Barstool Sports' Big Cat and PFT Commenter on their latest podcast talked about the cancellation of their ESPN2 show after just one episode, with Big Cat calling it a "combination of disappointment, heartbreak and embarrassment." Speaking yesterday on the "Pardon My Take" podcast, PFT Commenter said, "I know embarrassment sounds ridiculous, but it's something we were very excited (about). ... It was something that (was) presented to us and we thought it was going to be a really cool opportunity to give you guys more content, different content. So to have that kind of ripped from us, it sucks. There's no sugarcoating it." Big Cat said "Barstool Van Talk" was created to "get more eyeballs" and to get people to "fall in love with us." He said, "We all knew it was probably going to cause some problems, but I understood it." He added he really wished ESPN had "stood tall" after its relationship with Barstool drew criticism from "Sunday NFL Countdown" host Sam Ponder, among others. Big Cat: "It was shitty that they put us on and then they basically took us off when they knew that this all could come brewing. ... They should have just never put us on to begin with. It was mismanaged from the beginning." PFT Commenter added, "Nothing changed between that Tuesday that it got on the air and the following Monday, when it was cancelled." Big Cat noted there were some at ESPN "who had our backs throughout," including "personal friends" Scott Van Pelt and Ryen Russillo. He added Exec VP/Programming & Scheduling Burke Magnus "believed in us, and I think still does believe in us, and fought for us." Big Cat: "The powers (that) be at ESPN, it got to the point where they couldn't handle the internal pressure. They probably should have seen it coming" ("Pardon My Take," BARSTOOLSPORTS.com, 10/24).
