'Hard Knocks' at Afterbuzz TV

I can't believe how quickly Football Training Camp came and went.  'Hard Knocks' focuses on those five weeks and specifically one team; this year it was the newly re-located back to LA Rams.  After 21 years in St. Louis, they came back to Cali!  This year I was Lead Hosting and Producing our segment with my new co-host, Joe Doyle.  We also had Throwback Joe join us for the first and last episodes to bring a little extra to our show!

Throwback Joe, Joe Joe Doyle and I Hosting 'Hard Knocks'

I am a die-hard Packer fan and will be for life; I've been on that season ticket waiting list since I was nine years old, thanks to my Mom.  They used to say by the time we were in our 50's, we would finally get tickets.  Now we'll be lucky if we get them in our lifetime, thanks to Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers, along with the other greats, leading us to victory and winning the Superbowl many times over the last 20 years!  

One thing I've noticed watching 'Hard Knocks' over the last few years is that you get invested in the team they are profiling.  I was excited about the Falcons and even said Devonta Freeman would be a late draft pick-up for Fantasy and would yield high results and I was right!  Last year's Houston Texans got me excited about their team and made me a huge fan of J.J. Watt, who I should already have been a fan of because he's from Wisconsin and played at UW-Madison.  This year it was exciting to have an LA Football team and someone else to root for, and learning about the players, I really enjoyed watching Aaron Donald, William Hayes, Tavon Austin, and Austin Hill.

Over the five weeks, you get an inside look at practices, team camaraderie, the pre-season games, home life, and most importantly, cuts to the teams roster which ends with 53 players making the team.  I got Throwback Joe's contact info from my friend, Shawn, who's been a Rams fan for as long as he can remember.  Throwback Joe creates new Rams gear with that Throwback-style, and has some big time players on board, like Vince Ferragamo and Eric Dickerson.  He gets the new players to sign the gear and then sends it out the people who have placed their orders.  He's been a fan of the Rams and followed them wherever they've been so it was great having a true fan in to chat with us about the Rams.  Plus, he was gracious enough to give us some gear to do a Giveaway with and send to some lucky fans!

Episode 1 of our 'Hard Knocks' Aftershow

Joe and I had a really great season Hosting our 'Hard Knocks' Aftershow at Afterbuzz TV and I will continue to keep track of the Rams this season and hopefully get to attend a game as well!  Ram Nation...let's go :)

Always a believer in Mermaids!  Our final 'Hard Knocks' show at Afterbuzz TV this season :)

*You can find Throwback Joe's in the App Store which you need to check out if you want to get any LA Rams gear!

'Hard Knocks' is back!

'Hard Knocks' is back and that means I'm Hosting at Afterbuzz TV with our Football fans, Christina, Stef, and new Host, Frank this season while we talk all about the Houston Texans!  J.J. Watt, originally from Wisconsin, went to school at UW-Madison is clearly the stand-out on the team but it's exciting to see new additions and other big players continuing to make plays during the pre-season and I think under the Coaching of Bill O'Brien, it's a strong team to contend with!

Hosting at Afterbuzz TV with Christina, Stef, and Frank for Week 1 of 'Hard Knocks'

The fact that we get to talk about Football for nearly an hour already excites me but when you add that insider perspective behind the scenes at training camp, you really reel me in!  With the addition of some awesome players and a very New England heavy team, including Coaches. I believe the Texans will make it to the play-offs this season.  Their schedule this season looks good and if their wide receivers and running backs come in confident, Hoyer will make contact, and lead his offensive team well.  He's got Cecil Shorts coming from Jacksonville, DeAndre Hopkins who is currently listed as their number one receiver while Freddy Blue is listed as their number one running back.  With the plays that Chris Polk was making during last week's pre-season game, I think he'll be coming in and potentially start depending on how well Blue does.  Jaelon Strong also showed promise as a Rookie wide receiver so we'll just have to see what happens in the upcoming weeks.  J.J. is always such a leader, and there's no doubt that their defense with Vince Wilfork, Brian Cushing, and Rahim Moore, their line is going to be massive, and I'm really liking Charles James at cornerback and jumping in at running back as well.  During the show we haven't seen too much of special teams so I'll be interested in seeing who will be taking that starting position returning punts!

I was able to Lead Host during Week Two of 'Hard Knocks' so that was very exciting since we just started doing a 'Hard Knocks' show at Afterbuzz last year.  I started watching Football with my Mom at a very young age, always cheering the Packers on, and my Mom put me on the Packers Season Ticket Waiting List when I was nine years old.  I'm still waiting and it seems like it's going to be quite some time before I even see an opportunity for those tickets.  I started Cheerleading and took camps in Middle School and was on our High School and then Winona State's Cheerleading Team all throughout college.  When you're a Cheerleader, you're literally right in the action so I got used to knowing what was going on and what each of the positions had to do in order to win or lose a game.  I miss being right on the sidelines when I go and see Football games nowadays.  

Week Two of 'Hard Knocks' coming to ya from Afterbuzz TV

Needless to say, I've been interested in Football ever since I was a little girl and getting to Host our 'Hard Knocks' Aftershow at Afterbuzz TV is a dream come true!  The perks of doing this show are the insights we get into the team as well as other teams.  Finding out who will be starting or playing back-up is very beneficial when I get ready to draft for my Fantasy Football Team.  I'll start doing Mock Drafts next week and figuring out where and when I can draft certain players and more than likely I'll pick up a Texan or two since I'm on the Houston train...or should I say, Wisconsinite Watt Train!

I'm looking forward to an exciting Football Season and all I can say is, Go Pack Go!  And Aaron Rodgers...you'll always be my favorite <3

Hosting HBO's 'Hard Knocks' for Afterbuzz TV!

Once I discovered that Afterbuzz TV was doing an After Show for HBO's 'Hard Knocks' I knew I wanted to be a part of it.  Christina and Stef had hosted the first episode, and Thaddeus and I joined them for the second and third, and we'll all continue hosting together for the next two episodes that are following the Atlanta Falcons this time around.  That first show had a huge hit and has been viewed over 35,000 times on YouTube!

Christina, Thaddeus, me and Stef talking Atlanta Falcons Football!

The main thing I love about 'Hard Knocks' is the insider's perspective into the practices, the games, and the team.  You get to hear what the coaches are thinking, how the players are feeling about everything from their positions, what they've done in the off-season, and in vying for a spot on the team.  You also get to see the growth of the rookie's and since Atlanta had so many people out last season with injury I do believe they're going to do much better this year.  Another great thing about the show is getting to see players that are great pick-ups for your Fantasy Football team, and you have the ability to keep your eye on someone and see them grow.  When you see a new player like Devonta Freeman, you know he's a guy that is going to get the ball and if you need back-up Running Backs, he'll probably be available later in your draft and a great choice for your Fantasy team.

Of course, I love my Packers but the Falcons have definitely started to grow on me.  When you have your own team you get to know about the players because you want them to succeed and watching 'Hard Knocks' gives you the opportunity to know the team they're spot-lighting as well.  Plus, the Falcons are a likeable team.  Last episode we saw Matt Ryan meeting a little boy on the field and he threw him a pass and then signed the football.  We get to see Roddy White, Julio Jones, and Harry Douglas joking around while they're out bowling, and just having fun on their off days.  You start to push for certain rookies to make the team and avoid that dreaded cut because you see the hard-work that they're putting in, that drive to be a part of the team, and love of the game.

Here's Episode Two of our Afterbuzz TV After Show for HBO's 'Hard Knocks'

 

I can't wait to see what happens during the rest of the season and I just wish the show had more episodes!  I'm so happy to get the chance to talk about Football for an hour with my Co-Hosts and fans of an awesome sport :)