'Dan Le Batard Show' Spices Up ESPN vs. FOX Rivalry

ESPN's 'Dan LeBatard Show' mocks FOX's 'Big Noon Kickoff'

ESPN

1. Every sports media company outside of Barstool Sports likes to play things safe and avoid publicly tweaking its competitors.

Fortunately, the Dan Le Batard Show is different than most sports shows out there and has always made it a habit to push the envelope. (Remember when Le Batard gave his MLB Hall of Fame ballot to Deadspin?) They pushed the envelope again on Wednesday when they ran a mock promo for a Fox Sports University channel, or as they called it, FU. Get it?

Anyway, the parody, which cited the ways FOX has copied ESPN and mentions how FOX's college pregame show goes to "the fifth-best game of the day," was very well done and very funny. Le Batard laughing harder and harder as the promo went on also made it even better. Plus, there's a decent chance this didn't sit well with ESPN management and PR, which adds to the fun.

2. Speaking of ESPN vs. FOX, College GameDay once again beat Big Noon Kickoff in the overall ratings Saturday, 2.28 million viewers to 1.98 million.

3. The Inside the NBA crew took some TikTok Challenge that I'm not even going to try and explain since I'm old, but it involved throwing things in the air to see if they would land on anyone. The entire thing ended with Charles Barkley heaving an egg at Shaq's head. Naturally. 

4. This morning I sent out this tweet.

Here are some of the best replies I received.

5. Isaiah Thomas pulled off an impressive feat Tuesday night. He managed to lose his shoe, play defense, put the shoe back on and hit a 3-pointer, all without stopping play.

6. If you missed it over the Thanksgiving holiday, a new SI Media Podcast dropped with Katie Nolan. Topics we discussed included Always Late with Katie Nolan moving from digital to TV, doing comedy vs. doing monologues, her issues with people who cover sports media, why the RedZone Channel is porn, why she loves soccer, and her desire to become a wrestling fan.

You can listen to the podcast below or on Apple, Stitcher, Spotify and Google Play.

7. RANDOM YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THE DAY: Happy 50th birthday, Jay-Z.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on iTunes, Spotify or Stitcher. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter and Instagram.