Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel — Season 15
About this season
A monthly sports newsmagazine which was "spawned by the fact that sports have changed dramatically, that it's no longer just fun and games, and that what happens off the field, beyond the scores, is worthy of some serious reporting," according to Bryant Gumbel, the host.
Episodes (12)
1. Episode 142 - Call Me Al; Growing Divide; Playing with Fire; Sticks, Stones, Now Staph
Aired 20 January 2009 • 60 min
A football-related episode includes a profile of broadcaster Al Michaels; a report on athletes carrying guns; a look at the dispute between former players and their union; and an update on a report on staph infections. Correspondents include Bernard Goldberg and Frank Deford.
2. Episode 143 - Black in Bellaire; Total Recall; Reunion
Aired 17 February 2009 • 60 min
Segments include a piece on the police shooting of Robbie Tolan, the son of former MLB player Bobby Tolan; a profile of six-year-old golfer Kyle Lograsso; a chat with former skater Tonya Harding.
3. Episode 144 - Air Ball; Bittersweet Success; Bode's World; Rayna DuBose
Aired 17 March 2009 • 60 min
Profiles of NBA prospect Brandon Jennings in Rome and U.S. skiing star Bode Miller; Pittsburgh basketball coach Jamie Dixon discusses the tragic passing of his sister Maggie; and Frank Deford revisits ex-basketball player Rayna Dubose, who lost her limbs to meningococcal meningitis.
4. Episode 145 - You're a Good Man, Charlie Manuel; Hard 2 Live, Easy 2 Die; Queen of the Ring; Hands Off
Aired 14 April 2009 • 60 min
Included: a profile of Phillies manager Charlie Manuel; a report on the shooting of several athletes in Hampton Roads, Va.; and an update on the movement to ban dodgeball in schools.
5. Episode 146 - A New Era; Thrill Ride; The Next Level; Running for Their Lives
Aired 19 May 2009 • 60 min
Segments include a profile of DeMaurice Smith, the new head of the NFL players union; a look at professional bull riding; a report on sports parents; and an update on the slaughter of Thoroughbred horses.
6. Episode 147 - Legends; Underwater Heroes; Broken Nails
Aired 23 June 2009 • 60 min
Segments include a visit with Jim Brown and Bill Russell, who discuss the 1960s on and off the playing field; a look at scuba diving as therapy for injured veterans; and an update on Lenny Dykstra. Correspondents include Bernard Goldberg and Jon Frankel.
7. Episode 148 - AWOL; All the Right Moves; Friends of Jaclyn; The Next Posada
Aired 21 July 2009 • 60 min
Segments include an interview with former Oakland Raider Barret Robbins, who went AWOL the night before the Super Bowl in 2003; a profile of boxing trainer Freddie Roach; a look at a 14-year-old cancer patient adopted by Northwestern's women's lacrosse team.
8. Episode 149 - Nick Schuyler's Story; Home Base; Dedication Personified
Aired 18 August 2009 • 60 min
Segments include an interview with Nick Schuyler, the only survivor of a Florida boating accident that killed three football players; a look at the return of Little League Baseball to Compton, Cal.; an update on special-needs student-athlete Ron Belflower.
9. Episode 150 - H.S. Concussions; The Swim Gap; Paper Cuts; Dogfighting
Aired 15 September 2009 • 60 min
Included: a report on the frequency of concussions in high-school football; a look at the decline of sports sections in U.S. newspapers; a profile of swimmer Cullen Jones; and an update on dogfighting.
10. Episode 151 - In Our Hearts; Game Over; Record Breaker; Ernie Harwell
Aired 27 October 2009 • 60 min
Segments include a look at the death of Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart; a report on the elimination of athletic departments at public high schools; and a profile of a 55-year-old world-record holder.
11. Episode 152 - The Insider; Gridiron Heroes; Matt Long; Drawing a Line
Aired 24 November 2009 • 60 min
A look at Gridiron Heroes, an organization that helps paralyzed high-school-football players; a profile of a severely injured firefighter who came back to complete an Ironman Triathlon; a report on efforts to curb alcohol consumption at NFL games.
12. Episode 153 - 2009 Roundtable Review
Aired 22 December 2009 • 60 min
A year-end roundtable discussion, with the correspondents choosing their favorite segments from 2009. Topics include athletes carrying guns and the survival story of Nick Schuyler.