Show Me Something - Live From The Bracket: Episode 1 | March Madness, Travel & Joel McHale

Episode Date: March 24, 2026

This week, Show Me Something goes LIVE with Marriott Bonvoy from the biggest March Madness® bracket in the country. Sophie Cunningham and West Wilson check in from Indianapolis, home of the 2026 Men’s Final Four®, to set the stage for March Madness chaos, Cinderella dreams, and the travel that powers it all. Recorded on March 17—before the first tip‑off of the tournament—they break down why March hits harder when you travel for it, from bracket‑breaking possibilities to the emotional rollercoaster of buzzer‑beaters and heartbreak. Along the way, they give flowers to the unsung heroes of March Madness: the parents, fans, coaches, and communities who crisscross the country to support their teams. Then things level up with special guest, Joel McHale, who joins the show with unforgettable travel stories, behind‑the‑scenes Hollywood moments, and peak fandom energy. From his college football days and legendary University of Washington tailgates to hotel must‑haves and dream sporting events, Joel brings humor, heart, and March‑level intensity. He also talks current and upcoming projects including Scream 7, House of Villains, and Animal Control—because whether it’s underdogs fighting to survive or rivals colliding on the biggest stage, Joel knows March Madness energy when he sees it. In this episode: March Madness predictions and bracket chaosWhy travel is inseparable from the Final Four experienceThe emotional highs and lows that define MarchJoel McHale on fandom, football, tailgating, and travel essentialsHollywood stories and life on the road This is March Madness like you’ve never heard it before, and the first of four live episodes with Marriott Bonvoy. Follow Show Me Something for the rest of the limited series. Check us out @showme_pod on Instagram to enter for a chance to win tickets to the Final Four. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Void where prohibited. Open to legal residents of the 50 U.S./D.C., who are at least 18 years old as of date of entry. Sweepstakes ends 11:59 PM ET on 4/15/26, with two (2) entry periods. For complete Official Rules, visit rules.dja.com/livefromthebracket. Sponsor: Marriott International, Inc.[Depicted] Men’s March Madness bracket located at the JW Marriott Indianapolis. Episode filmed at The Westin Indianapolis. Marriott Bonvoy is the official hotel partner of the NCAA, March Madness, and Final Four. 00:00 - We’re Live from the Bracket in Indy!1:00 - Welcome to Westin1:53 - West and Sophie Post Up in the New Studio 2:57 - Who are West & Sophie Backing in March Madness 2026?4:09 - How NIL  and Travel Has Changed the March Madness Landscape6:18 - Home Games and Familiarity Matters8:38 - Game Styles Per Conference9:49 - West’s Love for Seeing Small Schools Make It to the Big Dance10:26 - Shoutout to the Parents!12:06 - Teams Supporting Teams; Women’s Tournament is a Tight-Knit Community13:30 -  West’s Favorite March Madness Memory14:31 - All the Emotions of March Madness 15:38 - West & Sophie’s Hotel Power Rankings19:21 - Welcome Joel McHale20:30 - March Madness: A Perfectly Designed Tournament21:31 - Selection Sunday Thoughts & Reactions22:00 - Who Joel’s Got for #1 22: 13 -Joel’s Time at University of Washington23:16 - Joel’s Top College City to Visit24:40 - How Far Would Joel Travel to Watch the University of Washington Play?25:48 - Joel Reflects on Hosting the ESPYs 26:16 - Experiencing the City When You Travel is a Must27:11 - Joel’s Latest Projects: Scream 7, Animal Control, and More29:10 - Wait, Joel Was Born in Rome?30:50 - Dream Vacation Spots32:50 - Joel’s Travel Essentials33:15 - Best Tennis Venues Around the World34:04 - What Sporting Events Are on Sophie and West’s Travel List?36:08 - Final Four Sweepstakes: How to EnterAll lines provided by ‪Hard Rock BetSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Joy 101 with Hoda Kotby is presented by CVS. This is Show Me Something podcast with Meredith Bonvoy checking in, and we are live from the bracket. The tournament is upon us, 68 teams, all dreaming of making it to the final four. And we are right outside the J.W. Marriott here in Indianapolis. One of our favorite March Madness traditions. And on this side of the hotel, this is quite literally the biggest bracket I've ever seen in my entire life. This bracket is 47,000 square feet, and it covers 18 floors here at the JW Marriott.

It's made up of 800 different pieces, and by tip off of round one, it will have all 68 teams listed. As the results of the tournament unfold, the bracket is updated until a champion is crowned. Pictures don't do it justice, you gotta come see it in person. We have an amazing show coming up, and our guest is none other than Joel McHale. I will be your guest. It's such a perfect design. The tailgate is boats. All best.

The camel's name was mayhem. Yes, I'm in a lot of hotels. Duke basketball game with Ken Jong. Let's go. Come on. Our favorite game day stories, they don't always happen on the court. Sometimes they happen in the hotel lobby or over a pregame meal. And this March Madness, we have teamed up with Marriott boy to share some of those memorable moments with you.

In a limited podcast series, live from the bracket, we're talking all things college hoops, travel, and fandom with special guests and unforgettable experiences. you can be a part of. Today we are here at the Weston Hotel in Indianapolis. Weston Hotels and resorts are designed with your well-being in mind. With more than 200 destinations around the world, Weston makes it possible to keep up with your wellness routine while traveling, with signature amenities and offerings that help you move well, eat well and sleep well. Weston hotels make travel an opportunity to enhance your well-being. And with their iconic next-generation heavenly bed, you can look forward to rest. Look at us. Prime examples. How'd you sleep? So good.

help you maintain your game day routine while on the road. Weston, part of Myriad Bonvoy, where game day checks in. Yo! Hello, everyone. Come on now. Sophie, how are you? I'm good. We are coming to you live from the bracket in a new little beautiful studio built in the Weston.

In Indianapolis. In Indianapolis, home of... Me. But look how lovely this is. We have NCAA trophies back there. The real ones. That's the real ones that they'll hold. So, dial in.

Can we also hit on that? Live from the Bracket is what we're doing with our podcast for March Madness with Mary Bonvoy. Not only are we doing it with Mary Bonvoy, it's a real thing that anyone can see with their own eyes from the whole state of Indiana. But the bracket looks great. It's massive. Wait, can we, I did not know this. So this is so cool because the bracket, the eye looks tiny, but in real life, it's like the size of West. Like it is, it is a huge, yeah, 6-1. That being said, this is our first episode. And while we are here for our first episode in this beautiful Weston. Our next guest will be Joel McAil and he'll be sitting right there next to Sophie.

Not here yet, but we're excited. Okay, let's actually talk about this bracket. Sophie, as someone whose school did not make the Instably tournament this year, I have no other choice but to channel my inner childhood and be a Mizzou fan. Well, we barely made it. I was nervous. I wasn't thinking we were going to make it, but I'm definitely right at Mizzou. I love a good Cinderella story. I'm not saying we're totally Cinderella story, but we're definitely underdogs. Yeah. And I'm, I'm for it. I think we have, I think we have some potential. Mizzou, not a, not a tournament team in my time. Huh?

They just, I feel like every time Mizzou's made the tournament, they choke. Except for that year, Marcus didn't. Why would you even put that in the atmosphere? No, I'm just, you, I'm just saying, like, if they're going to do something different, it would be good. Well, maybe we just needed your support finally to, like, bring the good vibes. They said, you said you're a vibe guy. Yeah, I'm Mr. Vibes. So bring the good vibes.

That's fine. Florida is a one seed, obviously. Yeah. they've been good at basketball since we were little yeah and duke duke yeah but i just mean you don't think of florida as like a powerhouse basketball school but they kind of kind of are always been really good i'm an underdog guy for the tournament obviously so like if a duke or unc play i always want them out i just we've talked about this so much but how nil's kind of changed what the tournament is it's just harder to get a little school to the top when everyone's gone after their after a good sophomore season

Wait, that is so true. So it's really if you win your conference is how kind of smallerish schools would get in. That is how you get in. But like I think teams used to make runs because they had seniors and juniors who were probably under recruited out of high school. Yeah. And then went to these mid-major schools and like developed or grew or whatever in college and then had a good two or three guys with them. And now if someone, say some dude's like six foot, his senior year of high school grows to like six three. he's going to get stolen.

If he has a good freshman or sophomore year, you're going to get stolen. Like, it's just a very different landscape. And I think it is objectively much more challenging for small schools to, like, build a team and develop a team that can make a tournament run. No, those are great perspective. In the spirit of how things have changed with college sports, and we were talking about it earlier. But, like, now these teams in the Big Ten are in California,

and they have to fly all over the country nonstop, like even in the regular season. So, like, maybe teams are more prepared for the weird travel? No, I feel like they're more prepared. I mean, and a lot of these people are used to the commercial flights now, staying at hotels, they're in routine, so it's not like it's anything crazy. I do think time zones, if you're not used to it, could hit a little different, but if you're used to it, then it's not really a thing. Yeah.

I think Mazu got lucky because they are playing in St. Louis, which is two hours away from Columbia. You should give a PSA to Mizzou fans to show up. Get down to St. Louis, a thousand percent. And I think they naturally will. They had a great fan base this year. So I think they're going to be just fine. Who are they playing? Miami.

Oh, oh, and some tea on that. So CY Young was actually an assistant coach for Mizzou under Gates, like, his whole career. And now he's either the head coach of Miami or an assistant. So that's going to be, there's like some family ties up in there. That's nice. Yeah. And we were also, we mentioned this before, but. how the women's tournament

first two rounds are home games so you earn to play in your own gym with your own fans whereas men's bracket you don't get that opportunity if you're a top who would it be an eight's top eight seed has it always been that way or is that a new thing ever since

I've watched the women's tournament they've all they have been home games yeah because Montana State obviously we're always like a 14 or something and we always traveled I'm saying for men has it always been I don't think that they've ever played home games games. Yeah.

No, because they make such a big deal out of this city, like on Selection Sunday. Yeah. The cities and like the regions are such a big part of when teams get chosen. So that's definitely been a thing forever. But it is fun. I like, as someone who loves geography, I like selection Sunday to see what cities get to host and like what teams are probably going to a city that they've never played in before, like a part of the country that they don't get to play in.

And if you're a player, it's probably fun. If you played in the SEC your whole life and you get to go to like Seattle? Can I say something though? I think from experience. being, I went to four NCAA tournaments all four years, which is, No, I'm not flexing. You can flex. No, I don't want to flex.

I'm just saying it's experience. This is like I'm saying this is some validation. Horiful. No. I will say you would think that it would be cool to like go to a new state, new city, kind of new regionish area. And it almost is not. Like you kind of want in the tournament, you want experience matters.

Records all go out the window. It doesn't matter. Rankings go out the window. And so I think the only thing that, that really helps is when maybe you've been there before, you've played there before, you have some. Oh, yeah, I see what you're saying. I suck out saying this word, familiarity. Familiarity.

Yeah, but like, thank you, sophism. But I truly do think that that matters. And so my junior year, we got sent out to Stanford. And like that was, the gym is different. The vibes are different on the West Coast. Like, weird. We played a tournament in Phoenix one time. And it's just like, it's just different and weird.

You know what I mean? So like, if it was SEC, team or in that kind of part of the nation. It was like, oh, okay, this is like my bread and butter. This is my home. So pros and cons there. And you're also, again, women's bracket, your first two rounds, you're playing in the team you're playing's home environment.

So, like, they're objectively more familiar and they have a home field advantage, home court advantage that teams in the first and second round in the men's tournament don't have. Wait, I also have another advantage. It could be an advantage or disadvantage in the tournament. SEC is known for, like, being the most athletic and, like, most physical. and so you get used to that type of play where you play back in the day

when I was there a Pac-12 team and they're like super high IQ not physical like very like and it is it's difficult just like different game styles totally but it's it's different like can they match your physicality can you out cue their IQ like it is

it's kind of cool that's the beauty to me in like the tournament and just getting to play schools that you don't normally get to yeah and like honestly SEC even in like the men's they're big. And so there's a lot of postplay where other conferences, it's a lot of threes and layups. So it's like just the different style. That's kind of why I love March Madness, though, just because you kind of get to see every team's bread and butter.

Yeah. And if you can defend it or if you can play offense against it. Yeah. Did you ever play against any like super teams? You never played Yukon probably in the tournament. But did you play, I guess you played against South Carolina in college. And they won it like pretty much every year when I was in college. I think we played Texas who was ranked three or four. That was super good um stanford when we were out there like we played a lot of good teams i like to say one thing i liked about and again this is like the small school part of me but getting to see the girls who i saw in the training room every day and like these girls are still ballers obviously yeah get to what like get to see them play on national tv in like a super big moment obviously we didn't

like go on any runs or anything but it's still like the girls you know getting to watch them play on a stage that they don't always get to. Yeah. And like show the world, like, that they can ball. It was always fun to get to see, like, my friends do that whenever. Because our women's basketball team actually super good. Yeah. Wait, can we go into that real quick?

This is a little sentimental. Yeah. And this is like a big thank you, I would say. But we talk about the athletes always traveling across the nation to different states. Dude, yeah. I know what you're going to say. Parents. Thank you to the parents. Like, the parents invest, they travel, they work, and like, their stuff isn't paid for.

You know what I mean? And so in like the... Are they going to say like training staff, coaches, like GAs? All that, the mega fans. Like that is a big deal that I don't think they get enough credit and they don't get their flowers. But I do, when you were just talking about that, it really did like get home. Like our parents or your guardians or people who just love you, they invest in a lot of time too. So when you make it to the big dance and you get to go to a new region, you get to do something different, so do they.

You know what I mean? And like, they work just as hard for us to get there. as we did. And so I hope that parents and guardians and fans embrace this march as much as the actual athletes. Because this is a big deal for everybody. Yeah, you don't know the next time your team will go. So go to the game. Hey, yeah, some people get spoiled. Some people get spoiled. Some people get spoiled. But also some people get jaded. I'll say my mom and my brother went to, I think it was like maybe Omaha when Missouri. Remember when Missouri was a two seed and lost to like. Basketman's basketball? George Mason. I don't think it's George Mason. But I was.

Was it George Mason? Can we get a producer, Google? They were a two-seed and lost in the first round, but my mom and brother went, Norfolk State. Yes. But my mom and brother were like, why would we ever go to a March Madness game again?

Because they tried it and got just their hearts ripped out, which is why. But how cool that you get to experience all the emotions. Yeah, that's why sports are beautiful. Yep. A sneaky part with March Madness, but also any tournament is teams either playing before

or after other teams and kind of like being in the same gym and you get fans who are rooting for other fan bases because you're just in the same arena. Did you ever play before or after and have to watch a team that you were going to play next? Yeah, all the time. Yeah. And I want to shout out Mazoo Nation

because everywhere we went, everyone said that we had some of the nicest fans. Like our hospitality was amazing. And that's not just women's basketball. It was football. It was baseball. It was soccer, volleyball. Like, we just have some nice fans who are like,

you know, you go to other tailgates and whatnot. And you're trying to hang out and people like, boo, but we're, very welcoming. And so I love that. Um, but I will say, I think especially on the women's side, we're just, we just have to be like kind of a tighter knit community. You know, like we got to help each other out a little bit. And so you would play. And like, even my, my parents and my family, they would watch teams before us and be like, I really like that player. I really like how that coach interacted with her players and coach the game or, you know, just the culture

of the team. And so you definitely create fans. And like, especially if you lose, it's kind of hard to like, but you also, you know, give credit words to, but for me as a player, I don't know if I necessarily was like, oh, that team was really nicer. I really want them. I'm like, no, screw that team. Yeah, you're more like the other side. I'm more, I'm too competitive. Yeah. You know, but not to, I'm not like, I hope you guys lose all that type of stuff. I just hate to lose, you know. One of my favorite tournament memories ever when I worked at Bleacher Report. Remember St. St. Peter's. This was just a tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny school in New Jersey. And they beat Kentucky, someone else big. And then they beat Purdue. They made the elite A.

I was on the floor with like a credential for this game. And they probably had like one section of fans. But the whole like the other teams in that city were like UCLA, UNC and Purdue. I don't think just that arena, but I think the whole nation became a fan of them. Oh, for sure. Like I love that. But yeah, part of the reason why probably all those fans are rooting for them is because they thought it's an easier out when they got to play them. Yeah, good luck, bud.

I just remember being there and being like none of these people in here are actual fans of this school. but they are so into this game and like rooting for the underdog. I love it. And that's an experience you wouldn't get on TV. No. That's like you have to be under the roof

and like see it all come to life and like feel that energy. And that was dope. I actually can't believe it took me this long to bring that up. But that was like such a cool game to be at. Loyola when the nun became like totally famous. Sister Jean.

March truly does sport in general. But I think there's just more on the line of March. Bring so many emotions. And like, you know, as the bracket is just starting. There's a lot of happy smiles, laughter. But also tears start happening. You just work so freaking hard every year.

And like everyone's team truly has a journey and is special and has ups and downs. There's so many good things that happen in a season regardless of the team. And so when it's over, I cried every single time. Yeah. Because I'm just like, like, you're exhausted. You're sad. You just want it so bad. but then I've also been on

the other in a state Yeah High school's my glory days No no no no But it's also A four piece Rockbridge High But I will say

Like I when we want it all too You still cry Like there's just like emotion Just like your hard work is just Regardless if you won or lost And it is sad But that's why sports are beautiful Yeah

You can't appreciate sunshine Without rain Okay Or blizzard outside in Indianapolis Okay Okay, Sophie, we're going to play hotel power rankings. Okay, like this. Here's how it works.

We're looking at a list of 50 travel-related experiences and ranking our top five in order. You and I know each other well enough now that we know we like different things. Facts. You know what I mean? Yeah. It's just some people, some things hit harder than others. Like a hotel waffle maker. That hits so hard for my dad.

Dude, I have never heard of that. That hit so hard for my dad. Never heard of that. And like I know a pool with no one else in it. That's going to be in your top five. A thousand percent, dude. You know? Okay, so my top five, here we go.

Coming in at number five, opening the blackout curtains to a great view. I think it's so, it really brings your spirits up. It could be, could it be a mountainside? Could it be the Las Vegas strip? It just sets the tone.

Think about it. Like, when you have a good view, you appreciate it. And it just makes you feel like you're a part of that city. Thousand percent. You know? Number four,

a Weston Heavenly Bed. The reason I don't have eyebags today is because I just slept on one. Three, hotel gym. I think when you're on the road a lot. Sometimes the only thing you can do to feel better is move around. Move your bod. Incline walk. Thousand percent. Palm some iron. And renovated? Yeah. Matters. Love. Powerful hotel shower.

I don't think we talk about it enough as a society. How important water pressure is to having a good day. And that can be a good overhead. sets the tone. Yeah, it really sets the tone. You get clean and you feel fresh. I like that. And my number one, as you would expect. A.C. A perfectly cold AC. after a hot day. You're such a dwee, dude. I need it. I need it. I need it.

So that's mine. Okay, I'm going to start with number five, and it was pool with nobody else in it. Of course. Yeah, and I would like to say, when you're out there by yourself, then you can just, like, be in your thoughts, sun is beaming on you.

The water temperature probably feels so nice, especially on a hot day. But I do appreciate when other people are at the pool too. I do like to people watch. I do like to talk. Yeah. But after a busy day, sometimes you just want to be alone

in your thoughts, getting a tan. Number four, perfectly cold. old AC after a hot day. Love. Really? Okay. I'm glad to... Because I can't sleep when it's hot in my room. Like, I definitely cannot do that. Wait, I'm glad to know that about you. Yeah. I always thought you liked being hot

at all times and I thought it was kind of weird. Dude, no, that'd be horrible. Okay, I appreciate that. Horrible. No. Okay. Number three, charging ports everywhere. Huh. Come on. Think about this. If you, if you do not have one next to your bed or in the bathroom that's convenient at the desktop, like not having a charging port. where you need it is frustrating because then you're like sitting in a weird spot you want to be laying in bed like

I think that's a lost star I was going to push back on you but I'm not going to know I like this no I don't want I agree you explained it in a way that kind of flipped me in real time number two powerful hotel shower I absolutely love that but I'm gonna add on to it I prefer when there's a door on the shower because I like my showers like steamy hot I don't want to be cold and like having to be under the hot water because it's cold so that's that's kind of a must on mine are you going to sneak in good products help love of their products. A good shampoo, candish body wash. Yes.

So you don't have to use that and take up space when you are traveling. So that is a must. And then my number one, a massive king bed. Oh. All by yourself.

So if you walk into a room and there's two queens. I can do it. Yeah. And honestly, if I have two queen beds, then I'm going to put my luggage on one of them, sleep on the other. Yeah.

And like if I'm traveling with like Lindsay, my sister or someone, we actually sleep in the same queen bed. We do a luggage bed and like we sleep in the other one. But nothing's like a good cozy king bed with good pillows, a good, like, sheet, cover. Yeah. Yeah.

That's a must. More aligned you and I than I thought we'd be, actually. That was fun. Like a good bathrobe. That's on there. I almost put that in my top five. Okay, guys, we are so excited to have Joel McHale on the podcast. We're going to talk to him about his love for Washington sports.

Love. Traveling with family, places he's always wanted to go that he's never been to. And this is timed up perfectly with the March Madness excitement. People are crisscrossing all over the country to go watch their favorite team, so let's talk to Joel about it. Oh my gosh. Welcome to the Bonn, the Marriott Bonvoy. Show Me Something podcast. I will be your guest.

Are we roll? Oh, then I'll let this fly. And the host. Yeah, and our host. He just did it for us. The NCAA championship trophies are for some reason way back here. There, well, I'll kiss this one. I did it.

Sorry. Well, no. It's just a beautiful set now. it's even more pretty. Yeah. But do you prefer to go by actor, comedian, host, former UW football player? If you could include that every time you introduce me. I will.

That would be great. All of them. We can do that. But in all seriousness, thank you for coming. Thank you for having me. Happy to have me. It was great to run across the frozen tundra that became Indianapolis in the last two days.

Yeah. In honor of our two extra guests, these trophies, real quick. Yeah. It is one of the most anticipated events of the year, as we all know. It's so many teams to keep track of. So I love that first moment. Like this weekend, it's one of my favorite weekends because it's just happening all the time everywhere. You can't walk outside your house.

It's like, what's happening over there? Oh, there's NCAA tournaments happening in your neighbor's house right now. It's great because it just, it's such a perfect design to get it all. I mean, sure, there's all sorts of teams that are screwed out of being there and some shouldn't be there, all that crap. No, I think the perfect design comment actually is a beautiful way to put it, because it's like the original. pure single elimination big tournament in all of sports that now college football's kind of trying to like work their way into it but like everything is always changed march madness pure but i think that's why people look forward to it because they know exactly what they're going to get but like also

it's a disaster at the same time yeah i love that what's got your attention coming out of selection sunday men's or women's vibes cities i think i'm clearly a big cc fan and i feel like we on the Men's side have a ton of teams that are going to be in it. Shout out to Mizzou. I'm surprised we got in, but we got in. Come on, baby. Maybe Cinderella story a little bit. Thank you. Women's side, I feel like is a little different because your 16 seed is barely ever going to be anything higher than like an eight. I don't know. And so I don't know about the women. I don't know who I want to win there, but. Let's just go within the University of Washington. Say less. Go dogs. Gohawks. Is that who you have one in it? Yes. Yeah. We've actually been talking a lot about how being

loyal. Are you lying? Know how important being loyal is. If my school is in it, then yeah. I didn't know that you were a tied in. Like, I mean, you played college ball, like football? I have to constantly tell people. But yeah, because like... Not us.

Because people don't know. Tide in is like, you're a big boy. Yeah, but I didn't play. Oh. I was awesome at practicing and making the defense feel terrific about how they were doing. You gave them confidence to go out there and win. They would hit me, I would just burst out crying. And I'd be like, why would you do?

that. That hurt so much. I was very large at the time. Growing up in Washington, did you ever consider any other school? I applied to Santa Clara because they had an acting program in Santa Clara in the tournament for the first time in 30 years. Steve Nash. Steve Nash, proud Canadian. And he, so I applied to a few schools on the West Coast, nowhere else. And like University City of San Francisco. They used to have a really great basketball program and now they're back. But it was just growing up was like U-Dub or... Yeah. Or, and I just kind of was like, that's where I want to go.

And I was recruited to Rowe at U-Dub. Out of all like the college's campuses and fan bases that you've either played in front of or visited, what is one that you think people should add to their travel list? The University of Washington. Really? Have you? It is the most beautiful setting for a game. Oh, there again.

The tailgate is boats. Boats, yeah, sailgate. So you, yeah, you sailgate up. It's pretty crazy. And if you all show you the photos, it's... I did not know that. I do, I would like to give U-Dub a shout-out in the sense. I think a lot of major universities that are in big cities

don't actually get very good fandom just because there's so much other stuff going on. But the University of Washington and Seattle, I feel like despite being in a massive metropolitan area with so much else going on, still gets much, much, much, much love. I love that those things in our ways. I like it. Can you guys not even see each other? No, we can.

No, we can. But it's a. Just look through it. Where is Sophie? Oh, right through the window. No, no, I get, I like the first. Oh, this is, yes, this is, that horrifies me. Oh, that's good.

There are pretty, look at, yeah. There are people over there going, oh, God. This is good. This is good. We've come to the point in your podcast where we have to return. the trophies to their beloved table. Look at this. Yeah.

We did it. This is good. How far would you travel for your team to go watch in person, front row, popcorn, March Madness game? You dub Final Four. Would you go? How far? I go to Mars. Yeah.

Would you really? Yeah. Great. Yeah. So you would travel endlessly. Yeah, I do. I am gone. I have all the miles.

And, no, if U.S. was in the final four, I would go. Did you go when they played Michigan in Houston? I did not. I was working at the table. so I couldn't get out of work. There's been a number of things like that where I'm like, oh. But your job, yeah.

Like with animal control, when it's going, we're doing 16-hour days. So I'll zip down to Seattle for maybe a night, but it's exhausting. Yeah. In your lifetime,

what's the deepest the Huskies have made it in the tournament? In my lifetime, that left shrimp, got them to the elite eight. Clearly you travel a lot. I do a lot of travel.

Which is great. Hotels, planes. No. Buses. No, no, no. Walking, trains. No.

Rvies. Bikes, swimming. Trains. I can usually stay on the train. Canoe? Yes, I'm in a lot of hotels and a lot. It's a lot. Yeah.

And you host the SB's, which is like around. I hosted the SPEs. That was super fun. Yeah. Can you tell us about that? That's a big deal. That was extremely nerve-wracking and wonderful. And so when you walked out, you see, you see all the, it's like some weird wax museum of your

favorite athletes. So crazy. And you're like, oh. Everybody's here. And as you know, they really want that's super competitive. Oh, yeah. They're pissed if they're not winning. What city was that in?

Los Angeles. That was in L.A. Yeah, that was a good one. When you're traveling on the road, and obviously we all know how exhausting that that can be, do you feel like because you're traveling in a city that you don't always get to spend time in, that you owe the city a little night out to go to a restaurant, go, like, find a drink somewhere, and kind of experience it? I don't feel like I owe the city.

The city owes me. Or you owe yourself. It better be clear. Yes, I love that. Yeah, I love, like, the second I got here, I'm looking at coffee shops and eater, and I'm like, what's what's happening here. And I went for a walk last night.

Oh, that's kind of crazy. I almost froze to death. Yeah. It was, I was almost lost. Yeah. Yes, they would have just never seen me again. Were you tour busing or you fly? I fly.

I'm not like, Burr-Crasher level. Yeah, but you're not just a comedian. You do so much other stuff. Can you tell us what you're doing? Do you have like three great shows? Like, what are you doing right now? Four.

Sorry. What the heck? Cream 7 just came out. What's your role? Are you allowed to tell us? Yeah, it came out two weeks ago. So cats out of the bag. Okay.

I play a cat in a bag. Good. No, I play Neff Campbell's husband. But you're watching Animal Control, right guys? Absolutely. On Fox? And you work with real animals. We do.

Netflix? Hulu? Is there a person's job that like has to fly in and they're in charge of how you interact with? They're locally based in Vancouver and they have a lot of exotic and non-exotic animals. The only time I was really scared was when I got on top of a, it's a young camel named Mayhem from Calgary. The camel's name was Mayhem. And I was like, why is the camel named Mayhem? Did you find out?

Yeah, no saddle. And they were like, hey, if he takes it. off, just hold on. But just to know he's having a good time. You've been to Calgary? I have. Rocks. Calgary's great.

Calgary rocks. Really good French food in Calgary. Because all those French were up there running around. Canada has a lot of French influence. They do. More than we do. Yeah, I would agree. They got an entire part of that country that speaks French.

Do you have time to travel internationally? I try to as I'd love to. And sometimes for work, it is overseas, which is great. Yeah. But I'm just about to take the family on Saturday to Japan. Nice. Oh, best. Best trip over.

I've been there once and I was like, I've got to get back here as soon as I can. I feel like it's such a cliche to talk about how cool Japan is, but it is so awesome. What's your sketch? Like, what are you guys hitting? We're doing Tokyo. Yeah. Five days and then Kyoto for another five. And we're going to Mount Fuji.

So we're doing a lot of tourist things, but I'm like, great. We haven't seen it before. So let's go. Yeah, that's the best trip you could ever take. I'm very excited. I'm going to eat like its career. And then, real quick, you're born in Rome. Born in Rome.

Italy. What were your parents doing? I don't know. It just happened? They were, my dad was the dean. Everyone's like, were they in the military and the CIA? No, my dad was the dean of students at Loyola University, Rome Center, which is part of Loyola, Chicago.

Chicago. And then my mom was a student at Loyola University Room Center because she, her dad, my grandfather got a job with the UN regulating fish populations around the world. I get that. Let that sink in. Yes. So do you feel a tie to Italy? Very loosely. But I really, like when I'm there, I tear up and get emotional. And then my aunt and uncle and cousins still live there. They moved out of Rome to Tuscany, but so they, yeah, they're, then a bunch of my cousins live in London and then the others live in Nairobi. So, they're all over the place. Mikhail is Irish, though, no? Yes.

So, okay. And then the other side of me is Norwegian. Wait, do you love actually, because you get to travel all over the place, seriously, and that's like super cool? I travel almost every weekend. I mean, you've grabbed, you know, but it's, yeah. Part of our schedule, our daily routine. And so if you get to the hotel and they're like, which is like a complimentary beverage and I was like, yes.

It is hard when travels the part of your career. It makes it hard to always enjoy it. But when everything's set up for you and it's nice and it's perfect, it's dreamy. Wait, I was about to say, what is like your dream vacation spot? Are you more of a beach person? Are you more of a snowy mountain? I'm not kidding. Being here in India, I'm not kidding when I say this.

In any, like, I've been going pretty, it's been pretty exhausting last few days. So I got here and I, it was great. I went out for dinner and then I slept all night, which, and it was, I was like, oh, you're well rested. I can feel it. So it was like an idea. I was like, oh, this is like a vacation. And went to the gym.

It was great. So like, when I get those one day, like those one days, I'm like, ah, recuperated. So your dream vacation is not. necessarily a location. It's if you get rest. Yeah. How about you? So this is where we differ and we joke about this all the time. I'm more of like, I need a beach, sun. I need it. I need that type of vibe. Maybe a margarita in my hand. And so I'm very much like a water, boat, pool person. So right now, if you're walking out. I got it. Fiji, Bora Bora, Trix and Caicos, even just like a simple Florida, anywhere with a beach and like sun where I can get a tan, say less. That's my, my dream.

Because you have bucket list places that you haven't been that you want to go. But then you also have places that were such a good experience. You are itching to go back. But I like, I just like being in like a fun city where there's energy and people and you meet people from other places. Cape Town South Africa is on my list right now. I would love to do that. But the older I've gotten, the more I've appreciated hotels because I used to always try to crash with a friend. You just forget how nice it is to have your bed made for you sometimes.

Or, like, have stuff put away. Yeah. See, I never been one to, like, crash with people, but I, because of how much we travel, I appreciate, I become a hotel snob. I appreciate a really, really nice hotel. I feel like a kid because I'm like, oh, I get to relax. Yeah. Wait, how do you travel?

Like, what are your essentials and things that you're just like, okay, I don't need that? Like when you're packing, when you're doing that type of stuff. Oh, ear plugs? Yeah. I'm asked for the flight. Your plugs. Oh, yeah. Your plugs are like your headphones.

Ear plugs and some sort of tablet. To watch shows, to watch movies, to read. To watch shows and play video tennis. Really? Yeah. I don't realize how big of a tennis fan you were. Oh, I'm big tennis fan. And I play 8-bit football as well.

What's your favorite tennis venue in the world? I mean, Indian Wells is one of the best. It looks beautiful. It's so great. And there's courts everywhere. They let you play if you want. There's a sushi. I mean, like, they have great food.

But I got to go to the French Open and... Have you been to the Australian Open? I've never been. I've heard that's the one. I would love to get... That's a bucket list maybe, especially if you're a big tennis fan. The vibe there is awesome. Yes, I would love...

And it's ruckus. As I was saying, New York is wonderfully ruckus. Beautiful facility. Yeah. Did you get to go? Yeah. I haven't gone. I'm the only one who's left out.

I think I need to make that a bucket list for me. It's great. Really? And it's, yeah. And the French is right in Paris. So you can kind of walk to it. So, Cool. And it's just there. And it's not big. And you're like, oh, this is where the French Open happens.

Yeah. What are there sports? Like, okay, you're a tennis guy. So all those championships are kind of their own spectacles. You've done the Super Bowl. Yep. Anything that you haven't done that you like really want to do. I'd like to go to a Duke basketball game with Ken Jong. Yeah. He's a huge. And so like to see, now Ken's going to get a compliment, but he's like the king of. Duke. And so he goes to those games. And so I was like Ken, someday we get to go to one of these kids. We are pretty besties. Really? When we met on community, we fell in love. Really? Is he how he, how you'd expect him to be? Yes. And I'm saying that measured because Ken is also a doctor. Imagine if he was Duke's team doc. That'd be incredible. It would be, I would go to Duke just for that. You just get injured and just be like, oh, my elbow.

Dream sporting event. Okay, I'm kind of weird. I want to go to, I don't even know what it's called, but I want to go to like the best surfing competition in the world. I don't know. Because you would get everything you want. You would get the beach. The beach, sun.

And then there would be a sporting. Sport. Like, I just, and it's just like a sport that you don't necessarily get to see on TV as much or like it's not as accessible to people. And I think that would just be super cool. I'm in. I'm on board with that. What about you?

I'm going to the Kentucky Derby for the first time this year. And that's... I'm surprised you haven't been. Me too. I've selected a hat. No, I gotta put a lot into this outfit. You cannot go like this. No, no, we're not.

You need like a three-piece suit. Yeah, yeah. No, I'll be ready. We'd love to come with you. Thank you for the invite. You're welcome. See you there? I would like to go to a professional bowling match,

which I've never been to. Professional darts is like... I would love to go to a professional darts. Yeah, that's wild. So that's next for us, three. Do you guys play darts? No. I mean, I'll do it at a...

the bar like I got into Darts big time in college. Wow. I love it. Yeah. Joel, thank you for being here. Thanks for having me, guys. Yeah, thank you. Before we go, we got to tell you all about the amazing sweeps we got going.

Marriott Bonboy is giving away a pair of tickets to the 2026 and 2007 final four. To enter for a chance to win, head to at Show Me Something on Instagram and comment on Live from the Bracket post related to the sweepstakes. Be sure to include the hashtag live from the bracket. in our caption to be eligible. Full details in the episode description, don't miss it. No purchase necessary. Open to legal residents of the 50 U.S. states or D.C.

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