nearly attacked by an angry Warriors dad in the press box. We finished the show talking about that wild encounter while giving props to the local high school state tournament teams and touching on the disturbing hype that surrounds National Signing Day on a yearly basis.

Enjoy.

Carnahan Chronicles Radio: Bright House Sports Network’s Austin Lyon talks future of National Signing Day

On Saturday I was joined by Austin Lyon of Bright House Sports Network to talk about college football’s upcoming National Signing Day on Wednesday.

Lyon provided a preview of what to expect from BHSN’s coverage while also touching on what the future may hold for National Signing Day as more and more student-athletes opt to become early enrollees at their colleges of choice.

He broke down the schools being considered by offensive lineman Martez Ivey of Apopka High School, the top college football prospect in Central Florida, and what schools running back Dexter Williams and athlete Jalen Julius are each considering. Both Williams and Julius finished their prep careers at West Orange High School in Winter Garden.

Lyon wrapped up the segment by talking about the recruiting classes of college programs throughout the state of Florida and gave a short preview of BHSN’s upcoming coverage of the boys and girls basketball postseason.