Cut Traded Fired Retired

Cut Traded Fired Retired

We follow them on social media. We pay money to watch them play or coach. We check headlines for breaking news and rumors about them. Professional athletes and coaches are the best at what they do. They are also people. People with emotions, self-doubt, insecurities, family obligations and setbacks. They have to deal with tough times and dark moments just like we do. Hosted by Susie Wargin, a 30-year Radio & TV broadcaster and Emmy Award winning sportscaster, who sits down with some of the biggest names in Denver sports. Hall of Famers, Ring of Famers, Super Bowl winners (and losers) and many who have reinvented themselves in retirement. The conversations feature insightul upbringings, emotional and impactful stories as well as words of wisom on how to keep moving forward. Available wherever you listen to podcasts. Please follow, download, rate and review. For more information visit CTFRPodcast.com. To learn more about Susie's career as a Realtor (she would love to help you!), visit SusieWargin.com. Thank you for listening!

Episodes

March 27, 2024 48 mins
He came from a high school in Kentucky that produced a number of well-known athletes, like Steve Finley, George Wilson and Kurt Barber. Terry Shumpert thought basketball at Paducah Tilghman High School would take him to the next level, but a knee injury turned his focus to the diamond. Shump could hit, was fast around the bases and had quite the glove on defense.

He took his baseball skills to the University of Kentucky where he wa...
Mark as Played
He started playing football as a junior at Smoky Hill High School. He made varsity as a senior. Chase Vaughn turned some heads in that short time and received three small offers at Division II and NAIA schools. He accepted one for Adams State and was there for 2 years until CSU-Pueblo started a football program. He took a leap of faith and transferred. Good move.  

In his first game, Chase had 4 ½ sacks and when he graduated, he he...
Mark as Played
March 12, 2024 41 mins
In 1976 (when the Olympics were easy to watch on one over-the-air channel), Tanya Haave got inspired by a sport featuring women for the first time: basketball. Watching Team USA that year would lead her around the world.    

At Evergreen High School, Tanya was a standout in both basketball and volleyball. In 1980 she was so dominate, the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame created a female selection to their High School Athlete of the Yea...
Mark as Played
March 5, 2024 35 mins
Growing up in Hawaii, his dream was to play football at Notre Dame like his dad. That dream was crushed when the Irish sent him a rejection letter. Brian Cabral then turned to a school where he would spend decades of his life.

He was a stellar linebacker and team captain for the University of Colorado. Nearly 50 years after he played, Brian’s name is still on the top 20 list of the Buffs all-time tacklers. A list that also inclu...
Mark as Played
February 27, 2024 45 mins
His small Ohio town didn’t offer football until the 9th grade. Because of that, Randy Gradishar fancied himself more as a basketball player because he’d spent far more time on the court than the gridiron. Thankfully college coaches didn’t feel the same way.

Randy was courted by a number of colleges, which caught him off guard because he had never planned on attending college. His parents couldn’t afford it and he figured he would...
Mark as Played
February 20, 2024 42 mins
His heritage in Colorado dates back five generations. So, it made sense when Mike Newell graduated from Littleton High School that he wanted to stay in Colorado despite football scholarships from many other schools.

He quickly became Colorado State’s starting center and along with being part of an offensive line that did not allow a sack for two straight seasons and a Holiday Bowl win over Missouri, Mike racked up a number of imp...
Mark as Played
February 13, 2024 33 mins
From a very young age, Colorado native Ben Garland knew he wanted to attend the Air Force Academy. He researched what the Academy wanted in a cadet and joined countless clubs to show his dedication to service and community. He also played some impressive football at Central High School in Grand Junction. Ben lettered all four years and was first team All-State his senior season.

He had full ride offers to several schools, includi...
Mark as Played
February 6, 2024 45 mins
One grew up in Colorado, the other in Illinois. Two redheaded offensive lineman. Both received $2500 scholarships to play Division II football. Ryan Jensen headed south to CSU-Pueblo and Garrett Gilkey played for Chadron State. Their schools were in the RMAC and they quickly learned about one another.

The competition grew between the two, especially as Ryan and Garrett began getting noticed by national D2 publications and NFL Sc...
Mark as Played
January 30, 2024 61 mins
Being a college football coach is all Mike Sanford has ever known. After all, his father, Mike Sanford Sr., was a college coach before Mike was even born.

Not only did Mike grow up moving from city to city with his father’s career, when he went to Boise State, he was the backup quarterback where he got used to a headset and clipboard. He didn’t mind either one, in fact he loved it.

As soon as Mike graduated, he got on as a GA w...
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SPECIAL EDITION: CTFR episodes are typically with athletes and coaches from the past. This episode contains Susie Wargin’s pregame features from the Broncos Radio Network with Broncos players from the 2023 season. Each feature has a topical theme with multiple players putting aside the X’s and O’s to have fun and shed light on their past, causes close to their heart and teammates.

Thank you to Alan Jackson for producing all of these...
Mark as Played
January 23, 2024 50 mins
His high school is known for having one of the best programs in the nation and producing more NCAA and NFL players than any other high school. Needless to say, there were no “off” days for Jimmy Spencer at Glades Central in Florida, which was fine because Jimmy knew he wanted to play in the NFL since he was 7.

He had his choices of colleges and was being looked at as simply an athlete. He played quarterback at Glades Central, but h...
Mark as Played
January 16, 2024 37 mins
He’s the only person who played high school, college and professional baseball in the state of Colorado. After graduating from Northglenn High School, a suburb north of Denver, Mark Knudson went straight up I-25 to Colorado State University where he majored in journalism and pitched for a baseball program that was dissolved a decade after Mark left for the pros.

Mark was drafted by the Astros in 1982 and credits his college ball fo...
Mark as Played
January 9, 2024 62 mins
He moved from Ghana to the United States when he was 7. Ebenezer Ekuban didn’t know anything about football and had no aspirations of playing the game because he was focused on academics. When his father told him he needed to do something outside of school, Ebenezer decided to try football his junior year of high school. He became a quick learner on both sides of the ball, playing tight end and defensive end and after just two year...
Mark as Played
December 19, 2023 47 mins
Cole Pemberton took a leap of faith when he transferred from Kansas City to Highlands Ranch to live with his dad during his high school years. That leap provided a new relationship with his father and a stellar football career as an offensive lineman at Mountain Vista High School.

Cole opted to play college football at Colorado State University for Sonny Lubick and prided himself on protecting his quarterback. He allowed just one s...
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December 13, 2023 62 mins
When Rockies’ ownership opened their wallets in 2000 and struck mega deals with two big name pitchers, fans rejoiced. Unfortunately, Coors Field is an unforgiving ballpark for pitchers, no matter how much money they get paid.

Denny Neagle yearned to be the savior Rockies fans so desperately wanted. He’d worked his way up through the baseball ranks, starting with college ball at the University of Minnesota, getting drafted by the ...
Mark as Played
December 9, 2023 82 mins
The NFL Draft and Beyond: Bradlee Van Pelt thought he’d be drafted on the first day, which shouldn’t surprise anyone. BVP oozed confidence after his tie at Colorado State University and was convinced the NFL was ready for his unconventional style of playing quarterback. He waited all the way until the 7th round and the Denver Broncos took him with their second pick in that round. His NFL experience is filled with some wild stories...
Mark as Played
December 5, 2023 57 mins
The Early Years: When he arrived at Colorado State University, the skateboard wielding transfer quarterback from Michigan State was all the talk and a bit of a mystery. Fans called him “Sunshine” and no one could quite figure out Bradlee Van Pelt. Including Bradlee.

What Bradlee did know is he wanted to play quarterback and he stuck to his plan despite nearly everyone trying to push him to another position and never receiving any p...
Mark as Played
November 28, 2023 45 mins
Life was rough growing up for Reuben Droughns, but no one would ever guess that based off the permanent smile he wears on his face. No one would know he stayed in hotels at times, was homeless other times and dealt with custody issues. Reuben could have used his young life as an excuse, instead he just stayed positive and forged on towards a career in the NFL that lasted three times longer than most others.

Reuben mostly grew up ...
Mark as Played
November 21, 2023 42 mins
His story sounds improbable: middle class kid from Northern Colorado becomes a high caliber two sport athlete at the highest levels. After his athletic career, he starts a non-profit which gets acquired by AARP and a start up software company that sells a decade later for 9 figures. Now he’s husband to a Brazilian actress and father of two kids. This is your life Jeremy Bloom.

Jeremy’s story sounds like a fairy tale and while he’...
Mark as Played
November 14, 2023 66 mins
As the youngest of 7, Brandon Lloyd had a lot to live up to with successful older siblings and knew from a very young age he wanted to make a name for himself. The recognition started in high school as a stellar football and track athlete. Sure, he was a little on the smaller size, but he made up for size with explosive speed. That got the colleges calling.

He chose the University of Illinois mostly because of the degree he would r...
Mark as Played

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