Katie Nolan: somebody should make a thread about her

JimBoSox9

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I'm actually having trouble Googling any news wire stuff on the new show, anyone have the details? I still only see the 'digital and social' weekly show, not anything on actual real television.
 

Van Everyman

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I don’t follow ESPN that closely but for the life of me I don’t understand why they signed her to a contract and then barely used her for 18 months. It’s like they were trying to get her off the market before they had any understanding of her value.

Hoping she does well with whatever it is they decide. Not sure it’s “ESPN material” in a world where SAS is their main draw. But no question she’s a real talent.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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Her destiny has always been to work for Simmons.
She would be awesome on a Boston sports radio show or hosting a Sports Tonight type show, but she is better than local TV these days
She just re-upped with ESPN last year, so I suspect there might be a no-compete period for her before she starts showing up somewhere else. Wouldn't surprise me if she ended up working with Le Batard and his network when she's able. The only places, aside from her own show, that she seemed to thrive at ESPN were on Le Batard's shows.

At the very least, I hope she takes her podcast with her, though obviously with a new name. It's the only consistent content she's been producing since ESPN cancelled her TV show. Doing that on her own might enable her to re-unite with some of her co-hosts/producers who were taken from her by ESPN for various reasons (moved to other shows, laid off, etc).
 

Phil Plantier

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I've been a devoted podcast listener, especially since Covid and her openness about her struggles with depression. This was a long time coming.

I think she's going to join the LeBatard stable. I don't think she's going to the Ringer, just a gut feeling. I wouldn't be surprised if she joins something like Just Women's Sports, where her old co-host is working.

In her last podcast, she mentioned as an aside "if I don't get on TV in the next year, I'm too old to go on TV," so maybe she'll try to find a place where she can do that (back to Fox? BeIN? A streaming service?)
 

ifmanis5

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ESPN always under used her and never made her a star pundit which they should have. She was never cross-promoted onto other shows either. They acted as if they were afraid that she would say something outside of their typical brand. They squandered her. Hope she gets a better platform.
 

TheGazelle

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ESPN always under used her and never made her a star pundit which they should have. She was never cross-promoted onto other shows either. They acted as if they were afraid that she would say something outside of their typical brand. They squandered her. Hope she gets a better platform.
Agreed. She was excellent and ESPN never used her properly. Her shows with Kimes and LeBatard were always really good.
 

Mystic Merlin

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ESPN always under used her and never made her a star pundit which they should have. She was never cross-promoted onto other shows either. They acted as if they were afraid that she would say something outside of their typical brand. They squandered her. Hope she gets a better platform.
She rode the line too much to be put as forward by ESPN as, say, Mina Kimes. Too bad, but luckily this isn’t the 90s/00s; there are places for her to shine.
 

Van Everyman

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Between Maria Taylor leaving, Rachel Nichols getting canned for speaking ill of her, and now this, this has really been a great stretch for women on ESPN.
 

ifmanis5

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She rode the line too much to be put as forward by ESPN as, say, Mina Kimes. Too bad, but luckily this isn’t the 90s/00s; there are places for her to shine.
Totally.
I actually thought she was a better fit for Fox Sports which seems to handle big/funny personalities better, even though they didn't use her all that much either. Wonder if Turner gives her a shot?
 

HoyaSoxa

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ESPN seemed like a bad fit for her four years ago, and it turns out it was. Meadowlark Media, with John Skipper and Le Batard and Michael Schur (and now including Spencer Hall, Grant Wahl, and Joe Posnanski in their podcast network), definitely seems like the right group of people for her to be working with, but I don't know how it gets her back on TV in a meaningful way. FS1 looks even less appealing than when she left, NBC no longer has a sports network, so I suppose that leaves Turner?

I am worried that we are 5 years past the promise that Garbarge Time showed, and maybe Katie won't be able to summon that again. I confess I have not been listening to her podcast for the past year or so other than an occasional check-in, but I did just come across this GQ piece by John Skipper's son from a few years ago that suggests a person really struggling with her mental health. I cannot imagine the past 2 years have been helpful to that.
 

jcd0805

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Between Maria Taylor leaving, Rachel Nichols getting canned for speaking ill of her, and now this, this has really been a great stretch for women on ESPN.
They lost Michelle Beadle in the last couple of years too, I always liked her and am surprised she never landed anywhere else.
 

PedroKsBambino

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Her destiny has always been to work for Simmons.
That's also bene my read as well. Part of why (beyond the obvious "Boston" connection) is that he will be very open to new formats/approaches and when she was best it was doing something different. ESPN wanted her to slot into a role and it really didn't work.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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ESPN seemed like a bad fit for her four years ago, and it turns out it was. Meadowlark Media, with John Skipper and Le Batard and Michael Schur (and now including Spencer Hall, Grant Wahl, and Joe Posnanski in their podcast network), definitely seems like the right group of people for her to be working with, but I don't know how it gets her back on TV in a meaningful way. FS1 looks even less appealing than when she left, NBC no longer has a sports network, so I suppose that leaves Turner?

I am worried that we are 5 years past the promise that Garbarge Time showed, and maybe Katie won't be able to summon that again. I confess I have not been listening to her podcast for the past year or so other than an occasional check-in, but I did just come across this GQ piece by John Skipper's son from a few years ago that suggests a person really struggling with her mental health. I cannot imagine the past 2 years have been helpful to that.
One of the best things about her podcast is how open and honest she is about her mental health, and you are right, she has struggled a lot the past couple years. Seems like all she has going on is her boyfriend, her dog, and her pod. And now one of those, at least in the short-term, is going away.

As for TV, I don't know why that's really an end goal for her at this stage. She could really excel in the podcast realm, and that can include a video component if there really is a desire to be in front of the camera.
 

HoyaSoxa

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As for TV, I don't know why that's really an end goal for her at this stage. She could really excel in the podcast realm, and that can include a video component if there really is a desire to be in front of the camera.
I should say that I am also aware that she has been open about her challenges on the podcast, and I am glad she has done that, though I have drifted toward other pods in the past few years. Podcasts are probably her best format, I only worry that it won't give her enough to do, unlike some of the other podcasters who also write or have other projects to keep them engaged.
 

Joe D Reid

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As for TV, I don't know why that's really an end goal for her at this stage. She could really excel in the podcast realm, and that can include a video component if there really is a desire to be in front of the camera.
All of the best "TV" stuff I've seen her do has essentially been video podcasting--pre-recorded, minimal crew, lots of space and time to develop the bit. Like Simmons, I think that traditional sports TV, whether live show or interview show, doesn't fit her strengths. And like Simmons, at this point she would be better off leaning into the many things she does well.
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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but I did just come across this GQ piece by John Skipper's son from a few years ago that suggests a person really struggling with her mental health. I cannot imagine the past 2 years have been helpful to that.
Interesting article; thanks for posting. From the article on what the other posters say below, seems to me that the one thing she really needs to find is some peace within her. Hopefully she can do that.
 

mauf

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Agree with others that podcasting (probably with video) is KN’s best format. Hope the money and exposure she got from four years at ESPN was worth the time she didn’t spend building her own brand.
 

Lose Remerswaal

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All of the best "TV" stuff I've seen her do has essentially been video podcasting--pre-recorded, minimal crew, lots of space and time to develop the bit. Like Simmons, I think that traditional sports TV, whether live show or interview show, doesn't fit her strengths. And like Simmons, at this point she would be better off leaning into the many things she does well.
She was good on Around the Horn, but not as good as I thought she was on her own in a less confined space. Kind of like you refer to regarding traditional opportunities
 

nattysez

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The Ringer makes a good amount of content for YouTube. Slow News Day is consistently good and NBA Desktop was a weekly must-watch. The Ringer working with her on a weekly online show along with a podcast seems like a perfect fit.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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She was good on Around the Horn, but not as good as I thought she was on her own in a less confined space. Kind of like you refer to regarding traditional opportunities
She's not a traditional reporter/pundit and doesn't really have a particular sport/league in which she excels (like, say, Mina Kimes and the NFL). She's more a comedian with a general sports focus. She excels when she's given the opportunity to find the humor and make a joke about something (though she can certainly drop a serious hammer on the right topic if given the chance). ATH and the like are more about having hot takez and bombast than humor. That's what I liked about HQ. It was a bit looser and had more of a humorous side to it, which suited her strengths.

She was an ill fit for ESPN all along.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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The segment where she brings in people who tweeted about how they could make field goals after their team's kicker missed was awesome. She's incredibly talented.

I don't know what her "best" format is, but if someone is unable to figure out a way to capture her strengths and make her a featured player, I think that says more about their lack of vision than anything about her.
 

Pablo's TB Lover

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The Ringer has some women podcast voices, but only Seerat Sohi is sports-focused and she only appears on the NBA Show. I think as far as an overall sports show, Nolan would be a perfect foil on The Ringer for the Ryen Russillo podcast. Ryen is a guy into the X's and O's, kind of bro-ey and friends with the Barstool crowd (I actually like him although my description doesn't sound complimentary haha); Katie could have a Ringer podcast with a lighter comedic-type feel and a little less on the analysis side. Confession: I stopped flipping to ESPN for podcasts after the Grantland-related shows ended, so my thoughts are based on Katie's previous work and not her ESPN work.
 

HoyaSoxa

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The Ringer has some women podcast voices, but only Seerat Sohi is sports-focused and she only appears on the NBA Show. I think as far as an overall sports show, Nolan would be a perfect foil on The Ringer for the Ryen Russillo podcast. Ryen is a guy into the X's and O's, kind of bro-ey and friends with the Barstool crowd (I actually like him although my description doesn't sound complimentary haha); Katie could have a Ringer podcast with a lighter comedic-type feel and a little less on the analysis side. Confession: I stopped flipping to ESPN for podcasts after the Grantland-related shows ended, so my thoughts are based on Katie's previous work and not her ESPN work.
She would probably pair really well with Nora Princiotti.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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I don't know if there's any history with them and her but it seems that a lot of what people are describing as a good fit for her would be Barstool.
FUCK. NO.

I know she did an interview on PMT back in her Fox days, but that was long enough ago to probably be irrelevant. I doubt very much she wants to be associated with Barstool's toxicity.
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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I don't know if there's any history with them and her but it seems that a lot of what people are describing as a good fit for her would be Barstool.
I would be shocked if Portnoy et al weren't kicking the tires here. As was noted, she did some content with the PMT gang and the chemistry was there.

Obviously Barstool has a toxic brand to a lot of people but Nolan needs to grow an audience. Furthermore, they would let her explore the a bit of the other side of the line that likely made her a tough fit at ESPN. Nolan is incredibly talented but one of her marketable attributes is her comedic wit which definitely skews into touchy areas. IIRC, this was one of the issues she had with her shows before. She is too smart to be doing straight down the middle stuff but the existing platforms don't really lend themselves to a more irreverent approach. Well, except BS.
 

jcd0805

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Ria and Fran have a great podcast at Barstool and Kate seems quite happy there doing her Zero Blog Thirty pod for them, it's not inconceivable a woman could enjoy working there.
 

Pablo's TB Lover

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She would probably pair really well with Nora Princiotti.
Ah right, I don't read a whole lot of articles at The Ringer and Nora has maybe appeared on a handful of podcasts. Of course she did spill her admiration of Katie after the news:

44751

Nora Princiotti: I took a feature writing course in college where one assignment was on someone whose work you admired. Did mine on Katie, who is ridiculously great and talented and, as I've gotten to find out since, kind and thoughtful and generous. Rock on
 

MJM2344

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Katie appeared on barstool a handful of times years back, but I'm pretty sure they aren't friendly with each other anymore.

EDIT: This is going off the top of my head but after PMT's show on ESPN got cancelled I believe they mentioned that she was part of a group of ESPN employees that were pissed about them being hired and management shut it down.
 

shlincoln

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I would be shocked if Portnoy et al weren't kicking the tires here. As was noted, she did some content with the PMT gang and the chemistry was there.

Obviously Barstool has a toxic brand to a lot of people but Nolan needs to grow an audience. Furthermore, they would let her explore the a bit of the other side of the line that likely made her a tough fit at ESPN. Nolan is incredibly talented but one of her marketable attributes is her comedic wit which definitely skews into touchy areas. IIRC, this was one of the issues she had with her shows before. She is too smart to be doing straight down the middle stuff but the existing platforms don't really lend themselves to a more irreverent approach. Well, except BS.

Yep, that a perfect culture fit with Barstool.

Meadowlark is the most natural landing spot for her with The Ringer in second place, then mayyyyyybe Crooked Media since they're branching out to sports/pop culture, or none of the above because hell if I have any special insight into what she's doing next...other than she's as likely to sign on with Outkick as she is Barstool.
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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Yep, that a perfect culture fit with Barstool.

Meadowlark is the most natural landing spot for her with The Ringer in second place, then mayyyyyybe Crooked Media since they're branching out to sports/pop culture, or none of the above because hell if I have any special insight into what she's doing next...other than she's as likely to sign on with Outkick as she is Barstool.
I don't know if you were jumping off my post or taking issue with it but I simply noted that it wouldn't be a shock if the parties talked. It wasn't a suggestion that its happening or will happen. More to the point, nobody in this thread is saying
that Nolan is a "perfect culture fit with Barstool". If they have please cite it.

Edit: if you are taking issue with my post, I would ask that you go back a reread it because I was very deliberate with my wording. Also, posting a five plus minute video as a rebuttal rather than summarizing it for everyone is ineffective imo. You can still post it but your point may not be lost as easily.
 
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Pablo's TB Lover

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Now that @shlincoln mentions it above, Crooked is a possibility for Katie based on the fact they have Jason Concepcion and that would be a damn good pairing. Renee Montgomery has done "Takeline" with Concepcion since he came over to Crooked, but I see her on the ESPN studio show for the WNBA playoffs tonight and it seems she has a nice vibe there. So I wonder if Renee is going to take more of a studio personality track or stay with podcasting for the long-term. "Takeline" does a LOT of crossing between sports and social issues mixed with humor, which would fit Nolan well.

Edit: Renee is also part owner of the Atlanta Dream WNBA team and has done Atlanta Hawks coverage, which is to say she's wearing a lot of hats.
 

Phil Plantier

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I don't know if you were jumping off my post or taking issue with it but I simply noted that it wouldn't be a shock if the parties talked. It wasn't a suggestion that its happening or will happen. More to the point, nobody in this thread is saying
that Nolan is a "perfect culture fit with Barstool". If they have please cite it.

Edit: if you are taking issue with my post, I would ask that you go back a reread it because I was very deliberate with my wording. Also, posting a five plus minute video as a rebuttal rather than summarizing it for everyone is ineffective imo. You can still post it but your point may not be lost as easily.
Walk it back however you want, but the idea that Nolan and Barstool would work together is as nonsensical today as it was yesterday. Anyone that spent 10 minutes reading about Katie Nolan would figure this out. Take your L.
 

shlincoln

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I don't know if you were jumping off my post or taking issue with it but I simply noted that it wouldn't be a shock if the parties talked. It wasn't a suggestion that its happening or will happen. More to the point, nobody in this thread is saying
that Nolan is a "perfect culture fit with Barstool". If they have please cite it.

Edit: if you are taking issue with my post, I would ask that you go back a reread it because I was very deliberate with my wording. Also, posting a five plus minute video as a rebuttal rather than summarizing it for everyone is ineffective imo. You can still post it but your point may not be lost as easily.
friendo, you said this
Furthermore, they (Barstool) would let her explore the a bit of the other side of the line that likely made her a tough fit at ESPN. Nolan is incredibly talented but one of her marketable attributes is her comedic wit which definitely skews into touchy areas.
which, whether you intended it or not, has amazing "tell me you don't know who Katie Nolan is without saying you don't know who Katie Nolan is" energy considering the touchy areas Nolan occasionally wades into include topics like "toxic masculinity (my words) in sports/sports media is bad, actually" and Barstool is toxic masculinity in sports media personified. Actually, hold up, I could see Barstool trying to get Nolan in an attempt to launder their reputation, I just don't see her reps taking the call. Especially not when there's another outlet headed up by people she's much more simpatico with in Meadowlark. Teal deer, it's a deeply silly idea to suggest there's any sort of mesh between the two like you did right there in that very comment you made.

ps, the video is good, watch it. Praise be to Doris.
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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Walk it back however you want, but the idea that Nolan and Barstool would work together is as nonsensical today as it was yesterday. Anyone that spent 10 minutes reading about Katie Nolan would figure this out. Take your L.
Fine, I accept my L as awarded by Phil Plantier, poster on SoSH. Apparently we have definitively determined that there is a zero chance that Nolan works for Barstool. I truly hope that makes your day a bit better.

Meanwhile, what value does your pile-on hold in this discussion? It had absolutely nothing to do with you and your response has absolutely nothing to do with the topic at hand.

Also, I don't know about what is nonsensical but in business, two parties who have mutual interests will often have discussions, even if they aren't a match culturally. I never said Nolan was going to work for Barstool. Just that it made sense on some levels for both sides. You appear to disagree but the world is filled with people who have to compromise their values a bit or more to earn a living.
 
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AlNipper49

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She's not a traditional reporter/pundit and doesn't really have a particular sport/league in which she excels (like, say, Mina Kimes and the NFL). She's more a comedian with a general sports focus. She excels when she's given the opportunity to find the humor and make a joke about something (though she can certainly drop a serious hammer on the right topic if given the chance). ATH and the like are more about having hot takez and bombast than humor. That's what I liked about HQ. It was a bit looser and had more of a humorous side to it, which suited her strengths.

She was an ill fit for ESPN all along.
Just throw her in with Barkley and Shaq. That would be amazing.
 

Phil Plantier

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Fine, I accept my L as awarded by Phil Plantier, poster on SoSH. Apparently we have definitively determined that there is a zero chance that Nolan works for Barstool. I truly hope that makes your day a bit better.

Meanwhile, what value does your pile-on hold in this discussion? It had absolutely nothing to do with you and your response has absolutely nothing to do with the topic at hand.

Also, I don't know about what is nonsensical but in business, two parties who have mutual interests will often have discussions, even if they aren't a match culturally. I never said Nolan was going to work for Barstool. Just that it made sense on some levels for both sides. You appear to disagree but the world is filled with people who have to compromise their values a bit or more to earn a living.
Your posts in this thread show your joint desire to both derail the argument and whitewash Barstool. Meanwhile, your posts have not demonstrated any knowledge about the subject of this thread.

Posts from others try to educate you and your post concern trolls them.

So I think that's worth pointing out. Maybe this should be in Backwash.
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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Your posts in this thread show your joint desire to both derail the argument and whitewash Barstool. Meanwhile, your posts have not demonstrated any knowledge about the subject of this thread.

Posts from others try to educate you and your post concern trolls them.

So I think that's worth pointing out. Maybe this should be in Backwash.
None of this is accurate or correct. Nobody here is whitewashing anything. You are bringing a lot of your own bias to this thread.

I simply made a good faith and fairly mild observation, another poster disagreed and I responded. You joined in because you felt compelled to award me an L for an outcome that actually hasn't occurred as of yet. I don't normally take posters future predictions as gospel but in this case I have taken my L.
 

Sille Skrub

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I am worried that we are 5 years past the promise that Garbarge Time showed, and maybe Katie won't be able to summon that again. I confess I have not been listening to her podcast for the past year or so other than an occasional check-in, but I did just come across this GQ piece by John Skipper's son from a few years ago that suggests a person really struggling with her mental health. I cannot imagine the past 2 years have been helpful to that.
Thanks for sharing this!
 

jaytftwofive

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i remember she had a Blog or Internet show called "Garbage Time". No filter many times. Used a lot of bodily function humor. Holding in her farts in front of her boyfriends parents meeting them the for first time etc... You get the idea. OK maybe that was before "Garbage Time". That show was on Fox. Ok I remember now it was called "Guyism with Katie Nolan" or something like that. People would send in questions to her and she would answer.
 
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Red(s)HawksFan

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i remember she had a Blog or Internet show called "Garbage Time". No filter many times. Used a lot of bodily function humor. Holding in her farts in front of her boyfriends parents meeting them the for first time etc... You get the idea. OK maybe that was before "Garbage Time". That show was on Fox. Ok I remember now it was called "Guyism with Katie Nolan" or something like that. People would send in questions to her and she would answer.
Guyism was her first gig. She was in her early 20s. I'd imagine she took the job because it was a means to an end for her career. It led to her being hired by Fox for that short-lived Regis Philbin show on FS1, which in turn led to her getting her own show (Garbage Time), which in turn led her to ESPN.

I hope you're not bringing up Guyism to suggest that she's still in the same place where she'd be a good fit at a toxic place like Barstool. People mature, and she certainly has. I doubt now that she's free of the shackles of ESPN that she's going to regress back into the realm of fart jokes.