Colin Cowherd (Image Credit: USA TODAY Sports), Muhammad Ali (Image Credit: IMAGO )
In today’s world, nearly everyone has a podcast, from regular folks to celebrities and athletes. However, not all are entertaining, while some are so captivating that they keep their audience glued to the screen for hours. Speaking of which, in a recent episode of the ‘Games With Names’ podcast, Julian Edelman raised an interesting topic, asking Colin Cowherd about which legendary athlete from the past would make an incredible podcast host in 2024.
In response, Colin didn’t hesitate to mention the late Muhammad Ali as a classic example. He pointed out that in the past, when podcasts weren’t a thing yet, Ali’s press conferences were still iconic.
“If you YouTube ‘Muhammad Ali’ and go to Muhammad Ali’s best press conferences; you can’t believe it… He’s going on these four-minute soliloquies, and you’re like, ‘Where’s the teleprompter? I’m a broadcaster, like, how is he doing this?’”
Cowherd compared experiencing Ali speak to seeing Michael Jackson do his moonwalk for the first time—almost surreal. Next, he made a comparison to today’s sports stars and suggested that if Ali were here today, he would embody the qualities of today’s sports icons.
Specifically, Colin compared Ali to Ronaldo for his appearance; Tom Brady for his achievements, and Patrick Mahomes for his talent.
“Ali today would be like Ronaldo; good-looking, Tom Brady; successful, and Mahomes; talented. He was everything—the looks, the talk. I think Ali was born early; he would have been amazing.”
In a nutshell, the sportscaster asserted that Ali had all the qualities required to be a podcast host — looks, charm, and great communication skills. However, there’s still a significant gap between podcasting and broadcasting.
Colin Breaks Down Podcasting vs. Broadcasting
When Colin launched his podcast network called “The Volume,” he realized that his skills, as a broadcaster, didn’t always translate smoothly to the podcasting world.
As the discussion progressed with Edelman, Colin shared two qualities for thriving in a podcasting career — curiosity and storytelling. He brought up Joe Rogan’s example as a podcaster whose inquisitive nature makes him a success. However, Colin believes that if someone merely presents a story without adding interesting tidbits, the conversation would become lifeless and boring.
“Joe Rogan’s curious; you’re curious. Curious people succeed. And storytellers. When you come on my show, one of the things I always say is, ‘Hey, what do you got? What do you want today? What’s your best story?’ Storytelling works.”
Moreover, Colin shared how his own show didn’t rely on written questions but a spontaneous and narrative-driven approach.
Notably, Cowherd hosts multiple podcasts within his network, with “The Herd” being the most prominent one. It is typically opinionated, provocative, and occasionally controversial. It is for those who appreciate hot takes.
