Down and Distance artwork

Down and Distance

9 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 4 years ago - ★★★★★ - 255 ratings

ESPN Senior Writer Ivan Maisel tells eight stories from the history of college football that examine how the sport has contributed to and reflected American culture through its 150 years.

Football Sports
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Episodes

We Interrupt This Season

September 12, 2019 11:19 - 32 minutes

Ivan Maisel tells the story of two college football teams who found themselves marooned on Oahu on December 7, 1941, the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sooner Sabotage

September 09, 2019 11:11 - 33 minutes

Ivan Maisel describes how the greatest dynasty in the modern history of college football came apart one night in 1959. The culprit? Fruit salad. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Fall Of Troy

September 05, 2019 11:01 - 31 minutes

Ivan Maisel explores how the USC Trojans came within 19 seconds of making college football history with three back to back championships - and then slowly receded from the top. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Standing at Armageddon

September 02, 2019 04:09 - 36 minutes

Ivan Maisel explores how Pitt's Bobby Grier found himself in an unexpected position in 1956 when he became the first college football player to break the color line in the Deep South. But his appearance in the Sugar Bowl wasn't without controversy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Tie that Wasn't

August 29, 2019 11:04 - 35 minutes

Ivan Maisel tells the story of the most controversial game in one of college football's greatest rivalries - the 1973 tie between Bo Schembechler's Michigan and Woody Hayes's Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Vick: A Three-Play Guy

August 26, 2019 11:12 - 28 minutes

ESPN's Ivan Maisel explores how redshirt freshman Michael Vick took the world of college football by storm in 1999 and argues that his standout season changed the face of the game. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jimmy Johnson And The House of Speed

August 22, 2019 10:50 - 30 minutes

ESPN's Ivan Maisel explains how Coach Jimmy Johnson's lifelong reverence for speed transformed not only the Miami Hurricanes - but all of college football. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

America Mourns Rockne

August 19, 2019 11:27 - 29 minutes

Notre Dame icon Knute Rockne died in a plane crash in 1931. Veteran sportswriter Ivan Maisel tells the story of how the beloved coach served as the vehicle for how we celebrate the lost lives of our national icons. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Down & Distance

August 15, 2019 11:02 - 1 minute

ESPN Senior Writer Ivan Maisel tells eight stories from the history of college football that examine how the sport has contributed to and reflected American culture through its 150 years. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices