BONUS: Kaylee Hartung

also been at CNN two, n Longhorn Network. She is a veteran journalist. But where she from the most important part. She's from Baton Rouge. I tried to do the whole French thing, the creole, So she's from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. When to l s U and we're just happy to have on the cut to a podcast. She did a good job and we were excited to get to get someone so close up to know what's going on and give us really a breakdown of college baseball, the World

Series and College World Series. So a first time exclusive College World Series podcast, Little Short, a little Short, Little in and out, of what's going on down there here locally here in Charlotte. You know, so we got the NT State Wolfpack that we're on the path to secure a World Series in college baseball. Covid said, ha ha, we have alternate plans. So I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for listening. Dandy Hartongue on Tattwood Podcast. Yes, this is such a tree for me. Thank you for letting

me join. So what's what's what's been doing? I mean we're just coming on, you know, College World Series has been the Vanderbilt NC State. It's what's been going on is clearly probably unpresidented. What's what's your what's been your take on the last few days and and and the rollout of all this information. Yeah, it's been tonnely wild guys. Um, you know, I worked the College World Series in some capacity for seven years. I only worked seven years. But

I am I'm actually here for Good Morning America. We're doing a series visiting just telling you guys where I'm here. What's the hotel? Did they put you at the Ritz too? Right? There is no Rits in the hall. Unfortunately, my name's not Michael Strahan, so I don't come with you know that kind of right. I'm personally just glad they cut

to it made the media co wash right now. One in America College World Series for seven years, okay, casual but no, but I haven't been here since, so it's been amazing to be back and just a really wild time to be here. So I'm here to shoot this piece for for g m A. That's it's really about the significance of the College World Series to the city of Omaha, to the state of Nebraska. Without it happening a year ago, it was just devastating just going local businesses.

So that's sort of the angle I was coming here with, and not so much the ins and outs of how I would prepare for your Tomaha when I was covering the actual tournament. So I'm just checking in as I was about to get on my plane on Saturday to come here to see if there were any of the if necessary games to determine who was going to get to the finals, because it's a double elimination format until

you get to the best of three finals. And I'm looking I'm like, what's going I don't understand what's going on? What do you mean no contest? What do you mean it's what do you mean in C State's going home? I'm super confused. Took a minute to dive into it, but I mean, what's happened here is unprecedented, Uh, something

that could only happen in the time of COVID. But as it turned out, the way they're testing players here, okay, only unvaccinated players needed to be tested on I believe it was in every other day basis, if you've been vaccinated, you did not need to be tested. These schools haven't required their players to be vaccinated, and the n c a A cannot require players to be vaccinated. So all that being said, NC State had a couple of unvaccinated

players test positive. That triggered the next layer of the protocol, which which meant the entire team needed to be tested. Yeah, contact tracing, you know step one and then and then step two. It was like, let's test everybody, and then they actually had some vaccinated players test positive. So after NC State like gutted it out with I think they only had thirteen players available. Um, after quarantines and all of that, they got it out this like really gritty

game with Vanderbilt. They lost three to one. It was their first loss in Omaha. Uh, they were as hot as any team here, and then the n c a

A decided we can't let this continue. They want the easy route to to say the least, not having to deal with at some point we want to talk about you know, we want to talk about well vaccinated unvaccinated, but at the end of the day, vaccinated unvaccinated infections are gonna happen, and the protocols seemingly are basically saying, if you are infected, we have to eliminate everybody, and

let's just do the Let's let's be like water. Let's take the easiest path of resistance and go We're just gonna eliminate everybody instead of going through it and not let's go backwards though, because you know, being in the NFL, I think Nebraska O Mahall has that same kind of um status that Canton, Ohio has. I agree, man, It's it's rare that something stays in one place, but its a destination. Don't just say I want to play in

the College World Series. I can't say I want to go to you know, you go in wait rooms across the country, you go into baseball facilities at colleges, across the country. Omahawk is on the wall. I mean, it is synonymous with what it means to be the best in the sport. And I actually interviewed earlier today. I got Jack Dson, who is the head of the local organizing committee for the College World Series and and got schooled in a little bit of the history. But this

event has been happening in Omahawston's nineteen fifty. How cool is that? How much the basketball tournament is to this city. The basketball Tournament it goes to very cities, the BCS, it rotates around different cities. Yeah, this is a destination every single time. Every single time, Kaylee, it's there. It's in Omaha. So that that is really cool, and it's something that when we do think about some of these prestigious tournaments we don't always talk about. Kyle, let me ask.

That's why we're happy, and that's why you got two brothers talking College World Series right now. We are breaking barriers. So let me ask. Let me ask you in seventeen, how was Nebraska Omaha compared to just just just just the city. You know, it's been there, like you said, nineteen fifty. His fun fact nineteen fifty However, the audience has not always been tuned in, and the and the amount of people traveling have not been what it is

in the last what ten years. So I'm imagine Qualified League three hundred thousand visitors come to omahaw over the two weeks span of this tournament, three hundred thousand people. They fill the stadium nearly every game something thousand. So we're in that ballpark and this event generates nearly ninety million dollars. That's how yeah to the city of the Mall.

That's how I pitched the story to Good Morning America to say, if we are talking about ways that this country is reopening, in ways that people are getting back to living life, and if we want to tell the stories of the way small businesses persevered, and if we want to tell the stories of just you know, the fortitude of the American people to survive this pandemic and to come back stronger than ever, there's no better time to showcase what's going on in Omaha, Nebraska than when

the College World Series is here, because you see, I mean, you see the infusion of energy and life and money into this town. When when college baseball is on, you have they were probably probably what ten hotels. Maybe there's a residence in This place is blown up. I mean coming back here, there were so many places, like every corner I turned, I'm like, well this is new, Well this is new. I was told last night there is

a two hundred and fifty million dollar downtown UH project underway. Romah. Yeah, they're looking for some angel investors or some people that are looking for ten to twelve percent return, you know, tell them I'm I'm I'm available, I'm outchair. Hey always wanted to do it. Any investment want to tend to cupon clip preferred, I like preferred. Yeah, but it really is. The city's growing quickly. It's a beautiful it's a beautiful town.

And the best thing I could say about this place that is the people are as friendly and welcoming like the people here love the cultural series. They love to be hospitable, They love to welcome everyone. They want everyone who comes here three hundred thous of them. They want

everybody to year to have a good experience. And it's the it's the kindness and the friendliness of people to them all that help make this event what it is and that helped make it such an awesome experience for all of the fans from all over the country who come to this tournament. And one of my favorite things about what you see here is there fans like they're LSU fans, um from Baton Ridge. They're LSU fans who

come here every year. I don't know l s U's in the tournament because this event is an annual tradition and it's so special to them. There's a group of Miss to Be State fans who come here every year. This year they are lucky enough for their team to be in the finals for a chance to win the first national championship in any sport at miss to Be State. So let me tell you, the cow bells are ringing in Omaha wherever you go, because those Miss to be State fans love to have a good time and love

to let you know. And they're here well the SEC showdown for the College World Series. I know that. So let me ask you. Let's let's dive into your background. How did you get involved to college baseball? And as you flexed on several times, going as they call it, we talked to Good Morning America like whoay, no, don't be impressed, um compliment? Can you take a compliment, please,

I'll take it. I'll take I'm just a girl from Bad Wars, Louisiana who grew up a very loyal fan of L. S U. I was lucky growing up in that my mom worked for the athletic Foundation at L s U. And I got to be a fan of of a school that had the best team in the most fun sports to watch, so like in the nineties, like I love college baseball because in the nineties there was no better team than L. S U. They won

five national titles in a decade. That's wild, right, So that was my come up in baseball, was just cheering for the Tigers as they were rolling over everyone in some of the most epic moments in college baseball history. Shoutout War in War. It's I mean, in the record books for for one of the best best moments in the sport. But then there was shock, right like Shack was the first athlete I ever knew existed, Like late eighties, early nineties, you can just jumping on everybody in the

Mayor Vich Assembly Center. I was there in my lowella shed trurely no bit, just like thinking he was actually superhuman. And then of course there was l football, right, So, like I said all of that to say, I came at wanting to do this job as a fan first and just always felt like and still being here right now, I feel like it's such a privilege to get to be there on the best days of these kids lives,

right like that. You know, you've worked for so hard, sweated, tears, all the things to get to this incredible moment and for me to get to be the person to ask that question or telling that story and highlight all the work going into achieving something so special to them, Like to me, that's a tremendous privilege that I okay, very seriously, um, And that was out that's where my love of sports comes from and why this and then it's especial to me and what I loved my job at ESPN, But

the dream for me was always it was always more so the morning show format, right Like as a kid, I looked up to Katie Couric so so much the Today Show. And now I'm at Good Morning America, admitted flex number one. So the dream has been amended, um to be right where I am as a part of the team a Good Morning America. And I think I'm

really lucky. And and what's interesting for me now is that I find myself in his balance right of trying to show up on the best days like I got you at n but also when you're working in news, you have to show up on the worst days the people's lives. So that's a different cho said, the best

at the top is just us. She she definitely. So what's been what's been some of the some what's been some of the worst days that you have to show up on that you know you're going out on a on a remote or your your doing a report about something, but then when you get there, it hits you in a way that you're no matter what the storyline says, no matter what how you've been brief, no matter what you know and which questions you're gonna ask, it's still

hits you in a way that you're unprepared for. Oh gosh, so many. UM. I mean, just a couple of weeks ago, I was at a mass shooting in San Jose, UM where a guy who worked at a light rail yard maintenance facility for two decades walked in and shot nine of his coworkers. Um. And then the next day I'm at the home of a man who who was praised as a hero for the lives that he saved before his was taken. And and over, I was overcome with grief and emotion because I mean, the man's the young

man who was my age. UM, the young man's mother was in side the home. I was in the front yard, and I could hear her wailing in grief and pain. And I mean, there's no way to prepare yourself. There's no way to prepare yourself to that. I mean, the number of mass shootings that I've been to, sadly it would it would be hard for me to count right now. But Parkland, my gosh, being in Parkland, UM, at that

high school. I mean, I got there a day after that happened, and was there for two weeks and and in and that was when I was at CNN, and I was on such a grinding schedule that it wasn't until it wasn't until I got the call that I was clear that I could go home after being there for two weeks. At the second I hung up my phone, I just burst into tears. It was like all the emotion that I've kept inside because adrenaline was pumping through me.

And I was just trying to do my job and stay awake and make sure the words that were coming out of my mouth were making sense. The second the adrenaline was gone, I just lost it. Um. But it's it's you know, it's daily right now. I got colleagues in in Miami, um, who are in an unimaginably difficult situation. The weight, the the unknown down there. Um, there's still some hope. But you know, last last I saw hundred and fifty people were still on accounted for in Serve

Side with that collapsed building. And it's every week, every day it's something, and sometimes it's my assignment, sometimes it's one of my colleagues, but it's um, yeah, it's heavy. It's heavy. So I feel very fortunate that I'm now with with the network and and have a platform to be able to cover such a broad range of stories where I do get some relief, you know, where I do get to again show up on the best days. Um, because that's healthy for my own my own self. Right.

And you you're walking right into the question that we were going to lead into, how do you take care of yourself when you do have topics that are this heavy and mass shootings and build it is collapsing. How do you take care of your own mental health? You talk about it, you know, you talk about it with your friends. I've got a great support system of U of wonderful, wonderful family and friends like Meredith Carter, your producer,

Um is a very important first in my life. Who you know, I need friends like that in my life, who I can count on and who I can call, and who who aren't afraid to go there with me and ask me questions about how I'm feeling. Because I'll be the first to admit one of the reasons why I think I capable of doing this job is that I am capable of compartmentalizing. I'm capable of focusing on

the task at hand. Um. But, like I just friended Mark with you know, I'm not afraid, once I've gotten through the task at hand, to feel what I'm feeling, because at the end of the day, I'm a human right at the end of the day, I'm I'm a human with real emotions and real feelings. Uh way before I'm a I'm a journalist. Um, But I think that my humanity might empathy, my ability to be very real with people in the dark moments and in the best moments.

Is is what's allowed me to have any success. It's the job I'm doing or allowed me to put anything on television that's worth worth listening to her watching from CNN too. Now you're good more in America. You've you've You've been a lot of places when it comes to the journalistic world. What's been your journey, um through your journalism path. Tell us about some of the stops you've had and just just how you've been able to now

have a have a namestake within this industry. So, my first job out of college maybe my favorite job of all of them, um, for you know, basically minimum wage working at CBS News in Washington, d C. I had the incredible fortune of being Bob Sheefer's personal assistant, and he's an icon of the industry. He's interviewed every president since next in. It was like getting my masters and journalism from a true master. And I was by a side for five years through the two thousand eight presidential

campaign through most of twelve. I never thought I'd be somebody's personal assistan for five years. The adventures go on with him and the way I was able to learn for him on a daily basis. Made it just a wonderfully fulfilling job and was the best way to come to understand the industry in such a full circle way. But while I was there with him, he was the best about saying, take advantage of me in this building, like, you know, your first responsibilities to me, but be useful

to everybody. Volunteer for everything, work the holidays, work the weekn that's whatever it is. And so I started doing that and I ended up um doing some pieces in the you know, one man band style as we call it for CBS News dot Com. I was shocked they would put me in front of the camera on CBS News dot Com back into two thousand nine, but I was free and uh creating content, so here you go. Um. But that led to UH catching eye of the guys

at CBS College Sports Network. I did too uh football seasons there, and it was the same time that CBS and Turner Sports were creating their partnership for March Madness, which allowed me to get involved with them on the digital side with n c A dot com. So I spent two years of my five that CBS News moonlighting for CBS Sports and Turner sports, and it was so much fun and it was amazing, uh getting my feet

wet in that way, but it was totally on. Thankfully, an audition came up for a job at Long Wore Network, which ESPN had just launched, covering the University of Texas. I was most president anybody that I got the job, and that led to five awesome years at ESPN, from pasting on Long Word Network and was SEC Network to doing things for ESPN like working the College World Series and and working the College Football Playoff. And I wasn't ready to leave sports when the opportunity presented itself to

make a jump to CNN. But you know one of those moments where when the phone rings, you answer it and do you take the meeting? And um, sometimes it you could be more surprised to anybody as I've been consistently throughout my career. So there was an opportunity to jump to CNN, and I knew that news was always the goal. So Bob Sheeper actually gave me the advice of why wait, If you know that's the the eventual goal, why not take this opportunity and and see what happens.

And so I did, and the two years at CNN, we're just like driving in the deep end of of what it means to work in the news industry. But I went from you know, the one end of the spectrum, like I was describing at ESPN of just having so much fun and showing up on the best days too,

at CNN only showing up on the worst days. So so then that's why I say ABC is such a great for me where I get to do both, um, because I think we all need to we all need to hear some good stories when we're just inundated with

bad ones. So that's the there, there's the there's the resume. Impressive, you're doing a heck of a job, and um, you know, we just appreciate you taking a time out all the way from Omaha, Nebraska College World Series where our NC State fellas have been eliminated, not because of lack of ability to close out a game, but the virus has taken them out. Um yeah, I think if they could, if if the virus wouldn't have done what it did, I think I think would have won us. I really do.

Nobody could, nobody could beat them twice. I just my heartbreaks for those guys. And there's a great video you should look up on NC State's baseball Twitter account. When they got back to Raleigh the other night after flying home from Omaha. And also they bust the kids who tested positive. They couldn't even get on the plane. That felt real bad for this because anyway, once they all got back to Raleigh, um, they filled the ballpark Raleigh

within ms to welcome them back. And it was so emotional, it was so sweet. But um, that team was special. And Meredith is actually right now in the corner crime. So I'm just because you talked about how emotional it was. She she is now and she's got NC State logo tissues as well. I feel fact we'll be back. Will fact we'll be back. You can count on that. They have to be winning something. They have to be back because basketball is terrible fall steaks, so you gotta be winning.

They got a basketball at the y m c A. I thought Tar Hills and everything. Well, we we really appreciate you taking time out, and you know, one of the things we got we gotta have you come back on and really dive deep and dive deep into your career and and and here some of the those awesome stories we've sprinkling some nuggets and why weight we need that on a T shirt? Wait wait, I like that. So we really appreciate you taking the time out. But I got one last question. I thing is really important.

So you're talking about summertime, You're talking about a place that seems to have some great fairs. So what is your goal to meal out there that you look forward to when you know you're going to the College War Series. You're saying, I gotta stop at one or one or two places that You're just like, I can't no one can know and see me eat it. But I'm gonna get down in dirty. Uh. You gotta get a milkshake from Zesto's that is like flavor? What flavor chocolate? For

a chocolate? You never go from with a little bit of chocolate in your life. And then if you're in Almaha, you gotta have a steak, right And I'm not going to be somebody on the average is gonna order a steak out a restaurant. But when I'm in Almaha, I go to Omaha Prime. You see Mo, the manager, he's the man. I get a little filet all the sides, but a fly cut. I don't do like I try to do like a bat filet, like maybe keep it simple,

like maybe a little surfentur. If that that's the company, that's the company credit car, I'm not that's not even a company credit card. That is reimbursement. Like this is out on the per deamon about seven five of it. Give me that lift to let me get that flowerless lava. Absolutely dessert involved. I'll take that too. I'm going cab, but you know, excuse them, all right, okay, so another question, all right, ran a white wine? Well, if I'm doing bo she's so posh. Yeah, you drink a great wine

right now, and that's hot. Drank white wine last last night. I did a little pino griggio. But also I went to So this is what I love about Omaha. They embraced this event so holy. I went to this spot, jams Um in area of jams with a J. No does it end with a z r S because vans with a Z they probably no, no, no with an okay, And but it's a great little rett and their drink menu, their specialty drink menu. This a recording line. This recorded line YEP. Eight drinks named for each of the teams

that were here, you know what I mean. So there was like the Longhorn Rita and like that. You know, there was a drink name after each team was do you know every um? You know what? Hold on? I took a photo state in C State and then you have to tell us, you have to tell us what they have for l s U. Okay, well lu didn't Nick? You said a drink? Oh it's every year, yeah, just every year. So it was the wolf Pack Whistle, Sweety Vodka, Peach Snops. It's gonna be something trash. I knew it.

I knew. I know what I told Bran I was. I was like there, it was some trash. It wasn't gonna be like because that anyways, Mississippi State Squeeze Play Jamison Ginger Pure Sweets, Our Orange Bitters, the Vandy Black with Giant You Sweet Tea, Vodka, House Lemonade, and Fresh Women give me a Scully Vaca. I'm straight, keep it simple. Hey, that's how I like it. Hey, Well, okay, we really appreciate it and appreciate your time and good luck. And I appreciate you guys. This is so so fun, such

an unexpected time Monday. Appreciate the spontaneous podcast. All right, thank you a good day. Thanks, thank you for listening. Cut to It with Steve Smith Senior and my co host or a Little John That Beat Me. And wherever you listen to your podcast, you can get us on I Heart Radio, also on Apple podcast whatever you wherever you need, we are there. Just download us and follow us at cut to It on Instagram and act cut to It on Twitter and visit our website. Cut to

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