🍝 Lil Treasures #196: Marinara Era & Coach Taylor Vibes

We're talking which college football team to root for and the difference between butt dial and booty call

Friends, I come to you this week to ask for your help.

I need to find a college football team to root for.

As some of you know, I grew up in West Texas. My mother graduated from Permian High School, the school Friday Night Lights is based on. West Texas is known for three things: being flat, being windy, and high school football.

I did not attend an SEC school and I’ll level with you, I’d never heard of the SEC until I moved to Alabama. I had some really cute Houndstooth rain boots I realized quickly I was not going to be able to wear without constant greetings of “Roll Tide!” My first day in Birmingham, my mom and I walked around the mall and saw grown women with tiger tails hanging out of their pants. This was a foreign place to me.

It’s not even that I don’t like football. I like football. I won Fan of the Week at my daughter’s middle school last year, which was thrilling. But I never got a college team. Well, this week on The Popcast, Knox gave me homework: find a college football team to root for. So I need your help.

Here is my list of things I like in a sports team:

• An underdog story (i.e.: an injury, a sad childhood, overcoming odds, etc.)

• A quirky players (funny in interviews, unique dresser, etc.)

• Weird traditions (secret handshakes, mascot drama, etc.)

• Coach Taylor vibes (handsome, hard nut to crack, secretly a teddy bear)

Does the team have to have all these components? No. Am I interested in other pitches? Absolutely. Do they have to be an SEC team? No. Do they have to be winners? Also no. So if you have a team to offer, please make your case in the comments if you so choose. I am ready to jump on a bandwagon.

Let’s do the treasures!

💖 Because I am still on my Barbie BS, I loved this Fresh Air interview with Mark Ronson about the process of creating the Barbie soundtrack.

📡 This week on Faith Adjacent,

Knox McCoy

,

Jamie B. Golden

and I did an Office Hours episode, where we tackled listener questions. I got to answer why I call myself a Bible scholar when I am merely a theater major, so I definitely have a vulnerability hangover from it!

🎾 Obviously, I only care about Coco Gauff this week. Everything’s coming up Coco.

🇺🇸 Would you like to have a fun lil existential crisis about America? Just as a treat? This will absolutely do it.

🪴 If you get the paid version of this email, you already know how excited I am about Sacred Belonging from Kat Armas, and it FINALLY hit the shelves this week. If you hate devotionals, this is the devotional for you. It. Is. Incredible. Do not sleep on this gem.

The best tweets/grams/threads from this week:

Okay, pals. I am once again embarking on a writing weekend, so I will be absent from the comments but there in spirit until I get back. I can’t wait to read your treasures and see which college football team I should cheer for. LOVE YOU MEAN IT!