Cleats and Cufflinks

Episode 56: Game Promotion, Lightning and a Championship Wrap Up

July 22, 2016 00:00 - 10 minutes - 25.8 MB

Dusty and Nic talk about the 2016 Championship from a variety of angles including the work that goes into promoting an event, the challenges of unpredictable weather and the actual excitement of the game on the field.

Cleats & Cufflinks Mini-Episode: Chris Hancock

July 16, 2016 00:00 - 6 minutes - 4.8 MB

Chris of the Portland Stags talks with us about fortune cookies, Friction Gloves and the MLU Championship.

Cleats & Cufflinks Mini-Episode: Cody Bjorklund

July 16, 2016 00:00 - 5 minutes - 4.09 MB

Cody Bjorklund tells us about the Stags approach to the Championship matchup with the Spinners.

Cleats & Cufflinks Mini-Episode: Timmy Perston

July 16, 2016 00:00 - 29 minutes - 20.5 MB

Nic and Dusty talk red-eyes and getting weird at the Championship Game with Portland Stag scoring star Timmy Perston.

Cleats & Cufflinks Mini-Episode: Riley Meinershagen

July 16, 2016 00:00 - 7 minutes - 5.45 MB

Riley tells us about the Stags approach to the Championship Game and his impressions of the MLU office.

Episode 55: Ref Life, The Big Game and Another Rhodes

July 15, 2016 00:00 - 1 hour - 42.4 MB

Jaime Rhodes joins Nic and Dusty to discuss the referee role in the MLU, the upcoming MLU Championship Game, exciting broadcast news and more in an extra long episode.

Episode 54: Weyerbacher Special - Beer Pairings, John Doe of the MLU, the Brunicorn

July 08, 2016 00:00 - 44 minutes - 30.7 MB

Dusty and Nic visit Weyerbacher Brewing Company to talk with brewer Zane Miller about pairing beer with ultimate positions. They also discuss the John Doe of the MLU and the outliers above him, and identify the Brunicorn in our midst.

Episode 53: Shooting Percentage, Conference Finals, Final Final

July 01, 2016 00:00 - 41 minutes - 28.6 MB

Nic and Dusty talk about this past weekend's conference finals, the upcoming Championship weekend and the importance of "shooting percentage" in understanding outcomes.

Episode 51: Playoff Picture, Women's Ultimate, Championship

June 18, 2016 00:00 - 47 minutes - 32.7 MB

Dusty and Nic talk about Week 10 action, review the incredible Boston Area Women's All-Star game and discuss the upcoming 2016 Championship.

Episode 50: Home Field Advantage, Boston Women's All-Stars, 50th Reflections

June 09, 2016 00:00 - 44 minutes - 30.6 MB

Dusty and Nic talk about the playoff picture and the race for home field advantage on both coasts. They also highlight the Boston Area Women's All-Star Game and reflect on the passage of 50 episodes.

Episode 49: Playoff Picture, Coaching and David Kucherlapati

May 26, 2016 00:00 - 8 minutes - 28.6 MB

David joins Nic and Dusty in the studio to discuss this past weekends MLU games, the playoff picture and the joys of coaching.

Episode 48: Remote Video, NY Rumbles West and the Coming of the Stags

May 20, 2016 00:00 - 43 minutes - 29.7 MB

Nic and Dusty talk about some new video technology, the cross-country surprise in San Francisco, Boston's amazing comeback and this weekend's Stags visit to the Whitecaps.

Episode 47: Calling the Negative, the (non)Rhythm of Drops and Catch to Throw

May 12, 2016 00:00 - 34 minutes - 23.4 MB

Dusty and Nic talk about the challenges of balancing the negative and positive in commentary, the jarring nature of a dropped disc and the importance of the catch to throw transition.

Episode 46: Leicester City, League Formats, MLU Teams So Far

May 06, 2016 00:00 - 38 minutes - 26.5 MB

Dusty and Nic share their amazement at Leicester City's Championship, talk through various league formats and do a short team-by-team review of the MLU as some of the teams hit the halfway point.

Episode 45: Live Streaming, Time Outs and Bandable Offenses

April 29, 2016 00:00 - 40 minutes - 27.7 MB

Dusty and Nic talk about the logistics and challenges of live streaming, discuss the updated MLU time out rules and clarify the role of intent and video in bands.

Episode 44: Calling Games, Jersey Sponsors and Going On Runs

April 21, 2016 00:00 - 37 minutes - 25.7 MB

Nic and Dusty talk about calling games ahead of their MLU Live debut this coming weekend. They also discuss the virtues of jersey sponsorship and the phenomenon of the point run in ultimate.

Episode 43: SportsCenter, Opening Weekend, Media Relations

April 15, 2016 18:11 - 34 minutes - 47.8 MB

Nic and Dusty talk about the opening weekend for the MLU, the importance of a SportsCenter Top 10 appearance and how the league is trying to make it easier to cover ultimate.

Episode 42: Live Streaming, Calvin Ball, Everything is Ultimate

April 08, 2016 00:00 - 32 minutes - 22.6 MB

Nic and Dusty discuss the MLU's 2016 live streaming strategy, Dusty's Fools Fest experience with Calvin Ball and how the "coach's clause" essentially makes any sport ultimate (or ultimate any sport).

Episode 41: Indoor Ultimate, Ultimatum Gdansk, and Dirty Words

April 01, 2016 11:42 - 38 minutes - 52.3 MB

Dusty and Nic talk about the virtues of indoor ultimate, share the story of our new friends at Ultimatum Gdansk and talk about the role of cursing in sports.

Episode 40: Johan Cruyff, Total Ultimate and Roles with the Disc

March 24, 2016 00:00 - 31 minutes - 21.4 MB

Dusty and Nic talk about legendary soccer player Johan Cruyff and how his embodiment of total football applies to ultimate. This leads to a conversation about the different roles players fill with the disc in their hands.

Episode 39: Visiting Seattle, Ranking Pints and the Importance of Coaching

March 18, 2016 00:00 - 32 minutes - 22.2 MB

Nic and Dusty talk about visiting the Pacific Northwest, running from pub to pub and the coach's role in identifying and developing talent.

Episode 38: Problem Solving, Two-Handedness and Sphere of Catchability

March 15, 2016 00:00 - 31 minutes - 21.7 MB

Dusty and Nic spend some time thinking about how the best players solve problems on the field. Throwing with both hands takes the spotlight and the concept of sphere of catchability is briefly discussed.

Episode 37: Covering Tournaments, Sideline Safety and Brokian Ultra Cricket

March 04, 2016 00:00 - 33 minutes - 23 MB

Dusty and Nic talk about the difficulties in covering tournament ultimate, the importance of safe sidelines and one of the many rules of Brokian Ultra Cricket.

Episode 35: Dusty Rhodes, Pre-Game Rituals, Warming Up and Club Stats

February 19, 2016 00:00 - 31 minutes - 21.6 MB

Nic and Dusty talk about the oddities of pre-game rituals and the methods of warming up. Also on tap . . . Dusty's statistics obsession applied to club ultimate.

Episode 34: Greg Fallon, Promoting Players and the Importance of Doors

February 19, 2016 00:00 - 29 minutes - 20.4 MB

Nic and Greg talk about all the new content the MLU is producing and how it is helping the league fulfill one of its responsibilities to its players.

Episode 36: Dusty Rhodes, All-Star Games, Professional Fouls

February 19, 2016 00:00 - 36 minutes - 24.9 MB

Nic and Dusty discuss all-star games and their side-shows. They also somehow get involved in a conversation over fouls and intent.

Episode 33: Tim Brubaker, Website Redesign, Hockey Assists and Slovakia

January 28, 2016 00:00 - 29 minutes - 17.5 MB Video

Nic talks to Tim about his role in the new MLU website designs, the addition of stats like "hockey assists" and "throws into blocks" and Slovakia, Tim's favorite subject.

Episode 32: Luke Ryan, Player Signings, New Stats Interface and Statistics Defined

January 14, 2016 00:00 - 31 minutes - 21.3 MB

Nic talks to Luke about recent player signings, the new statistics interface and the way the MLU defines the elements of its statistics.

Episode 31: Billy Sickles, Tryouts, Coaching

January 08, 2016 00:00 - 30 minutes - 21 MB

Nic talks to Billy Sickles about the recent Philadelphia Spinner's tryouts, the experience of transitioning from college to pro and the importance of coaching.

Episode 30: Dusty Rhodes, Statistics, Sharing

December 29, 2015 00:00 - 31 minutes - 21.5 MB

Nic and Dusty discuss the potential impact of the MLU statistical effort and start to dig into what makes ultimate special.

Episode 29: Bert Katzen, Sales, Pro Gear

December 18, 2015 00:00 - 30 minutes - 20.8 MB

Nic catches up with MLU Sales Associate Bert Katzen on working on the sales team and the Pro Gear Program.

Episode 28: Dusty Rhodes, Coaching, Elder Statesmen

December 10, 2015 00:00 - 31 minutes - 21.3 MB

Nic talks to Dusty about Kevin Garnett, maturing as player, coaching and other assorted miscellany.

Episode 27: Will Smolinski, Player Development, 2016 MLU Schedule

December 03, 2015 00:00 - 30 minutes - 20.8 MB

Nic talks to Will Smolinski about his new role as solo head coach of the Washington DC Current, his views on player development and the upcoming season schedule.

Episode 26: Kelsey Turner, Account Management and Tennis

November 26, 2015 00:00 - 30 minutes - 20.7 MB

Nic talks to Kelsey about her work at MLU managing partner accounts, her experience in ultimate and the parallels between tennis and frisbee.

Episode 25: Luke Ryan, Stats and Fantasy

November 19, 2015 00:00 - 29 minutes - 20.6 MB

Nic Darling talks to the MLU's Head Statistician about ultimate statistics and fantasy ultimate.

Episode 24: New Funding, New Employees, New Direction

November 09, 2015 00:00 - 29 minutes - 20.1 MB

Creative Director Scott Helm joins Executive VP Nic Darling to discuss the securing of another round of funding and how that has effected the MLU strategy, employment environment and development projects.

Episode 23: High School Ultimate, Fantasy and the 2015 Season

April 22, 2015 00:00 - 1 hour - 43.4 MB

Jeff and Nic talk about the value of a single game format in high school ultimate, the business case for MLU Fantasy and list improvements and places to improve for the 2015 Season.

Episode 22 - New Office, Deflategate, Friday Night Tykes and Jordan Belfort

February 04, 2015 00:00 - 1 hour - 87.7 MB

Nic and Jeff discuss the deflated football controversy, the show Friday Night Tykes and the Philosophy of Jordan Belfort from the spacious new MLU Office.

Episode 21: Investor Meeting, Player Benefits and Varsity Ultimate with Anne Watson

December 12, 2014 00:00 - 1 hour - 47.8 MB

Jeff and Nic discuss the MLU Investor meeting, the benefits MLU players receive and the start of varsity ultimate in Vermont with special guest Anne Watson.

Episode 20: Tiina Booth, Starting a Business and MLU Origins

December 05, 2014 00:00 - 1 hour - 30 MB

Nic and Jeff discuss Tiina Booth's excellent article on the MLU/USAU relationship, keys to starting a business and the origins of the MLU.

Episode 19: New Partners, Cutting the Best Player, A Timeout Rule

November 26, 2014 00:00 - 58 minutes - 80.6 MB

Nic and Jeff discuss newly developed partnerships, what makes the best player and a new timeout rule that is being proposed.

Episode 18 - Player Advisory Committee, The Budget, A Bit of AUDL and David Kucherlapati

October 18, 2014 00:00 - 1 hour - 91.3 MB

Nic and Jeff talk about the formation of a MLU Player Advisory Committee, the work behind the creation of a 2015 budget and spend a moment answering a question about the AUDL and asking one about referees in youth ultimate. They also take a moment to sit down with David Kucherlapati and discuss his move to VP of Operations for the league.

Episode 17: The Ice Bucket, Johnny Manziel and Sean Carpenter

August 23, 2014 00:00 - 57 minutes - 78.4 MB

Nic and Jeff talk about taking the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, discuss the composure of Johnny Football and interview Sean Carpenter of Ultiphotos.

Episode 16: Misty Copeland, Worlds and a Little Business

August 15, 2014 00:00 - 1 hour - 89.6 MB

Nic and Jeff talk about Misty Copeland and what defines a sport, the positives and negatives of worlds and the business insights of a guy named Randy.

Episode 15: Championship Game, Wildwood and the Off-Season

August 05, 2014 00:00 - 1 hour - 87.5 MB

Jeff and Nic take a look back at the 2014 MLU Championship Game and the Wildwood Beach Ultimate Tournament. They also briefly look at the future with a brief discussion of the off-season.

Episode 14: Playoff Implications, Washington Football, Too Much Warm Up

June 19, 2014 00:00 - 52 minutes - 72.7 MB

Jeff and Nic discuss the playoffs and the current implications. They pontificate on the fate of Washington DC's football team and they wonder whether MLU teams are warming up incorrectly.

Episode 13: The Appeals Process, Ambition for Ultimate and Alex Wittchen

June 06, 2014 00:00 - 1 hour - 85.1 MB

Nic and Jeff talk about PPL Park, the appeals process for disciplined players, ultimate's ambition in the 70's and Jeff's outspoken opinion on our players' abilities. They also speak to Alex Wittchen, Director of Social Media and spend an awkward amount of time talking about how they can't believe this is episode 11 . . . even though it's episode 13.

Cleats and Cufflinks

Episodes