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Full Analysis of Adam Schefter’s Takedown of Doug Gottlieb

The football insider pulled no punches in responding to an accusation from Wisconsin–Green Bay men's basketball coach.

Jimmy Traina

Adam Schefter was not happy with an accusation from Doug Gottlieb.
Adam Schefter was not happy with an accusation from Doug Gottlieb. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

1. A fracas between sports media figures used to be one of the fun aspects of Twitter, but now everybody fights with everybody about everything all day long, so a skirmish is hardly special anymore.

The lack of amusing sports media feuds is among the many, many reasons why X, formerly Twitter, is just an awful cesspool these days, but for a split second on Monday night we got a throwback to the good ol’ days thanks to Adam Schefter’s takedown of Doug Gottlieb.

It all started with Schefter reporting the news that Sacramento State was talking to Michael Vick about its head-coaching job. In the reporting Schefter mentioned that Sacramento State had $50 million in NIL money.

Gottlieb, who hosts a radio show while also coaching Wisconsin–Green Bay men's basketball, took issue with Schefter’s reporting of the $50 million in NIL money, so he got snippy with Schefty.

Right off the bat, Gottlieb gets a minus here for the cringe use of “Jeezus.” Plus, why would anyone care this much about Sacramento State football? But publicly calling out Schefter for just regurgitating what an agent said is a bold move.

Naturally, this didn’t sit well with Schefter, who went complete savage on Gottlieb.

Honestly, who knew Schefter had this in him?

He could’ve just pointed out Wisconsin–Green Bay’s 2–10 record and that would’ve sufficed. He could’ve just mentioned that Wisconsin–Green Bay is on a seven-game losing streak and that would’ve sufficed. He could’ve just mentioned last place in the Horizon League and that would’ve sufficed.

But what really, really, really put things over the top and was the proverbial kicking-him-while-he’s-down move was Schefter INCLUDING A SCREENSHOT OF THE STANDINGS!

Sure, “less time on social media and more time in the gym,” is quite a haymaker to finish off the reply, but I just love the image of Schefter, on one of his multiple phones while getting bombarded with texts from agents and front office people, taking the time to go to ESPN’s app, fire up the college basketball standings page, search for the Horizon League and then screenshot the standings to include in his tweet.

What a performance.

2. I’m not a RedZone viewer, so I didn’t see this on Sunday, but the “commercial-free” broadcast had commercials this week and everyone flipped out.

Sportico’s Jacob Feldman reports that RedZone will go back to being commercial-free for the near future.

3. I said in Monday’s Traina Thoughts that Nik Bonitto’s interception against the Colts on Sunday was one of the coolest plays of the NFL season. Bonitto’s Broncos teammate, Patrick Surtain II, was mic’d up for the play and I think it’s safe to say he is in agreement with me.

4. Here are a couple of amazing betting stories for my fellow degenerate gamblers out there.

5. Lions coach Dan Campbell must not know that you can’t use the f-word on terrestrial radio because he left it fly on Detroit’s 97.1 this morning.

6. The latest SI Media With Jimmy Traina features a conversation with one of ESPN’s top play-by-play callers, Sean McDonough.

McDonough talks about receiving praise from a certain college football legend for his call of the ACC championship game between Clemson and SMU, and what goes through his mind while he’s calling a wild ending.

McDonough also takes a trip down memory lane to discuss some of his famous calls. He recalls what it was like working with Bill Raftery and why Raft got the nickname, “Uncle One More.” In addition, McDonough shares his thoughts on calling the first College Football Playoff game between Indiana and Notre Dame and why the trip to South Bend will be special for him.

Following McDonough, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV in New York joins me for our weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week we discuss the NFL schedule, Netflix hiring a slew of people for its Christmas Day NFL broadcasts, the new season of Hard Knocks, Christmas tree problems and more.

You can listen to the SI Media With Jimmy Traina podcast below or on Apple and Spotify.

You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Sports Illustrated‘s YouTube channel.

7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: Happy 78th birthday to the great Eugene Levy.

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

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Jimmy Traina
JIMMY TRAINA

Jimmy Traina is a staff writer and podcast host for Sports Illustrated. A 20-year veteran in the industry, he’s been covering the sports media landscape for seven years and writes a daily column, Traina Thoughts. Traina has hosted the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2018, a show known for interviews with some of the most important and powerful people in sports media. He also was the creator and writer of SI’s Hot Clicks feature from 2007 to '13.

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