The Write Team Podcast

Host David Weaver welcomes Janae Shirley, two-time national champion head softball coach of the East Texas Baptist University Tigers, to The Write Team Podcast to preview the 2026 season—starting with the home opener vs Austin College on Saturday, Feb. 7. Also in this episode:

• Ihe impact of January weather on February success;
• Scheduling challenges with a shrinking conference slate and NPI;
• NIL and transfer portal "trickle-dow...

What happens when faith meets real life—real life that is messy, complex, and deeply human? On this episode of The Write Team Podcast, David Weaver sits down with Cari Johnson, Executive Director of the Marshall Pregnancy Resource Center, for a powerful conversation about motherhood, adoption, unplanned pregnancies, faith, grace, and what it really means to have those conversations. Cari shares her personal journey as a mom of seve...

And then there were TWO! On this episode of From The Press Box, we break down the AFC and NFC Championship Games, debate coaching legacies, question the Pro Bowl, and take a hard look at the Cowboys’ latest direction. Plus: Luka’s latest return to Dallas, NBA power rankings, draft buzz, and what the Rangers’ latest move means as baseball season approaches. Thoughtful, opinionated, and unfiltered sports talk from the pineywoods of E...

High school hoops are heating up, soccer races are taking shape, and March is starting to peek around the corner. On this episode of From The Press Box, we break down the biggest storylines across East Texas sports, dive into college basketball trends, and look at who’s rising, who’s slipping, and what it all means as the postseason approaches. Insight, analysis, and conversation you won’t get anywhere else — it’s all ahead on From...

From Ornelas Stadium at ETBU, From The Press Box delivers a jam-packed episode covering NFL Divisional Round fallout, legacy questions for Josh Allen, CJ Stroud’s future in Houston, Caleb Williams’ star rise, and championship weekend previews. Plus: coaching chaos across the league, sharp takes on NFL media, NBA contenders and concerns, and big-picture MLB money problems. Insightful, opinionated, and local—this is sports talk done ...

From Ornelas Stadium at ETBU, David Weaver and Matt Paul dive into CFP takeaways, draft buzz, transfer-portal chaos, and bold ideas to fix the system. Plus, crystal-ball playoff predictions, men’s and women’s bracketology, ETBU hoops updates, and a full rundown of East Texas high school basketball. It’s opinionated, local, and packed with insight—another full slate From The Press Box on the Write Team Podcast! 🎙️

#CollegeF...

In this episode of From The Press Box on The Write Team Podcast, David and Matt discuss:

• CFP Championship: Is the Indiana hype a bit too much, too soon? | Will the Hoosiers actually have more fans in Miami's home stadium Monday?
• Sports Media: Is Pat McAfee a good or bad thing for College Gameday | Who's the best college football broadcaster today?
• Transfer Portal: Texas goes all-in on 2027 | Can DeBoer ever do enough at Alabam...

Matt and David are back in the press box at ETBU's Ornelas Stadium to review the past weekend's NFL first round games and look ahead to the divisional round this weekend. It's been a wild week on the NFL coaching carousel, and the guys will break all of that down as well as discuss some hot topics around the NBA. Check us out here on The Write Team Podcast for From The Press Box!

This episode of The Write Team Podcast is brought to...

Today's guest on The Write Team Podcast is Hallsville ISD Athletic Director Cody Farrell! Coach Farrell discusses Bobcat Athletics, the upcoming spring season, and some nuances that makes Hallsville a unique place to be in East Texas. We will also talk over some UIL issues that are on the front burner here in 2026. Join us today for another great #bEASTtexas Conversation with Cody Farrell!

This episode is brought to you by:

• Wr...

The #DallasCowboys have officially completed 30 seasons of futility, with not so much an NFC Championship game appearance to show for three decades of failure. Now, the 31st attempt to change that begins...The #HoustonTexans, particularly on defense, are a bona fide Super Bowl sleeper pick...#NFL Wild Card Weekend predictions...Congratulations to the #CarthageBulldogs on Ring #11...#CollegeBasketball buzz.

It's all here on The Writ...

We are back to open 2026 with a brand new show here on The Write Team Podcast, From The Press Box, with hosts David Weaver and Matt Paul! It's been a long holiday break and the guys have a lot to catch up on with the College Football Playoff! We also discuss this week's CFP semifinals, first- and quarterfinal-round questions, byes, homefield advantages, a solution for non-CFP bowls to become relevant again. We will also take a DEEP...

David and Matt are back just in time to discuss the upcoming high school state championships in AT&T Stadium, and boy can #bEASTtexas put a stamp on the season with *possibly* both state titles in Class 4A (Carthage and Kilgore). The CFP is in chaos in just its second year, and we wonder, were the good old days of bowl games and poll watching really that bad? This and more on another episode of Sports, Old School here on The Wr...

Matt and David are back in the saddle after a two-week holiday hiatus and boy, has there been a LOT to discuss over the break! From the latest CFP rankings to the "Days of Our Lives" episode that is the college football coaching carousel, we break it all down as only the Sports, Old School boys can do! We also catch up on the local high school playoffs and who's left in line for a state championship, as well as highlight the amazin...

Today’s guest is no stranger to winning—in fact, she makes winning look routine.

Elysian Fields senior Cara Sims has officially signed her national letter of intent to continue both her academic journey and her remarkable distance-running career at The University of Texas at Austin. The Longhorns are home to one of the premier track and field programs in the nation, and Cara—a four-time Class 2A state champion with even more titles...

Mr. James Demery wears a lot of hats as Principal of George Washington Carver School in Karnack ISD.

One really big hat is as campus leader at a school that serves students from Pre-K through 8th Grade, all in one building. Under his leadership the last year, Karnack has seen test scores grow exponentially, and Mr. Demery credits the improvement to his hard-working staff and committed students who have bought in to the game plan fo...

Hallsville ISD Director of Transportation Roy Presley is used to daily challenges. A bus breaks down. A driver calls in sick. Providing safe routes and transportation for every student on the bus, to and from school. Licensing mandates.

But this past January, he faced the biggest challenge of all when he was diagnosed with late stage cancer. Roy had two options -- let the cancer claim another victim, or trust a big promise from a b...

The Dallas Mavericks waited nine months to finally do the inevitable this week when they dismissed embattled GM Nico Harrison largely due to record levels of fan outrage and apathy due to last February's inexplicable trade of Luka Doncic. As the chants fade away at the AAC and gradually return to cheers and an actual focus on basketball, we ask the question on today's Sports, Old School on The Write Team Podcast: now where do we go...

Matt and David are back with another episode of Sports, Old School: On Campus, and we discuss the latest CFP rankings and the movers and shakers in the top 25 as the calendar approaches Thanksgiving. In a world where Texas Tech suddenly appears to be the darlings of the college football landscape and carrying the Big 12 mantle, the University of Texas looks to make a statement in Athens, Ga., on Saturday night. It's a wild weekend ...

It's playoff time in Texas! All of our playoff-bound East Texas schools are in action this week in the bi-district round of the postseason -- a journey that hopefully ends on UIL Championship Weekend in AT&T Stadium! David and Matt give you a rundown of the matchups in the first round -- and possible showdowns in the area round next week -- on this week's Sports, Old School: East Texas here on The Write Team Podcast!

This episo...