Nashville Sports From an Outside Perspective with Alden Reed | Titans, Predators, Nashville SC

What does Nashville’s sports scene look like from the outside?

This week on Nashville Sports Report, Russell talks with Alden Reed about Nashville sports from an outsider’s perspective: what stands out about the city’s teams, fans and sports culture, and how Nashville compares with other sports cities.

Plus, a look at the week across Nashville sports, including the Tennessee Titans, Nashville SC, Nashville Predators, Vanderbilt, Tennessee State, Middle Tennessee and the Nashville Sounds.

Highlights and recaps from this week:

Titans vs. Eagles: Game highlights

Nashville SC vs. Toronto FC: Highlights and match recap

Vanderbilt vs. Auburn: Game recap

Middle Tennessee vs. Jacksonville State: Game recap

Nashville Sports Report is a weekly podcast exploring the people, teams, history and culture that make up Nashville sports and the city around them.

New episodes weekly.

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Transcript

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Intro

Russell Ries 0:12

Good morning, afternoon, or evening to you, wherever you're listening from. It is Sunday, September 27th. My name is Russell Reese, and you're listening to National Sports Report. All right, well, we start this week's show with the Tennessee Titans, who lost in the last minute, last nine seconds last week, ending up losing 24-20 to the Eagles at Nissan Stadium. The Titans led 20-17 with a minute 56 remaining before the Eagles mounted a drive and scored the go-ahead touchdown with nine seconds. Cam Ward was 13 of 20 with 183 yards passing and ran for two touchdowns. The Eagles game was the second hottest game in Nissan Stadium history in the Titans' era. 92 degrees at kickoff, 49% humidity, and a 98 degree heat index was also reported that due to the turf, the field temperature was roughly 157 degrees, which I'm told is also the heat level of a F1 racetrack. Today the Titans are in New York to take on the New York Giants. Jameis Winston is expected to start a quarterback with Jackson Dart out for the year. Tony Pollard has no game designation after being limited Thursday and Friday. Tajay Spears and Cordell Flott are both questionable. Running back Michael Carter was elevated from the pact to Scott in response to Spears' questionability for today's game. Hopefully the Titans can pick up their first win of the season on the road today. The Nashville Predators finished the preseason this week 1-3-0. Their training camp roster has been reduced down to 33 players, and they will begin the actual regular season this Thursday, October 1st, against the Minnesota Wild here in Nashville at Bridgestone Arena. That game starts at 7 p.m. The Nashville Sounds finished the 2026 season with a 5-3 win over Memphis last Sunday, ending the year with 80 wins. Jonathan Ornelles hit a grand slam in the season finale, and the Sounds finished with 47 home wins, which was the most in minor league baseball in 2026. Unfortunately, they did not receive a postseason berth, so their season is over. In college football, Tennessee State was off this week and remains 1-3. Next weekend they face Western Illinois in Western Illinois. That'll be Saturday at 3 p.m. Middle Tennessee State lost on the road 23-13 at Jacksonville State, falling to 2-2 overall and 0-1 in Conference USA. They are on the road at Kansas next Saturday. That game kicks off at 11 a.m. on ESPNU. Finally, Vanderbilt lost 21-15 at Auburn, falling to 3-1 overall and 0-1 in SEC play. They are also on the road next Saturday at Georgia, and that game is at noon. Nashville SC defeated Toronto FC 2-0 last night at Geodis Park. Nashville SC now has 60 points on the season, and they will next play at Austin FC a week from this coming Saturday, October 10th. That match will be at 7.30 p.m. Central Time. Nashville SC continues their march towards hopefully scoring the most regular season points all time. They need at least 75 to break Miami's record.

Alden Reed introduction

Russell Ries 4:00

My guest this week is a buddy of mine from college, Alden Reed. I thought it'd be interesting to get his perspective on Nashville sports as an outside observer, which gives him a different kind of relationship with the city than most of the guests I talked to. I wanted to hear what Nashville looks like as a sports city to somebody following it from outside the market. Which teams and stories actually register nationally? What kind of identity the city projects beyond Middle Tennessee? And what an outsider's impressions can tell us about Nashville's reputation on the larger sports landscape. So this is less about asking someone inside Nashville to explain the city to itself and more about turning the camera around and seeing what Nashville looks like from somewhere else. I hope you'll enjoy my conversation with Alden Reed. Alright.

Alden Reed interview

Russell Ries 4:47

Well, Alden, thank you for coming on today. I really appreciate you joining me on the show. It's uh been a minute, but we actually went to college together. I feel like I should just throw that out up front. How are you doing? Thanks for coming.

Alden Reed 4:58

I'm doing great. Uh nice uh Saturday here in Carborough, North Carolina.

Russell Ries 5:04

I'm just gonna dive right in so we can get rolling here. Uh I I have three questions that I ask everyone. They're Nashville sort of specific, but I'll I'll kind of tailor them. The first one, though, is what is your earliest sports memory?

Alden Reed 5:17

My earliest sports memory is probably going to a Red Sox game, oh, maybe in like 1992, I want to say, around then, 92 or 93. Right, the strike year, I think, was 94. So yeah, I think it was shortly before then. I grew up in uh Maine until I was about eight or so. My parents, my family, they weren't super into sports, so I didn't have that like ready-made runway that a lot of people have where they're just, you know, in front of the TV at a young age. Uh and being up in Maine, of course, we didn't really have a chance to see games, but we moved to just outside of Boston, Newton, Massachusetts, when I was about eight or nine. And uh we started going to a couple games here and there. And of course, this was back in the dark days. So just for anyone listening, let it be known that I grew up the first 18 years of my life as a Boston sports fan with absolutely zero championships and very minimal success. So I do have a lot more perspective on uh just how amazing, of course, everything has been for this sort of uh the beginning of this millennium here, right? This 21st century for Boston sports. Um, but it was still fun. It was fun back in the day. But I remember going to a game, we played the Oakland Athletics. I remember that very well. And um, you know, I loved it, obviously. I mean, it's a treat to go to Fenway Park and have that be the place where you watch baseball. Um, I do remember we definitely lost. The A's were were pretty good back then, if I recall. Um, might have even still had McGuire. I can't remember exactly.

Russell Ries 6:57

Sounds like the Bash Brothers era earlier.

Alden Reed 6:59

Yeah, no, I I think it might have been. Um, but it didn't scar me too much. You know, it was just uh it was I'm not gonna lie, it was a bit of a slow burn getting into sports, definitely, you know, in the 90s. Uh it's and I understand that. Um definitely after having watched those uh couple seasons right after uh Brady left in the last two Belichick seasons and the Gerard Mayo season, um, you know, I completely take back anything I ever said about just being, you know, oh yeah, you gotta watch your team grind through a four-and-12 or four and thirteen season. Man, oh man, those Mac Jones, those final Mac Jones seasons and those that last Belichick era was just brutal. So, but I fondly remember watching the Red Sox and going to Red Sox games, and of course, you know, when everything started to change with the Patriots, and then finally the Red Sox, uh, yeah, I became a pretty big sports fan, I think, as a lot of people would, uh, given given the success and the great teams we had to watch.

Russell Ries 8:01

Yeah, I mean, gosh, easy to easy to hop on with or or feel more connected to. And I've actually mentioned this on a previous show, but during college, I got to watch that that first Red Sox run with you and a bunch of other guys from Boston in the Boston area, and uh that was a pretty formative thing for me too. I I'm always sort of had a sort of tangential relationship with baseball, but I really finally understood a lot of the the beauty and the magic of it by getting to share that with you guys, and I think that's something I'll I'll always think of fondly. Okay, so I want to move on to now you don't have the usual Nashville connection that most of my guests do. So what is your relationship with Nashville, if any?

Alden Reed 8:44

Well, obviously, uh, you know, my friendship with you and just I've been kind of kind of casually following the Titans and the Predators at least uh ever since uh we've been friends, but especially after, you know, college and we moved on. It's it's a great way to keep in touch with people, you know, sort of keeping up with sports. So yeah, I mean I I I care a lot about uh your teams, and I've always cared about my friends' teams a lot. I'm not a I'm not a sports hater at all. Uh, but yeah, I I like I'm I'm very pro other people's teams doing well. I I want the best for everyone, and especially for places that haven't had as much success. And I'm you know, Nashville is a big town. It's I think it's a growing sports town. I definitely uh want the best for them. And um I you know I can understand. I think you guys have some really great fans that have been waiting for a long time, you know, especially for the Titans. And there have been some glimpses here and there. So I've been I've been paying attention to to the Titans a little bit more the Titans. Um football is my favorite sport, but I I'm I'm generally familiar with what's going on with the Preds, and um I'm hoping that they might have a little bit of a better season as well.

Russell Ries 10:00

Yeah, me too. Gosh, I appreciate your support from the outside. And uh you know, I I'm the same way except for the Colts. Screw those guys.

Alden Reed 10:08

Yeah, no, totally. Well, I think we can agree on screw the Colts. Yeah. No disagreement there.

Russell Ries 10:14

All right. So from the outside looking in, do you have a favorite Nashville sports memory or moment or or something that sticks out a Nashville-related moment in your mind? You don't have to.

Alden Reed 10:25

Um, I I definitely was rooting hard for them when they, of course, made the Stanley Cup. I mean, I remember uh watching a bunch of those games. I mean, I believe what was uh Pittsburgh, it was Pittsburgh, right, 4-2, I think was was the end result. And no, I mean I was I I I watched, I think, I want to say at least most of the games in that Stanley Cup final, and I was I was rooting hard for them, you know. And I I sort of was that was probably at the height of my um following the NHL in detail. But yeah, I do remember uh very much watching that series. Um, you know, I I remember that uh pretty pretty fondly. And uh I will say I do also remember uh Mike Ta Mike Vrabel's Titans knocking off the the Patriots in uh Tom Brady's last game in that uh 2019 playoff series, which was uh favorably impressed me as far as Vrabel's coaching. I think he he was already showing that he was a better coach probably than Belichick was at that point. But yeah, so I I do remember that as well. I thought, well, yeah, Vrabel and the Titans, it was it was a nice little win for them. And uh in addition to just you know supporting you, there have been a couple moments when you know these these teams have popped up across my uh across my radar.

Russell Ries 11:41

That's fair. So which Nashville team would you say has the strongest identity outside of Nashville?

Alden Reed 11:47

That's a really good question. I think it's probably still the Titans, but I think it's very close, definitely. I mean, I I do think that that NHL people, NHL fans know let me put it this way. I would say among people who follow these leagues in deep and closely, right? I feel like the the predators have a little bit more of an identity and are or more well known among people who are hockey fans, right? The Titans, just by virtue of football's, you know, ridiculous dominance, are probably a little bit more well known. And of course, people have the Oilers connection and whatnot. And of course, everybody loves the the uniform change. That's definitely at least one positive thing. We can, you know, whatever's gonna happen this season, at least we'll be doing it in style down there in Nashville. And but um, yeah, so I think, you know, I think people are are aware that the Predators are maybe have a little bit more character. I think what surprises a lot of people is that they maybe they don't think that Nashville would be a hockey town, and but they're very impressed by how much support they get. You know, there there are a lot of these warm, you know, sun-built teams. But that being said, you know, I I think hockey is getting a little bit more popular everywhere, but um, I think people always thought it was cool or recognized even 10 or 15 or 20 years ago that the predators had a lot of support. And everybody loves, of course, just the you know, the Nashville swag and the cowboy hats at the hockey games and stuff like that. That's definitely something that uh gives them a lot of character.

Russell Ries 13:26

Yeah, I think something we have going for us as a city, particularly with the predators, is the arena being right on Broadway. And you don't have to walk out the door and there's everything. And you know, we saw it last week with the Eagles coming to town and basically taking over the stadium because it's like you know, it's an hour and a half flight. You can come party for the weekend, probably see your team win and then head home, you know.

Alden Reed 13:50

So such a close game, but yeah.

Russell Ries 13:52

Yeah, I have this theory too. Until the Titans got the new uniforms, the Carolina Panthers for me are just kind of a forgotten team where it's like, you know, boring football, boring uniforms, small market, yada yada, yada. I realized the Titans were the AFC version of the Carolina Panthers for a lot of people. I didn't know it because I live here, but it was just sort of like we are the exact same thing, not really doing much, not very inspiring. Uniforms, small market, everything. And then the new uniforms came out, and I feel like they've gotten a lot more attention and easily a top five uniform, in my mind at least, in the league now. Uh they're gonna wear the all-whites tomorrow, and I think it's gonna look almost nice. You know, so let's move into the Titans a little bit. Yeah. When I reached out to you to see about coming on the show, you immediately told me you had some thoughts about the Titans, about Robert Salah, being awarded. So, what do the Tennessee Titans what do they look like to you from where you're sitting today?

Alden Reed 14:51

They look like a team that is, you know, probably still a year away from being truly competitive and compelling, which I hate to say because I feel like that's kind of the refrain that's probably been going around in Nashville for a long time. Well, we're just a year away.

Russell Ries 15:09

I think I don't think anyone thought we were a year away last year.

Alden Reed 15:14

Maybe that's true, that's true. I that last year probably was thinking you're two years away. So hopefully, in that sense, you're on track. I mean, Robert Salah, I think he's a great defensive coordinator. I actually watched quite a few 49ers games last season, and you know, the 49ers were doing their typical thing, I don't know, whatever, energy station or whatever voodoo you want to say, where they were just sending everyone to the IR. And I was just really impressed by the way Robert Sala was able to just kind of make lemonade, as they say, right, uh, with the ingredients that he that he has. And so I don't have any doubts that he's gonna get the best performance that he can out of the defense. And having a horse like Jeffrey Simmons is great, and bringing in Franklin Myers, too, I think is really solid. And I mean, I think they're there's you know, they're trying to rebuild a little bit more of the back end more. But yeah, I mean, if you've got those dominant upfront players and you've got a good defensive mind like Salah, you can do a lot. I would say on offense, I like Daybull. Um, I I do think he's a he's a pretty good football mind. Obviously, he's a Patriots fan. I'm familiar with him from all that time he spent in Buffalo. And uh, you know, he had a tough situation in New York, but I guess it would be the same thing with both Daybull and Salah, just probably great coordinators. Are they gonna be able to handle the CEO head coaching stuff? And it's a little bit early to say, and I want to, in fairness to Salah, he had a tough job in in New York, so I don't want to get too down on him. Obviously, he's a bit of a players coach, you know. He's probably not gonna be at the top of the list of you know, people gushing over, oh, this clock management, or oh, he knew that like little bit of the rules or whatever. Um, although Vrabel made a mistake uh with that uh in the Steelers game, actually called back-to-back timeouts in a weird situation. So any anyone can anyone can make those mistakes. So sometimes I think that stuff gets overblown. But all of this is a way to get to the main point, which is just Cam Ward. We all know that that's that's the situation. And I'm not gonna lie, I'm I was certainly hoping for more, um, you know, more this offseason. And uh I think it's a tough situation. I think obviously he could use upgrades pretty much everywhere. I mean, we'll see as Tate settles into uh you know playing if he can really raise his game too. Obviously, a lot is expected of him given his draft position, and that's just the that's just the NFL today. I mean, if you're gonna be drafted in the top 15, uh, I think you have to be like a year one player. Not just that, I think you have to be a year one contributor. And so we'll see how that goes. And it's just a situation of without having like an elite running back, you don't have an elite tight end, you don't have really the elite receiver, so you don't even have uh you know, I'm sympathetic to Cam Ward. I just want this to be clear. And it's funny you talk about Carolina because uh there is a lot of interesting similarities between the Titans and Panthers. And I think in many ways, if you're a Titans fan, you have to look at what's happening with Bryce Young, especially in the past, you know, two years, and say, hey, you know, it is important to be patient. And I think that even though what I just said, right, top 15, you're gonna get thrown in, lots of expected of you. I do think there is a little bit of a caveat there with any quarterback, and it's getting a little bit crazy how much we're just expecting so much from quarterbacks right away. I mean, I'll tell y'all, you wouldn't believe the complaining going on about Drake May in New England right now. And yeah, yeah, he has not started the season. Great. It was a rough playoffs, there's no doubt. At the same time, this guy was a vote away from winning the MVP and uh obviously had a tremendous season, all of that stuff, 14-3. And yet there's still people that are just having questions. I don't know. Um just being upset with it. Um, so it's amazing how impatient people are. I think obviously is a culture in general, but this is bleeds over into sports culture. We're incredibly impatient, and I think that that's really too bad, especially with quarterbacks. And we're certainly seeing with you know, Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield, and I know he hasn't gotten off to a great start as well, but Geno Smith, guys who certainly have reclaimed some of their skill and ability or sort of established themselves, even after very rocky starts. And granted, you know, those guys move teams, and sometimes a team move is what's needed, and that's why I'm hoping that the Bryce Young analogy will be a little bit better for the Titans. Hopefully, Cam Ward can develop into that. Um, but it it's a tricky thing. It's you're in such a hard position because the way I look at it, what it comes down to this. If Cam Ward has a let's just say he even has a bad season, okay? Not I don't want to say like absolute dumpster fire, but just just not really what we're looking for. You're not feeling great about him at the end end of the second season. Even in that situation, what do you really do? I mean, it's it's a little tough to pull the plug so quickly. And I mean, I guess maybe you'll be in competition. Maybe there is gonna be this, you know, draft class of unicorn quarterbacks that we're we hear them talking about. But uh, you know, that things can change a lot, and even so, it's still a very risky proposition. And if you're sitting there with, you know, maybe like the eighth or ninth overall pick, that's probably a reasonable guess is what it's gonna be. You're probably not gonna be right there to grab a top quarterback. There's three or four teams probably they're gonna be terrible that are also looking for those quarterbacks. And you've still kind of, I think, gotta give Cam your Cam Ward at least a third year, no matter what, given the lack of support, the lack of infrastructure, just the terrible infrastructure in the first year, and still building this year, you know, can't really hold the offensive line and all the skill players against him. And the defense will do its best, but it's a tall order, and you know, and you've got that shockingly, the AFC South is somewhat competitive, certainly more competitive than it has been in recent in recent years. And so that's not exactly helping either. So I I do think that like you probably have to, you know, I don't know, I would imagine they'd be looking for a top left tackle or something like that with that eight or nine pick. And I think you you still have to give him and Salah at least another year, whatever happens. And so I I know that's a tough thing to hear for y'all Titans fans, but I I would pr I would preach patience and um you know things change fast and who knows. I mean, who knows what's gonna happen with Jaden Daniels long term as far as these injuries, and um that's that's a pretty big concern, a guy who also just injures himself because he you know was trying to hold he wasn't even hit, is what I'm saying. He like just kind of he seems a little fragile. Nothing against the guy. I wish him all the best. Um even Caleb Williams, like with the hamstrings. So these these quarterbacks are are a precious commodity, and that's another important thing. So I mean, if Cam Ward can just stay on the field and continue playing and developing, I think that that will do him a lot of good. So so that that's my basic Titans thoughts in a nutshell. I think I think that you guys are gonna get a win tomorrow. Um, I think there's a lot of things going for good for you. The Giants have to be just feeling just catastrophic. Um Jackson Dart, there's another one done already, done for the year. So um Jameis Winston, that seems perhaps what the what the doctor has ordered in Tennessee to try and get things right for y'all.

Russell Ries 23:10

Yeah, fair enough. Maybe feast on some W's with Jameis. You know, you raised a great point too. Like, I think back to Steve McNair, for example, didn't touch the field until his third year. Eli Manning looked terrible until his third year. I mean, traditionally it was sort of that that expectation was like you're not even ready or you're not gonna take the leap until at least your third year. And I think that we've seen Jaden Daniels, CJ Stroud, some of these guys come in, have these amazing rookie years, and it's really altered the expectations of rookie quarterbacks. But you know, something the Titans like to mention too, and something I've actually brought up on the show before is this is Cam Ward's seventh coordinator in seven years. He's not had a consistent, you know, system, he hasn't had any continuity. So I remain hopeful too. It is a little disheartening the way the season started, but maybe uh, you know, maybe something will happen. One other thing I do want to say, you mentioned the defense. Anthony Hill Jr., if you haven't heard the name yet, you're gonna hear it. He's our rookie second-round linebacker. They traded up to get him. He's already leading the league in tackles. He's basically Stala's next Fred Warner, in my opinion. I don't know, we'll see. But the kid looks like a stud. He's just everywhere on the field, very excited about him. Yeah, so when we think about the Titans, you've I think touched on a lot of it. Is there any sort of national identity beyond losing and beyond we took Cam Ward and we've just changed our jerseys? Does anyone know anything beyond sort of individual players, or are the Titans sort of that Carolina Panthers that I've described previously?

Alden Reed 24:50

Well, I think they're a little bit better known than the Carolina Panthers, I would say. I guess I feel like they have more of an identity. I mean, I do think that because of the Oilers connection, there's a little bit of that. And I would also say that, you know, you've got Steve McNair and you've got that whole era, which I think did did make an impression on people. Absolutely. Like, um, I certainly it made an impression upon me, and obviously one of the toughest Super Bowl losses I can imagine. I mean, I don't I don't really think I mean you lose in last play of the game pretty much. Uh, you know, that's a tough, tough thing. But I think that there is I think the Titans might be a little bit more well known and respected than the Panthers in the in the very sense, at the very least, that McNair. I I really think that people know McNair. I think people respect McNair. And um that did even more get the Titans on people's people's radar. And yeah, certainly at this point now, it's been a bit a lot of futility. I think it has helped that the AFC South has been so lackluster in general that at the very least, I think the Titans have been able to hide, you know, among among the sadness up in uh post-luck indie and of course Jacksonville. We'll we'll see. Uh as so I mean Trevor Lawrence is another interesting example, though, actually, just to mention that, we'll see how that works out for him. I mean, he also Josh Allen, also another good one, really bad his first two years, and just absolutely turned it on year three. So I I do think there's some patience that it is needed, especially, you know, if we're if we're still gonna be hyping up somebody like Justin Herbert, I should say, as much as we do, and I think he's in year seven. I think he and Lawrence are both in year six or seven, then I I I can't imagine how you know people are not willing to give Cam Ward three years at least. And I and I and I think a lot of those other guys even had probably better supporting circumstances coming in.

Russell Ries 26:46

So well, and I hate to say it, but you know, if your scenario plays out and they're picking eighth or ninth, that means they've probably doubled their win total from last year. So, you know, and and yeah, you're exactly right. We'd be looking at a left tackle, we'd be looking at a defensive end. If Jeremiah Smith somehow managed to fall down to us, we'd be looking at you know repairing him with Carnell Tate. But yeah, I think Camp's got to get at least three years. I think you're right there. Okay, so I want to pivot now to the Predators. You touched on them a little bit uh about their identity and whatnot, but what do you think of the Predators as we head into the season? I I don't know if you're aware, they've got new GM, Chris McFarland, that they got from Colorado, and he's been wheeling and dealing, trying to reshape the team. So any thoughts on the team and uh as we head into the season?

Alden Reed 27:36

Well, I think uh grabbing McFarland is a phenomenal move. I think the first step to really improving yourself, the first the first step to uh really improving yourself is just finding someone who knows what the hell they're doing and and empowering them to start making positive changes. And yeah, I I was was checking out kind of the uh the buzz about the Predators as well. I've been reading just general NHL preview stuff, of course. Um I didn't realize, so we're we're doing two more games. I guess we have an 84 game regular season now. Funny thing, so uh that I I was getting tripped out because I was like, I don't remember hockey starting in September before, opening nights on the on the 29th, I think actually. So we're doing two more games, of course. You know, that's just America, right? More, more is always better, right, man?

Russell Ries 28:26

Oh, yeah, gotta have more. More's better than less.

Alden Reed 28:30

What yeah, I mean, come on. Yeah, we all know that. Um, so uh, but I think uh the the predators are quietly in an interesting place. I know they had a nice little surge to end their season. Um, you know, they've got probably the toughest division of the four divisions. It's a little bit close, but obviously you've got some big boys up there at the top. Although, again, really great to steal, you know, right from your sort of chief rival there, the the headhog of your division taken from the avalanche, of course. Um, and you know, an interesting mixture of players. It seems like you've got some depth pretty much everywhere, even if there's questions about, you know, on on the uh sort of the top end of things. Obviously, you know, you've still got Roman Yossi, which is great, and I've still got Forsberg. And it looks like Stamcos had a had a pretty decent season last year, and I think you can expect that to continue. Uh, and then I guess the other question is just um kind of the the uh the soros question, right? What's gonna happen there? Is the past two seasons perhaps, you know. I guess the question is, is he how much is he in the same situation as Cam Ward? How much is this kind of just the team letting him down, just a lack of um lack of scoring to stay in games, just struggling on um in de uh in the defense in times. I was noticing that your your backup goalie um did have uh his name eludes me, but um just disananin. He had he had some nice numbers actually, and even though they didn't win a lot more, for whatever reason, he he posted numbers that you know that that do raise those eyebrows when you're looking at these goalie splits of being like, is that just you know, random chance and puck luck, really? I mean, again, they didn't it didn't lead to more wins, but pretty big difference. I want to say I think Soros was like at 893 or 894, and I I think he was at like 907 or something like that for save percentage. So, you know, that's that's not nothing. Um, and it it's it's interesting to see. Uh it'll be interesting to see if maybe Soros can get back to his earlier form, but you know, goalies, it's just it's a finicky position, and sometimes it just kind of goes away. So it's it's tough to say.

Russell Ries 30:57

Yeah, the Saros thing is interesting too. You know, they're locked into him for like seven more years or something. Right. So it's it's like, oh, gonna need it, man. Gonna need it real good. But yeah, you know, I think with the Preds too, obviously Stamcos is here, Masha Show, the some names. Right.

Alden Reed 31:13

I saw they got him too. Yeah, but yeah.

Russell Ries 31:15

But you know, the Preds have never had a true in their prime offensive superstar. Yeah, we've had goalie superstar, we've had a plethora of defender superstars, Shea Weber, Roman Josi, Ryan Souter, PK Subban came through, but there's never really been a number one center. You know, Ryan Johansson was probably the closest thing to that in that 2017 run. And you know, as great as he was, we've never had that real, real name guy. And I don't know where that's coming from because you know they keep they keep picking it like 13th, you're never gonna get you're never gonna get the Celebrini or the you know, you're never gonna get those guys unless you're picking one or maybe two. Um they picked third or fourth a few years ago, and and Trotz took Brady Martin, who looks like he's gonna be a very predators player, you know, hit hard, two-way, forward, work, you know, captain material, all that, but like the superstar, the offensive, like hundred-point guy. I would just still miss in that. You know, Forsberg broke 40 goals a few seasons ago and was the first Preds player to do that. And now they've had a few since then, but like, yeah, it was it took the fact.

Alden Reed 32:29

Yeah.

Russell Ries 32:29

Yeah. So, you know, I'm I'm curious to see where the Preds go from here, but I am very excited about McFarlane. David Paul did a great thing building the club. The continuity from him to Barry Trotz as the GM was I think you know, it made sense at the time, but I don't want to say the team is stagnated, but it they just needed modern or different thinking. They needed someone from outside the organization. So I'm glad they went out and got McFarlane because I think that he is you know a modern NHL guy, and he's gonna do what he needs to do. You know, somebody comes along and offers you a first and a second for Luca Evangelista, and you go, Yeah, absolutely, let's do that. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Have at it. So um I'm excited to see where it goes, but I do wonder how they're gonna get out of what people call the mushy middle.

Alden Reed 33:16

Right. I mean, that's the is a tough place to be. And you know, to a certain extent, the Bruins have kind of been living there a little bit over the they had kind of a surprise season uh this this past season, but yeah, it's this this this tough place where you're just kind of like not bottoming them out and kind of always a little frisky and maybe gonna make the playoffs, but then not really a serious contender, and it's just it's pretty easy to get stuck in there. And uh, you know, it's I don't know. Uh it's uh it's you always want to be competitive, so it's it's tough to really wish your team to totally bottom them out. As I was joking at the beginning of this little talk about how the watching the Patriots do back-to-back four and 13 seasons is like, oh, okay, yeah. It is, it's it's not easy to handle this this kind of stuff. I guess the one other thing I do like about where the predators are at is with with now having like a real good pro GM too, they have a lot of flexibility where I guess at the very least, if things do not go well, then you've got some interesting parts that I think a lot of other teams would like. And so I I'd say hopefully either things kind of go well and there's a little bit of a recovery here, and then you know, you're really kind of knocking on the playoff door, and maybe you could even acquire a player if if that looks right. But if not, I would say you've got a pro GM now who's gonna know how to get move some of those older assets and get the real core building blocks that you need to uh move forward. So I think it's definitely it's it's it's a bright new day. And uh and just having McFarland, I think that's just so big. And there's there's still there's still quality players on the team. So uh yeah, I think it's it's probably, I would imagine, the most interesting start to a predator season, also in a while. I mean, and that's I guess that's a nice thing that you know whatever happens with the Titans, I I'd I am happy for Nashville and that I think that there's interesting things at least happening one way or another. You've got some pieces, you've got some new, you know, between Ward and McFarland, I guess you could kind of look at it as the the two interesting pieces sort of driving the ship. There's at least some hope there. So um, you know, it'll be interesting to see. It's um, I forget even how many teams, how many times you play the team in your division at this point. It's been years since I tried to figure out the arcana of the NHL schedule and how that works. So I don't I don't know if the whole uh how much being in the Central is gonna be that big of a deal. I mean, you'd probably rather be in the Pacific, certainly, as far as like chances of making the playoffs, but but uh you know, hockey is such a it is such a strange sport and the way you know things just unfold not necessarily as you would think. It's it's probably the hardest sport to predict. I've always thought that. So I think um there, but there's interest there. Yeah, I think either you're gonna be good and maybe back in the playoffs at least, and I think that would be exciting. It's been a little while. I went when was the last time the Preds were in the playoffs?

Russell Ries 36:28

It's been at least three or four years, I want to say 2022, maybe.

Alden Reed 36:31

Yeah, I think I think that sounds right, yeah. Yeah, I know it's it when it starts to fade away, it's like, how can you even uh all these all these subpar seasons just blur together and you don't even remember the last time? So I I yeah, I I think that that's that's exciting. It I think either you're gonna be in the playoffs or you've got a GM who's going to know how to set the ship right and start building in the right direction. So one way or another, I would be very surprised if at the end of this season Predators fans aren't feeling a lot better about their team and the general direction of things.

Russell Ries 37:10

Yeah, I agree. You know, something about McFarland, too, when he got here, he basically had to build out their analytics department. Turns out Predators had like one guy. Right. It's like, what are we doing here?

Alden Reed 37:22

That's not gonna do it. So not in this day and age.

Russell Ries 37:26

I want to turn now to baseball. You are a baseball fan. Nashville keeps coming up in sort of the conversation about the upcoming expansion. From the outside looking in, what are your thoughts on that? Does Nashville deserve a baseball team?

Alden Reed 37:40

I think absolutely. I mean, I've I've read about the various contenders kind of out there, but certainly as far as size, I mean, I think that's easily justified. It's clearly it's it's is it's a media market that can sustain it. I mean, the question, probably more pragmatically speaking, is actually filling seats, you know, and getting people in for 81 games. But I think to a certain extent their vision in Nashville is kind of making it a nice sports destination city, a place where also other other fans and people can come. And so that might that might be a useful way for them to sort of move things forward and kind of get get more people behind it. But I certainly think that they could support it. I mean, I've always thought it was kind of a funny thing with baseball. So many baseball players are from the south, but there's so few baseball teams in the south. And you, you know, there there's the there's a general sense, right or wrong, that Southerners don't care that much about baseball. I think like about pro baseball or something. I I think that's just a general and I don't I don't that might not be fair at all. It seems again strange to me because uh certainly when it comes to like college baseball, yeah, well, you you see exactly where most of these guys are coming from. So I've always thought there should be more southern baseball teams. And uh certainly I think you know, I mean, that a team in Nashville would be representing like a large, you know, you'd be pulling in probably all pretty much all of Kentucky, too, I would imagine, besides the whole state of Tennessee. So that's a lot, that's a lot of people potentially in in sort of a big peripheral market. And I don't, you know, I mean, it hey, I would imagine, especially in summertime, going to an open air park in Nashville would probably be pretty good. I mean, the weather certainly shouldn't be an issue, and maybe a little bit too hot at times, but whatever. They play if they can play down in Arlington and wherever else they play. I uh, you know, they can certainly manage that. It's it's not as big of a deal. So I think uh I certainly am polling for them. I I think it would make the most sense. Uh, obviously, I live again here in the triangle in North Carolina, and there's a pretty big push to get a team in and rally. And I uh, you know, Raleigh's got a good case for it, definitely. They're their rally and Nashville seem to be the two biggest markets that are competing, and then the other potential expansion teams uh, you know, tend to be a little bit smaller markets. I think we talked about it, it kind of seems maybe like obviously they'd like to probably have a team out west, probably Salt Lake City, and then kind of Nashville and Raleigh maybe would battle a little bit over the other team. But of course, it's it's tough to say just with uncertain times for for the for Major League Baseball. I mean, I think I don't want to be pessimistic and just pile on and agree with what everyone's saying, but I guess the consensus is that it seems unlikely that there will be a season next next year. Um, so we'll see how that then affects kind of expansion. I'm sure that you know this potential expansion is going to be woven into whatever they're thinking about doing, but I certainly think uh that that Nashville would be a great choice. And uh I I I think that they're probably yeah, I I I would choose if I was czar, the baseball czar and making these decisions, I would I would choose Nashville over Rally. And you know, even though I I want all the best, you know, I'm I like to support the local teams of wherever I'm living just a little bit casually. Obviously, I was super excited for the Hurricanes to get their first Stanley Cup. They're they're a team that had been knocking at the door and they really deserve it. But uh, but yeah, I I especially just due to my friendship with you and you know, I've spent a little bit of time in Nashville. I think that would be great. I mean, I think Nashville really could work a baseball team. And you know, I the last thing I'll say about the whole attendance thing is this is just baseball at this point. Like, I don't like I'm gonna tell you, like, I don't have time to watch regular season Red Sox games. Like, not that I'm not gonna be very excitedly rooting for them as they're playing the Yankees in this uh upcoming playoffs, but um, you know, when baseball is exceptionally driven by whether or not your team is good. And yeah, if if it when you're an expansion team and you're just starting, you're probably not gonna fill as many seats. But I think like all things, if you can field a good team, then it's gonna work. Like these people who talk about, oh, we can't fill seats, we can't do that. Well, get a good product on the field. Uh I think that's that's really you know what it comes down to. You know, stop blaming any everyone else for it. I mean, if if you if you're doing a good job and getting the right players, then um I yeah, I I think baseball in Nashville makes sense to me.

Russell Ries 42:31

Right on. All right, you have my vote as baseball czar. I'm gonna turn to a different topic now. When I say Vanderbilt, what do you think? Do you think of a Nashville team or an SEC program that just sort of happens to be in Nashville or some other kind of combination of the two or something else entirely?

Alden Reed 42:50

I would say that I do think of them as an SEC team. I'm not gonna lie, totally honestly, I do frequently forget that Vanderbilt is in uh Nashville. I I for some reason in my mind I always switch it and think that uh University of Tennessee is uh Nashville and maybe uh because you know you Tennessee is in uh I want to say Knoxville, right? I'm not hopefully I'm getting Knoxville. College sports is not my strongest suit, so everyone can forgive me a little bit, but I I I have a pretty good sense of the landscape, I think. But no, I I do forget that Vanderbilt is Nashville's team. So that is it is interesting that you you raise that question. I I definitely am aware of them and um, you know, more aware that they're frequently have like a a decent team, even if they're not in the uh upper echelons. But I don't yeah, it doesn't have that traditional association with Nashville, which in fairness is probably also a little bit about just being a New Englander. You know, in the Northeast, we don't associate um teams, college teams, with the cities they're in quite as much, I think, as as. Other areas of the country, um, which is partly just because we tend to not have very good college teams. So uh, you know, it's not as competitive. But um, but yeah, no, I I do I always I do always think Tennessee. There's no doubt. I'm never forgetting where Vanderbilt is, but I do sometimes forget that it is in Nashville.

Russell Ries 44:21

Fair enough. All right. Uh along those same lines, when I say Nashville SC, what comes to mind? Does that register for you at all?

Alden Reed 44:28

Unfortunately, I haven't had as much time to get into uh major league soccer. I'm certainly aware of the teams, and you know, uh uh the revolution had a I don't know, a long time ago they were they were kind of good. Uh but and I I know that they've got a soccer team. Do you have a women's soccer team too? We do not. No. Okay, got you. But uh I think I mean I'm I'm generally pro soccer. I it really just comes down to just time and making tough decisions. I think you as you probably remember, I I am very into the international tournaments and pretty much always watch the World Cup and Euro and things like that. And you know, that's where I get a lot of my soccer knowledge from. But uh I do think it's great that it's expanding. And um, you know, it'll be interesting to see how as the sports landscape grows and evolves, uh, whether or not it will become even more popular. I mean, it certainly has been growing in popularity, but um how I mean that that's a relatively new expansion team, though. When did when did you all get the team?

Russell Ries 45:31

Yeah, uh first game was February of 2020. So they had their home opener. Um well, the first MLS game. So they played a few years in the USL before that. But yeah, and actually before that, they were it was a fan started team originally, and then they kind of raised it up and then they went to USL and then it became what it is today. But yeah, the first uh first season was actually the COVID season.

Alden Reed 45:56

An auspicious start, but that's all right.

Russell Ries 45:58

Yeah, and actually they're killing it this year. They're leading the league, they're probably gonna win the supporters shield, which is the regular season, you know, points be and so yeah, and uh Brian Schwacke, starting goaltender, just got called up to the US camp. So might be a name you'll be seeing in the future. He's been he's been awesome.

Alden Reed 46:15

Well, I was not favorably impressed with the goalkeeping uh for the U.S. this season. So if y'all could produce uh a a quality goal goaltender to uh that would be great.

Russell Ries 46:29

Fair. All right, so Nashville is scheduled to host the Super Bowl in 2030. When I say that, does that sound just totally insane or does it seem sort of natural?

Alden Reed 46:40

I think it makes I I think it's makes total sense to me. I I and in fact, uh so this is this will be the first Super Bowl they're hosting, is that correct?

Russell Ries 46:48

Yeah.

Alden Reed 46:49

Yeah, I I that if anything, that surprises me. I would have maybe thought that um you would have maybe had one before. I I know, I mean, I think that it Nashville's got everything that you want, really. I mean, it's it's a very central location. I mean, I think there's obviously no shortage of restaurants and bars and things going on. It's got a lot of its own unique character, which I think people always like. I mean, especially for a Super Bowl city or, you know, anything like that, a kind of special event. It's nice to go to a place that has a lot of uh character. And I do think that people that Nashville has, you know, it's kind of hard to describe, you know, it's not obviously it's not like a pure western or southern state, but it has uh, you know, a good bit of that in its DNA while also being somewhat a little bit more anchored to to the East Coast. And you know, it's an interesting blend of kind of culture that that goes on in Nashville. And, you know, I think there's not too many places like that. I think Kentucky and Tennessee to me are their own regional zone. And I I think that there's just something kind of unique about those two states, just stuck right there, long states in the middle, right? I think Tennessee borders the most states in in the country. I think that's a fun fact for Tennessee. And I think that shows in terms of kind of the the diverse character of things going on there. But for a Super Bowl site, I mean, the weather is probably going to be very ideal. Um, I think it'll certainly be warm enough. You obviously had no reason to worry about bad weather. I mean, you know, it can happen. We saw what happened in Dallas, whatever whenever it was a couple years ago with a that freak ice storm. But I mean, whatever. That's just that's nonsense. I mean, to me, oh, hosting a Super Bowl in New York or Minnesota, that's where I draw the line. I think that that those places are just clearly just a little bit too cold. And uh, I I've heard from in both cases too. It was just not very ideal as far as getting to the game and kind of traveling around, whereas the way the way Nashville is structured, I think that it makes a lot of sense. And I I would expect that they would get m even more Super Bowls in the future. So no, I I think it's gonna be really cool, and I think it's it's overdue.

Russell Ries 49:01

Right on. Yeah, I'm excited too that people will be flying into Dolly Parton International Airport.

Alden Reed 49:07

There you go. Yeah.

Russell Ries 49:07

Uh it's a call sign is gonna be DPI, I think, which fun, fun little thing there. Nice. So, from your perspective, what is Nashville missing as a sports city?

Alden Reed 49:20

I mean, probably just more teams, I guess. I mean, I I think that like I don't think that there's any lack of interest. I don't think that there's a lack of people, I don't think there's a lack of money, I don't think there's a lack of unique characters I was just talking about. And uh, you know, I think it's you can really cover a pretty wide area. It's not just Nashville, like I'm saying. I mean, if you've got good teams in Nashville, I imagine that at least most people probably in southern Kentucky and then in the rest of the state of uh Tennessee are are gonna be pretty on board. So I would say, let me put it, I'll add another thing. I mean, more teams, I guess, is easy, better ownership, probably. And you know, I'm not gonna throw too much shade here. I I think if if you're listening to this podcast, you you probably have a sense of a sense of that, but just I mean, I don't want to be overly critical of of certain groups, but just it's not so much just, you know, kind of the occasional dumb things here and there, or the shenanigans or the silliness, but just getting some people in there that are just committed. I guess you just want to know if nothing else that you know your owner is really doing everything they can, um, and is really just genuinely invested in it in a way. I mean, I guess I'll take an example kind of like Jim Ursay. You know, he's a guy that people kind of widely consider to be a bit of a buffoon and this and that. But at the same time, he definitely cared about the Colts, and even if he was getting in the way, I I, you know, I there was no doubt that he was there's trying to do the right thing. And kind of be gonna be interesting watching his daughter kind of getting on. She's got her own very unique thing going on there, which I don't know, you know, I I was into it last year. Um I'm wondering if that's gonna start to wear a little bit old. And I don't know, you know, if that's gonna make it an attractive spot for coaches to to go if we're gonna continue this sideline prowling business. So there you can kind of see the other end of uh, you know, uh what's going on in in certain places, but um but yeah, I I just think maybe slightly better, slightly better owner. I mean, I think that the preds are on the right track, and I think obviously, you know I I I should group it together, own ownership and management together, right? Because they're they're kind of a little bit of the same thing. I don't want to be picked too much on just one or the other, but yeah, these things are so important. I mean, obviously, speaking from as a Boston sports fan, they really are the the foundations of what you're trying to do. So I think um, you know, it's I don't know to what extent people care about the Grizzlies in Nashville. I'm guessing probably when they're good, it kind of becomes a thing. And otherwise, you know, whatever. But certainly, yeah, I mean they could they could definitely support a baseball team, and I'm sure if they had a basketball team, they would support that as well. I mean, if if the Grizzlies ever moved, I have have no idea what the economic situation is in Memphis is like. I can only just kind of generally give my opinion having driven through it a lot, which, you know, it seems like let's just say I think they could maybe use a little bit more development there. And I mean, you know, not being super pro development, but nor am I trying to throw too much shade at Memphis. I'm I'm sure it's it's a lovely city in certain ways, but we can see that Nashville has, you know, the the bulk, the power, the muscle, the development to sustain these things. So um, yeah, I think they could definitely just, you know, getting another there they definitely seem like a city that should have all four sports teams. I I I certainly think they could support that. And uh, but yeah, really just a little bit, a little bit better management and ownership. I think that's really what Nashville deserves.

Russell Ries 53:11

Fair enough. Yeah, I'm of the opinion I would really like to get the WNBA team. You know how a lot of these big you know kind of have a brother-sister NBA and WNBA team. I would like to get the WMBA counterpoint to the Memphis Grizzlies and have them in Nashville. I think that would be pretty exciting. But apparently there was a group tried to get them and uh did not get it on this latest round of expansion. So bully on that. Alright, so uh gonna uh finish on this one. After everything we've talked about, finish this sentence. Nashville is a blank sports city.

Alden Reed 53:50

Nashville is a rising sport city. That's what I would say. I do think that there are some positive signs, definitely. We've talked about McFarland, and I think uh, you know, you still have to give give Cam Ward time. And I mean it's great to hear that the uh Nashville Soccer Club is doing great. I mean, that's obviously a good sign, and I do think they have a good sh good shot at the baseball team. And they've got a little bit of an inside track with Manfred, I think, too. So that that should help. But I think that they're they're a rising sports city. I think you've got the Super Bowl, and um, you know, people I think people do respect Tennessee sports more than maybe people in Tennessee realize. I definitely think that if anything, it's just people are just hoping for more success, especially for the Titans. It's just been a real struggle, of course, lately. But I I think that they're rising, and I think that you all are moving in the right direction.

Russell Ries 54:46

Right on. Well, that's a positive note to end on. Alden Reed, thank you so much for coming on the show. I really appreciate your time today.

Alden Reed 54:53

Thanks for having me. It was wonderful to chat a little bit about Nashville Sports.

Outro

Russell Ries 55:09

All right, well, that was my conversation with Alden Reed. My thanks to him for coming on the show. It was great to catch up with a buddy and talk some National Sports. As always, we'd love to hear from you. We are on social media at Blue Sky and Twitter at NSH Sports Report. We are also available through the link in the description below, and you can find us at www.national sports report dot com. Thanks again for listening. We'll catch you next week.