Episode 1: Archie Manning

On the inaugural episode of “Great Dane Nation,” Morten is joined by his longtime friend and New Orleans Saints legend Archie Manning (07:03 – 48:19). But first, he talks about why he’s getting into the podcast game, what type of guests we can expect along the way, and what kind of conversations he’ll be having with his old friends from week-to-week (01:26). We then meet Morten’s sidekick “TommyFreezePops” (Tom Carroll), who explains the origin of his nickname and what his role on the podcast will be (03:20).We then move in to our interview with Archie, where he discusses a wide array of topics: the beginning of their 30+ year friendship (10:06); the unceremonious ending to his Pro Bowl-caliber NFL career (10:51); the tragic death of his father and how that impacted his early athletic career (12:31); how close he was to playing in the MLB instead of the NFL (14:59); why the Manning family dictates the speed limit on the campus at Ole Miss (20:26); why Cooper Manning may have been the best athlete of all three Manning boys (24:08); a hilarious story about a 10-year-old Peyton Manning roasting his youth basketball coach (29:06); the reason why Peyton has yet to become a color commentator for NFL games (31:59); on whether or not he felt Eli Manning got a “fair shake” at the end of his run with the Giants (34:40); on his conversations with Drew Brees, and why he believes he’ll finish his career in New Orleans (39:34); why he believes the Saints are the favorites to win the NFC South in 2020 (41:44); college football’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic (44:42); and why he thinks LSU is going to have another great season (45:45).Then, TommyFreezePops is joined by Kevin Rogers of VegasInsider.com, where they preview the marquee games of the NFL Week 1 slate (52:10 – 01:12:16). They preview Thursday night’s opener between the Chiefs and Texans (53:18), the Patriots first game with Cam Newton at the helm as they take on the Dolphins (55:59), the Browns on the road facing Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens (59:37), and Tom Brady’s debut with the Buccaneers as they head to New Orleans to take on Drew Brees and the Saints (01:02:38). Plus, the guys give you their favorite prop bet heading into the 2020 regular season (01:06:14).Finally, we close things out with Morten’s “Game Winner” – a weekly segment where Morten monologues his biggest takeaway of the week. This week, he talks about the amazing legacy and impact of Archie Manning and the Manning family on the game of football (01:12:16).