Deep Dive Podcast (with John, Brad, and Tab)

Deep Dive

Every week, Brad, John, and Tab take a Deep Dive into a wide range of topics—from dive bars and humorous guest interviews to the reflections of three Gen-X guys trying to navigate a world where you now have ten flavors of Gatorade to choose from… but no Concorde supersonic jet. The show is a light-hearted, spontaneous conversation between three longtime friends, and it should feel like you’re sitting right at the table with them—talking about 1980s television, flammable pajamas, and how to keep a Christmas carp alive in your bathtub. New episodes usually drop later in the week, and the show is completely ad-free. Join us wherever you get your podcasts, or jump into the conversation in the Deep Dive Podcast Facebook group.

  1. 14h ago

    Deep Dive Episode 43 Dan McCarney ( Iowa and Iowa State Football Coach )

    Send us Fan Mail Dan McCarney has had a historic career in college football. He's been a player, a coach, a head coach, a program builder, a mentor, and a pretty funny story teller. His coaching career has taken him from Iowa City to Wisconsin, Iowa State, Florida, and North Texas. He's coached in national championship games, taken teams to bowl games after many seasons of loosing, and spent decades around some of the biggest names in college football. He also has the uncommon distinction of being able to say he has coached in 25 Iowa vs. Iowa State football games. #iowafootball #iowastatecyclones #iowahawkeyes #iowastatefootball #collegefootball #collegefootball26 #iowa You can communicate with us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com or be part of the Deep Dive Community in our Facebook Group Deep Dive Podcast https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JGiMUC7bq/

    Deep Dive Episode 43 Dan McCarney ( Iowa and Iowa State Football Coach )

  2. 5d ago

    Deep Dive Episode 44 (2 of 2), Jeff Bruning, ( High Life Lounge / El Bait Shop Owner )

    Send us Fan Mail Today's guest is part of a highly successful food, beverage, and hospitality partnership that has been credited in helping transform the Des Moines bar and restaurant scene. His "destination" restaurants/bars aren't exactly your traditional Iowa Supper Club story. We're talking about a group responsible for places like Fong's Pizza, Mullets, and El Bait Shop. His two establishments the High Life Lounge and El Bait Shop really caught our attention.  Bruning and his partners painstakingly built a patina'd Dive Bar from scratch and created a surreal space that transports you back to the late 1970's.   It's a lot harder than you might think. #HighLifeLounge #ElBaitShop #DiveBar #DesMoines #Iowa  You can communicate with us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com or be part of the Deep Dive Community in our Facebook Group Deep Dive Podcast https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JGiMUC7bq/

    Deep Dive Episode 44 (2 of 2), Jeff Bruning, ( High Life Lounge / El Bait Shop Owner )

  3. Aug 27

    Deep Dive Episode 44 (1 of 2), Jeff Bruning, ( High Life Lounge / El Bait Shop Owner )

    Send us Fan Mail Today's guest is part of a highly successful food, beverage, and hospitality partnership that has been credited in helping transform the Des Moines bar and restaurant scene. His "destination" restaurants/bars aren't exactly your traditional Iowa Supper Club story. We're talking about a group responsible for places like Fong's Pizza, Mullets, and El Bait Shop. His two establishments the High Life Lounge and El Bait Shop really caught our attention.  Bruning and his partners painstakingly built a patina'd Dive Bar from scratch and created a surreal space that transports you back to the late 1970's.   It's a lot harder than you might think. #HighLifeLounge #ElBaitShop #DiveBar #DesMoines #Iowa  You can communicate with us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com or be part of the Deep Dive Community in our Facebook Group Deep Dive Podcast https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JGiMUC7bq/

    Deep Dive Episode 44 (1 of 2), Jeff Bruning, ( High Life Lounge / El Bait Shop Owner )

  4. Aug 21

    Deep Dive Episode 39 (Craig Cermak #2 Automobile Show, Bigfoot, Ghostbusters, & Shriners)

    Send us Fan Mail Craig Cermak is back to discuss the vehicles of television and cenima of the 1970's and 1980's.  Bigfoot Monster Truck, Ghostbuster Ecto 1, and the A-Team Van are covered in this episode.  Craig's encyclopedic knowledge of vehicles ....... including German Boat-Cars are absolutely amazing...... let us know if there are any vehiles you would like to hear Craig discuss by emailing us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com You can communicate with us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com or be part of the Deep Dive Community in our Facebook Group Deep Dive Podcast https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JGiMUC7bq/

    Deep Dive Episode 39 (Craig Cermak #2 Automobile Show, Bigfoot, Ghostbusters, & Shriners)

  5. Aug 13

    Deep Dive Episode 42, First Year Recap Birthday Show

    Send us Fan Mail This week, we celebrate ONE YEAR of the Deep Dive Podcast! 🎉 To mark the occasion, we’re taking a look back at some of the memorable moments, stories, guests, laughs, and questionable decisions from our first year in the Deep Dive. For our newer Deep Divers, it’s a great way to discover some of the content you may have missed along the way. And for the old, varnished Deep Divers… well, consider it a nostalgic trip down memory lane. It’s also a good reminder that Brad’s voice just keeps getting dreamier. Thanks for diving with us for the past year. Here’s to many more! ENJOY!!!! 🎙️🍻 You can communicate with us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com or be part of the Deep Dive Community in our Facebook Group Deep Dive Podcast https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JGiMUC7bq/

    Deep Dive Episode 42, First Year Recap Birthday Show

  6. Aug 6

    Deep Dive Episode 40, Chris Ash, ( Notre Dame Defensive Coordinator )

    Send us Fan Mail From the football fields of Ottumwa, Iowa, to the sidelines of college football's biggest stages, Chris Ash has built one of the most impressive coaching résumés in the game. In a remarkably short period of time, he's worked alongside some of the sport's most respected minds—including Urban Meyer, Barry Alvarez, Bret Bielema, Steve Sarkisian, and Marcus Freeman—while also spending time in the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Las Vegas Raiders.  Chris was the co-defensive coordinator for Ohio State's 2014 College Football Playoff National Championship team before earning the opportunity to become the head coach at Rutgers. Today, he's leading one of college football's premier defenses as the defensive coordinator at Notre Dame.  Join us as we go back to where it all began in southeast Iowa and trace Chris Ash's incredible coaching journey—from Drake University to the Big Ten, the SEC, the NFL, and now South Bend. We'll talk about the mentors who shaped him, the lessons learned along the way, and what it takes to succeed at the highest levels of football. #notredame #notredamefootball #collegefootball #Iowa #Ottumwa  You can communicate with us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com or be part of the Deep Dive Community in our Facebook Group Deep Dive Podcast https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JGiMUC7bq/

    Deep Dive Episode 40, Chris Ash, ( Notre Dame Defensive Coordinator )

  7. Jul 31

    Deep Dive Episode 41 ( Ragbrai 2026 Recap ) #Ragbrai #Ragbrai2026 #Iowa #Bicycle

    Send us Fan Mail Brad, John, and Tab rehash memories the 2026 Riding of the Idiots, ( Ragbrai 2026 ). - Brad Becomes Deputy in Dunlap Iowa - We visit Jan Jensen's family bar in Kimbleton Iowa - Riding the High Trestle Bridge Trail - Brad and Tab Exists In Parallel Universe  - The absolutely amazing The Dig Inn in Reinbeck Iowa - Team Solid is late for the party and the reek of disappointment  - John Pulls a GREAT Ragbrai Prank on Brad - John Carries a Lit Fire Pit  - Field of Dreams - Wrap Up #Ragbrai #Ragbrai2026 #Iowa #Bicycle You can communicate with us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com or be part of the Deep Dive Community in our Facebook Group Deep Dive Podcast https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JGiMUC7bq/

    Deep Dive Episode 41 ( Ragbrai 2026 Recap ) #Ragbrai #Ragbrai2026 #Iowa #Bicycle

  8. Jul 16

    Deep Dive Episode 38 ( Tim Lester, Iowa Hawkeye Offensive Coordinator )

    Send us Fan Mail The road to becoming the offensive coordinator at the University of Iowa doesn't usually begin in a high school math classroom. But then again, Tim Lester has never taken the usual path. Before joining the Hawkeyes, Lester's football journey wound through just about every level of the game imaginable. He starred as one of the most prolific quarterbacks in Western Michigan history, played professionally in the XFL and Arena Football League, taught high school math, served as a Division III head coach, led a Division I program at Western Michigan, worked in the NFL with the Green Bay Packers, and ultimately found his way to Iowa City. Along the way, he built a reputation as an innovative offensive mind who sees football through the lens of both a coach and a mathematician. In this episode, Tim shares stories from that remarkable journey, from growing up in football-rich Wheaton, Illinois, to discovering that his love for the strategy of the game outweighed his original plans to become a teacher. We talk about the numbers behind play-calling, the lessons he learned at every stop along the way, and why taking an unconventional route ultimately prepared him for one of college football's most scrutinized jobs. Now, as Iowa's offensive coordinator, Lester has become part of one of the sport's most respected coaching lineages. The Hawkeyes' coaching tree stretches back to the legendary Hayden Fry and includes names like Bill Snyder, Barry Alvarez, Bob Stoops, Kirk Ferentz, and countless others who have shaped college football for decades. Tim Lester's story is a reminder that while every branch of that coaching tree grows a little differently, the best coaches often arrive with experiences that are anything but ordinary. #Iowa #IowaFootball #Football #CollegeFootball You can communicate with us at deepdivepod2025@gmail.com or be part of the Deep Dive Community in our Facebook Group Deep Dive Podcast https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1JGiMUC7bq/

    Deep Dive Episode 38 ( Tim Lester, Iowa Hawkeye Offensive Coordinator )
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

Every week, Brad, John, and Tab take a Deep Dive into a wide range of topics—from dive bars and humorous guest interviews to the reflections of three Gen-X guys trying to navigate a world where you now have ten flavors of Gatorade to choose from… but no Concorde supersonic jet. The show is a light-hearted, spontaneous conversation between three longtime friends, and it should feel like you’re sitting right at the table with them—talking about 1980s television, flammable pajamas, and how to keep a Christmas carp alive in your bathtub. New episodes usually drop later in the week, and the show is completely ad-free. Join us wherever you get your podcasts, or jump into the conversation in the Deep Dive Podcast Facebook group.

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