Halftime Heroes

Kendall Baker grew up watching SportsCenter.He eventually worked there. Running the teleprompter for Scott Van Pelt, cutting highlights, helping to manage the show he watched his whole life.During his time in Bristol, an idea hit him... "I should rebuild this show I love… in an email."No highlight reel dunks, no extra sizzle.Just words.It took a few years before that idea became a reality in the form of a daily sports newsletter called Sports Internet. Since then, Kendall got Sports Internet acquired by Axios Sports, and has taken his talents to Yahoo Sports where his once little experiment now hits the inboxes of half a million readers every single morning.In this episode, we talk about:• Finding the right format• How consistency becomes a competitive advantage• The system he uses to “read the internet” without drowning in it• Why most creators burn out (and how to avoid it)• The middle ground between independent creators and traditional media• Why we love sportsThis is the story of Kendall Baker and the operation behind the daily sports newsletter that (for whatever reason) no one decided to make... except him.SUPPORT THIS HERO: Subscribe to Yahoo Sports AM: https://sports.yahoo.com/newsletters/yahoo-sports-am/X: https://x.com/kendallbakerGET IN TOUCH WITH HALFTIME HEROESX: https://x.com/TeamHalftimeTikTok: / teamhalftimeheroesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/halftimeheroesshow/Substack: https://halftimeheroes.substack.com/ABOUT HALFTIME HEROES:I'm Ryan. Host of Halftime Heroes. I'm a former Division 1 college soccer captain and serial content creator. I've tried everything from blogs to podcasts to newsletters to very bad TikToks. With this show I'm hoping to bring together my two favorite things: sports and creativity. My goal is to get to the bottom of how these incredible creators and entrepreneurs are bringing their athlete mindset to the creator economy.

Jared Doerfler was walk-on turned Division 1 golfer at the University of Northern Iowa.He had grown into a comfortable life with a well-paying job as VP of Sales. He just had his first kid and decided to start writing online based on the advice of his MBA professor. With zero followers and zero writing experience, he grew the Perfect Putt newsletter to 10,000+ subscribers and built a healthy following on X.Then he took it one step further and quit his job to start making golf putters in his garage. He bought a CDC machine and taught himself how to use it through trial and error and a whole bunch of YouTube videos.Now, he has sold putters to golfers around the world, put them in the hands of guys on the PGA Tour, and continues to scale up his homegrown operation through sheer grit and hard work.This is the story of Jared Doerfler and Hanna Golf.SUPPORT THIS HERO: Website: https://hannagolf.com/X: https://x.com/HannaGolfCoX: https://x.com/DoerflerJaredInstagram:   / hannagolfco  GET IN TOUCH WITH HALFTIME HEROESInstagram:   / halftimeheroesshow  X: https://x.com/TeamHalftimeTikTok:   / teamhalftimeheroes  Substack: https://halftimeheroes.substack.com/ABOUT HALFTIME HEROES:I'm Ryan. Host of Halftime Heroes. I'm a former Division 1 college soccer captain and serial content creator. I've tried everything from blogs to podcasts to newsletters to very bad TikToks. With this show I'm hoping to bring together my two favorite things: sports and creators. My goal is to get to the bottom of how these incredible creators and entrepreneurs are bringing their athlete mindset to the creator economy.

George Boyd went from the top of the mountain as a BMX rider and video creator, to a top editor for massive brands like Disney, Meta, and the NFL.Now, he's set off on his own to create Cut The Pod, a full service production studio and brand strategy house helping video podcast creators bring their content to the next level.We discussed how after years of putting his work first, George is finally building a business that works around his life. If you're an current or former athlete who is looking to get into the content or entrepreneurship game, this one is for you.SUPPORT THIS HERO: Website: https://www.cutthepod.com/X: https://x.com/cutthepodSet Up A Call: https://cal.com/cutthepod/30minGET IN TOUCH WITH HALFTIME HEROESX: https://x.com/TeamHalftimeTikTok:   / teamhalftimeheroes  Instagram:   / halftimeheroesshow  Substack: https://halftimeheroes.substack.com/ABOUT HALFTIME HEROES:I'm Ryan. Host of Halftime Heroes. I'm a former Division 1 college soccer captain and serial creator. I've tried everything from blogs to newsletters to very bad TikToks. With this show I'm hoping to bring together my two favorite things: sports and creators. My goal is to get to the bottom of how these incredible creators and entrepreneurs are bringing their athlete mindset to the creator economy.

Everybody loves a good underdog story. If you're Tyler O'Shea, you've built a pretty successful business telling those stories.He's the founder and creator of Joker Mag, which started as a website and has blossomed into a full-fledged media company. The Underdog Newsletter has exploded to over 20,000 subscribers and the site regularly generates over 50,000 page views a month. And now, most recently, O'Shea launched his first book The Underdog Mentality: Sports Stories That Will Change How You See the Game (And Yourself). In the last year, O'Shea has also blown up his social presence, going from just a couple thousand followers to an audience of 50,000 across platforms.SUPPORT THIS HERO: Website: https://jokermag.com/X: https://x.com/OSheaSEOUnderdog Newsletter: https://newsletter.jokermag.com/subsc...GET IN TOUCHX: https://x.com/TeamHalftimeTikTok:   / teamhalftimeheroes  Substack: https://halftimeheroes.substack.com/ABOUT HALFTIME HEROES:I'm Ryan. Host of Halftime Heroes. I'm a former Division 1 college soccer captain and serial creator. I've tried everything from blogs to newsletters to very bad TikToks. With this show I'm hoping to bring together my two favorite things: sports and creators. My goal is to get to the bottom of how these incredible creators and entrepreneurs are bringing their athlete mindset to the creator economy.