Buy a copy of Titans of the South: Photographs and History of the Tennessee Titans right here.

Look, it’s hard out on those streets for Titans fans these days. if you’re anything like me when things are as bleak as they are right now, you tend to find yourself going down wormholes of when the Titans used to be great. Yes, there were actual seasons when the Titans were great.

In fact, my guy Justin Melo encompassed all of it the great, the good, and even the Ken Whisenhunt year and half all in an incredible one-stop-shop book that you and/or any Titans fan should pick up.

If you’re a Tennessee Titans fan, a lover of all things Nashville, or you just enjoy history books with more pictures than words, Titans of the South may just be your new favorite coffee table companion. Yes, it’s solely about the Titans, and yes, it’s got more photographs than your proud grandma’s Facebook page, but that’s exactly the point. This book isn’t for the casual fan—it’s for the true Nashville die-hards who remember when Vince Young chucked his shoulder pads into the stands, who remember the days when Kenny Britt got arrested on an off-ramp outside Bowling Green, Kentucky, who remember when Algae Crumpler fumbled at the five yard line. You true diehards deserve a book like this.

And if you’re anything like me, and hate to read, no sweat. This book is chock-full of pictures from George Blanda to Eddie George and everything in between – including pictures of Brett Kern and Craig Hentrich. Trust me, I stared at them for hours.

The history section offers up the highlights of the team’s journey from the Oilers’ Houston days to Nashville’s finest (and yes, wildest) moments. This is the stuff that makes you want to cue up a slow-motion video of the Music City Miracle. It’s the kind of content that makes you grab your guitar, write a ballad about that one Super Bowl yard they almost got, and dream of revenge victories that may never come. (But hey, that’s part of the Titans’ charm: getting close enough that it hurts a little, which makes winning taste even better—at least that’s what I’m telling myself).

Overall, Titans of the South isn’t just a book. It’s an experience—a tribute, really. One that reminds you why you stick with this team through thick and thin (shoutout this year), through fourth-quarter miracles (shoutout Vince Young, Ryan Tannehill, and Will Levis whenever he plays Miami), and through moments when you find yourself explaining why “almost getting there” still counts for something (shoutout Super Bowl XXXIV).

So if you’re ready for a trip down memory lane (and to finally answer your relatives’ “What should I get you for Christmas?” questions), this one’s a no-brainer. Just make sure to display it proudly next to that mini Lombardi you swear they’re this close to winning.

Look, times like these are hard to be fans. But it will only make the winning that much sweeter. So make sure you enjoy those times with this book gracing the top of your coffee table. If you’re a Titans diehard like me, you will love this book. So get one for the Titans fan in your life this Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanza, or hell, even just as a “I’m sorry your team kinda sucks right now, I’ve been thinking of you” gift.

The post Need A Reminder of Just How Great The Titans Used To Be? Allow This Book To Help appeared first on Korked Bats.

You could argue that aside from the final two quarters, this weekend was perfect. At very least, people are asking. And while I know everyone wants to move on from this weekend, I don’t. Not yet. Because I have to shout some people out from what was a fun weekend. Again, until it wasn’t.

Let’s shout some folks out… in no particular order, of course.

Everyone who showed up to Frontier on Saturday Night

Thank you so much to every single one of you who showed up and/or helped spread word. It was an incredible night. Based off the number of raffle tickets we pulled, we had around 125 people show up. And all but about 4 or 5 of them were Titans fans. It was incredible. Even more so considering this is the first live event we’ve ever attempted. When I found out the Titans were coming to Chicago, I knew I had to do something. Especially when that game was announced as the Week 1 matchup. Vibes were high coming into this season (and for me, still are high based on what we saw Sunday and more so, what I saw in pressers after the game).

Jim Wyatt

If there’s any question as to who the O.G. greatest Titans beat writer of all time is (the GTBWOAT). Keep in mind, when beat writers go on the road, they have very busy, very short trips. Their evenings on the night before games are sacred. So for Uncle Jim to not only pop in, but also stay for a good chunk of time and yap it up with Titans fans was incredible. Love that man.

Nate Bain (and everyone at the Titans)

The boys (and ladies) from the Titans caught wind of our party and sent some goodies for us to giveaway. It made for an even better experience for us to reward more people for coming out. The Titans didn’t need to do that, but it’s clear, they’re in this for the right reasons: to build and strengthen this fan base. In the grand scheme of football, the Titans are still an adolescent franchise. They’re aware enough to recognize that and are doing all they can to build generational fandom. Not to mention, they care about the people in their base and it shows. Thank you, Titans. You make me even more proud to be a fan.

My guy Vincent

This is a dude I wanted to meet in person so bad this weekend. He’s a great follow on Twitter (which is the only way I’ve gotten to know him) and more so, he’s a great sports fan and advocate for all things Nashville. As a guy from Nashville who hasn’t had the luxury to live there in nearly a decade, that means a lot to me. A lot of things in that town have changed since I moved away, but one constant remains: V. He’s a real one, especially when it comes to his favorite sports teams (many of which happen to be my favorite teams), and a lot of fans could learn a thing or two from his unwavering support and enthusiasm. I’ve met him once, albeit only for a brief minute, but I already know he’s my guy for life.

My guys Jeff and Chris

Two of the three other guys in my Titans text group made the trip up. Jeff, my best friend from high school (#GodBlessAndGoBruins) and lifelong ride-or-die Titans fan, and Chris, also a ride-or-die Titans and Preds fan. Jeff and Chris are responsible for many of the amazing cinematic masterpieces that the Titans drop to get us hyped in stadiums or before the season. Jeff directs, and Chris is a director of photography. They’re both beyond talented at what they do. It’s unreal. And one of the reasons their videos for the Titans go so hard is because they’re actually loyal and deeply-rooted fans. There was a time when the Titans franchise did not make good content or hype videos, these guys helped change that for the Titans.

DHGate

For offering cheap jerseys for me to buy for the party. Yeah, I bought these things with my own money because I wanted to reward and thank Titans fans for coming out to our Korked Bats party on Saturday. DHGate allowed me to do that (after jumping through a ton of hoops).

DHGate (rescinded)

But then, I’d also like to rescind that shoutout for taking too long to ship said jersey over from China (or wherever it came from), causing me to get our jersey winner’s address to mail him the jersey. The winner, of course, being…

My guy Colin

Met Colin (pictured above in the last pic with me, Chris and Jeff) this weekend and realized I’ve been a fan of this guy’s work for years. Alongside his partner Skinny, they’ve brought us dub videos for years, most notably at times when they came way more frequently. Colin is cool as hell, loves his Tennessee Titans fully, and was responsible for leading the first down chant for all the Titans fans in the nosebleeds of section 446. Glad I met Colin. I’ll get your jersey in the mail as soon as it arrives from Jamaica.

The guy who asked me if my last name was ‘Bats’

The Bean

For just being the most iconic landmark on God’s green earth. YOU GOTTA SEE THE BEAN!

Two-Toned Blue Nation

This is the incredible Titans tailgating group. They roll deep and they roll strong. They helped a lot with getting the word out for our party and then showed up in big ways on Saturday night. Shoutout to the whole crew. Love you guys!

Tony Pollard

For getting the scoring party started, keeping us hyped in section 446, and for allowing us to forget about any other running back in this franchise’s history.

This guy for rocking a Korked Bats t-shirt

People always ask me how they can support this dumb sports blog we’ve got. I always tell them the same thing: likes, reposts, engagement, but most of all, more than anything else, buying some merch, because that makes a direct impact on the growth of Korked Bats. I know that makes me sound like a used car salesman, but I can also get you into a like-new 2003 Buick La Sabre for low financing and 0% APR!

Jack Gentry

Despite ending our 4-year-old podcast ending this week, you know I still have love for my guy. Brothers for life. Even though this was only the second time we’ve been in the same room together.

My guy Riley for buying me a shot of Malort

If you came to Chicago this weekend and didn’t get a shot of Malort, then you technically didn’t come to Chicago this weekend. That sweet nectar made by Jepsen’s is the smoothest, most delicious shot that will ever tickle your throat. Just trust me. I live here. It definitely doesn’t taste like piss-colored windshield wiper fluid. Shoutout to my guy (and former serviceman for this beautiful country) Riley! Thank you for your service and the shot.

The 10 other people who bought me drinks this weekend

This actually tied into one of our DOING LINES bets this week.

The vibes at halftime

Man, nothing will compare to the feelings of walking around Soldier Field’s upper concourse shooting “Titan Up!”‘s to every single person in two-toned blue. To hitting up the bathroom and popcorn-ing of “Titan up!”‘s while we were all pissing. It was euphoric. If I could bottle that drug up, I would sell it harder than Walter White and Marty Byrd ever could.

My vocal chords

For holding on for dear life so I just enough of a voice to host my radio show Monday morning.

Thank you all for such an amazing weekend. Was it the greatest weekend ever (aside from the loss)? People are asking. And thanks for supporting this dumb sports blog. Let’s take it to outerspace!

The post A List of Shout-Outs From Our Titans-Bears Weekend in Chicago appeared first on Korked Bats.

Peter Schrager, from Good Morning Football on NFL Network, has correctly picked the last 5 Super Bowl winners, so we felt like we had to shoot our shot with getting Schrags to pick the Titans. Because what he says goes, right? Worth a shot.

The post Please Pick The Titans To Win The Super Bowl, Peter Schrager appeared first on Korked Bats.

For the first time in this blog’s history, we’re throwing a party. The fine folks at Frontier (off Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s West Town neighborhood) have opened their doors to allow us to throw a party for Titans fans to kick off the 2024 season on the eve of Week 1. So let’s do it!

This party is for anyone, but specifically Titans fans. So if you’re a Titans fan in the Chicagoland area, or if you’re traveling into town and going to the game, or if you’re just looking for a fun weekend getaway in the great city of Chicago in the summertime, swing by Frontier and let’s party. We have some fun things planned and will have ourselves a good time.

Look, Titans fans have been especially good to this dumb sports blog and our growth and success over the years, so the least we can do is throw one hell of a party in your honor. So swing by, and let’s pack out Frontier and show Chicago how Nashville (and Titans fans) parties!

For more updates on the event: follow @korkedbats on all social platforms!

The post Titans Fans, Let’s Party In Chicago! appeared first on Korked Bats.

The only man who can get Derrick Henry to publicly clap back online would be Paul Kuharsky. And he accomplished that feat last week. But is he entirely wrong with his take? PEOPLE ARE ASKING! And we take time to answer. What do you think? Does Paul Kuharsky have a point?

The post Derrick Henry Clapped Back At Paul Kuharsky So You Know We Had To Hit On It appeared first on Korked Bats.

Darren Waller inexplicably tried to launch a music career. Look, to each their own. Unless their own is this bad. Woof. This amount of autotune would give T-Pain a stroke. We’d say don’t quit your day job, Darren, but it appears he might be. Let’s hope not for the sake of his bank account and our already bleeding eardrums. Kelsey, you are now completely justified in walking away from this letterman jacketed dude.

The post We Broke Down That Darren Waller Music Video appeared first on Korked Bats.

But if the Titans end up sucking, as everyone outside of Tennessee expects, they’re not going to get clowned nationally. So the Titans are in the perfect spot, IMO. And their schedule is the perfect lineup for that spot. Here are some notes:

• Titans get the Bears and Caleb Williams freshly manicured in Week 1, which has to be the absolute best time to get a rookie quarterback, right? All eyes will be on him, and while it’s entirely possible he balls out and pulls a Mariota in his debut, history has shown that rookie quarterbacks tend to pull Jameis Winston’s in their debuts. Could he be the difference? Certainly. The Bears are more loaded than the walls of an Applebee’s. But the amount of pressure both nationally, and locally (trust me, I live here), will be immeasurable. The Bears don’t just want Caleb to be great. They NEED him to be great. They’ve waited far too long and they’ve become – understandably – impatient. They haven’t had a 4,000 yard passer in the history of their franchise. It’s 2024. On top of that, there isn’t a single person on earth not wearing two-toned blue (or maybe Peter Schraeger) who will think the Titans can win this game. Every person with a pulse will pick the Bears. And lastly, we get the Bears in Summertime Chi. As a Nashville native (who absolutely loves my hometown) and a guy who has lived all over the country, I have to admit that in the summer months, there is no city in America greater than Chicago. Granted that summer lasts shorter than a Jaguars run of being good. But when that summer is here, it’s the best three weeks of the year! The only thing that sucks about this game is how hard tickets will be to find because it’s Caleb Williams’ NFL debut.
• Consistency… This schedule is a coach’s fantasy. Every game except for two are Sunday at noon. While this is super boring and monotonous for fans, it’s a wet dream for coaches. They preach consistency and routine. In their opinion, that’s how you build good habits. Plus, this schedule allows us all the ability to pray for the Titans at church just before the game. Please God, don’t test me with another tough battle like 2023.
• The Titans play ZERO teams coming off a BYE week. Granted, the Titans BYE week comes in Week 5, which sucks. Titans BYE weeks are like Christmas decorations sold in stores. Feels like they appear earlier and earlier every year. However, it is nice to know none of your opponents will have extra rest or time to prep coming into the game against you.
• The Titans play ZERO Thursday Night Football games. This feels weird. Especially for a franchise that used to be the house band for TNF. Hell, is America even going to know what they’re watching without a Titans-Jags matchup every week? I doubt it. Expect ratings to plummet without those puke yellow and Columbia blue color rush jumpsuits clashing on your screen while you have the game on in the background because nothing else is on.
• The Titans have ZERO short weeks. In today’s game, this is the craziest fact about the schedule to me. If there’s one thing Roger Goodell loves, it’s not giving his employees adequate rest in between getting their brains bashed in for three hours. Take the Ravens for example. There is a stretch this season where they will play 3 games in a 10-day span. That’s absurd. Meanwhile, the Titans won’t play a game on anything less than 6 days rest all year. And for a franchise that has produced more injured bodies than the set of an Expendables movie, that’s a welcomed change.
• It all comes down to the end. Granted, it’s not like the Steelers or Bears schedules who play division games in something like 6 of their final 8 weeks, but it’s still back heavy with division opponents. Teams will be banged up. Anthony Richardson could be out by the year by then. C.J. Stroud could be C.J. StrOUT. Trevor Lawrence could still be limping up the Jaguars’ stadium tunnel. And sure, this goes both ways. Especially for a franchise that has led the league in injuries over 2 of the last 3 years. But, personally, I’d rather my division opponents be banged up than play them healthy at the beginning of the year.

So look… is this the schedule that shockingly propels the Titans to the Super Bowl? PEOPLE ARE ASKING.

The post The Titans Schedule Is Perfect, No Notes (But Here Are Some Notes, Anyway) appeared first on Korked Bats.

This might be the dumbest day in sports, as I blogged about earlier, but there can be some good coming in the form of social media content. This is when we separate the men from the boys (a reference Harrison Butker probably loves). It should be noted that not all schedule release videos are created equal. In fact, some suck. Looking at you, New York Jets, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts, Las Vegas Raiders, a few that just went with a hydraulic press, and a bunch that had to do with drawing and art.

We here at Korked Bats DO NOT do honorable mentions. Mainly because there is no honor in a mention. But if we did…

(in no particular order)

Honorable Mention – Pittsburgh Steelers

Ok, I’m a sucker for a good dad joke. I wanted to hate this one, but I couldn’t. Low-hanging fruit still provides a good source of food, you guys.

Honorable Mention – Philadelphia Eagles

Solid one-liners, solid editing. No mention or reminder of the fact that the Titans traded AJ Brown to them on draft night for nothing? Perfect. No notes.

Honorable Mention – Minnesota Vikings

I used to love watching Apple keynotes. Back when the company was innovative, creative, and design-focused (read: before Steve Jobs passed). So this was a solid spoof of those and well executed. Skol hat tip, Vikes.

Honorable Mention – Miami Dolphins

Simple and didn’t take me 6 minutes to watch. Respect, Miami.

6. Buffalo Bills

Getting players to act has an extremely high level of difficulty and usually fails (see: the Bears, Packers, and Patriots schedule releases), but I’ll be honest, Josh Allen kinda nails this semi-awkward role here. I came in extremely skeptical and he impressed. Then again, this is for a regular season schedule. Would love to see him put it together for a postseason schedule.

5. Tennessee Titans

They say the sequel is never as good as the original, and well, that proves to be true. There are moments in this video, but like getting players to act, this comes with an extremely high level of difficulty because last year’s schedule release video was perfect. Unfortunately, this was more Zoolander 2 than Terminator 2.

4. Dallas Cowboys

Look, I hate to give the Dallas Cowboys any more shine than they already get from the national media despite making fewer championship game and Super Bowl appearances over the last 25 years than the Titans, but I have to admit, this was solid. It was creative, original, banks on a popular trend, and is well executed. It did feel like a few were scripted or tipped off, but aside from that, it was funny. This will be the only time I ever say this, but well done, Cowboys.

3. Atlanta Falcons

Any nod to NFL Street is ok by me. Especially when it’s got as many Easter eggs as this video has. Attention to detail goes a LONG way on the Internet. This might be the only top 6 the Falcons appear in all year, but it was nice to see them receive national recognition for something other than inking a new quarterback.

2. Detroit Lions

It’s hard to go wrong with The Detroiters boys. Especially right now. Their stock price is hella high because they’re both incredibly funny. And neither guy seemed to be there just for the zipline. This was fun to watch. And wasn’t a chore, like the Raiders.

1, Los Angeles Chargers

No surprise here. The Chargers social media team is the absolute best in the business. On so many levels. But they seem to win (or at worst be top two) in every year’s schedule release. Pretty fitting for an account that started at P.F. Changs.

To paraphrase the great philosopher Marshawn Lynch, you could watch this over and over and over and over and over and over and over and still find new easter eggs in every watch. Like…

Or…

Or…

Or the absolute cherry on top…

Animators had to be working overtime on this one, because that Butker story just dropped a couple days ago.

The post SIXER: The Top 6 NFL Schedule Release Videos appeared first on Korked Bats.

Aside from that, today might be the dumbest day on the NFL calendar. Look, I don’t hate football. I love football. But putting dates in a day planner isn’t football. So apologies if the schedule release does not give me one. The only thing I care to find out is when the Titans are coming to Chicago to play the Bears. Please don’t be in the cold months (which in Chicago, is after September).

The post Are We Really Supposed To Be Excited About A Damn Schedule Release? appeared first on Korked Bats.

If you’re a Titans fan, you probably watch that clip and immediately get steam blowing out your ears like an old Looney Tunes cartoon. If you were on MTV’s Boiling Points, this would be the moment you miss out on winning the $100 cash. And look, I get it. Trust me, I do. But you shouldn’t care, at all. At least not right now.

It’s ironic how there’s literally an iconic Disney movie about football called Remember The Titans, and yet, no one seems to do so. Not even the damn league itself.

But if you’ve been a Titans fan for more than 15 minutes, then you probably know this about our team. We get less love than Meg Griffin. And having worked in national sports talk radio (not to brag), I get it. The Titans don’t really move the needle nationally. It’s still a relatively new fan base in a market that doesn’t even crack the top 20. Sure, Nashville itself has exploded into an “it” city, but the Titans didn’t follow suit (aside from an AFC Championship berth in January 2020). The city blew up when this franchise was at it’s lowest. Just take my word for it. Don’t make me bring back up names like Jake Locker, Blidi Wreh-Wilson, or Bishop Sankey. The timing has just never played into this team’s favor.

Plus, the national media has no idea what the Titans are doing as a franchise, nor do they care to find out. There are 31 other professional teams that (to them) move the needle more (except maybe the Panthers). Mike Vrabel had early success, which national media remembers. They also remember him hoisting Lombardis as a Patriots captain. So they think extremely favorably of him. So many in the national media saw the Titans can Vrabes this past January and think that a franchise that had already traded AJ Brown on Draft night 2022, fired their GM who was responsible for that decision months later, and then can Vrabel this past January. They don’t see the progressive steps taken by a franchise that was heading south quickly. They see dysfunction. And I get it. If I wasn’t inundated with the Titans on a daily basis (like most of America), I wouldn’t get the moves either. Because most people don’t know Mike Vrabel went 6-18 over his final season and a half. Most people don’t remember that a Vrabel-coached team produced one of the most historic collapses in NFL history by blowing a 4-game division lead with 7 games to play by failing to win a single game in that stretch. All the national media (and thus the rest of the nation) remembers is Vrabel out-smarting Belichick on a nationally televised Wild Card game, and then going into Baltimore the very next week and taking down the #1 seed in the AFC, and hoisting Lombardis as a Patriots captain.

TL;DR – The national media doesn’t care enough about the Titans to follow them.

But in the national media’s defense, can you blame them? Again, the Titans have won 6 of their last 24 games, with only one of those games on primetime national TV (not counting their three Thursday night games – the Titans are perpetually the Thursday Night Football house band). What is there to talk about? Derrick Henry? Because now even he’s gone. We all know the NFL is a what have you done for me lately league, and the Titans have done jack. On the flip side, that’s exactly why the Texans have gotten so much hype. And frankly, they should get hype. Hell, I gave an entire take on just that. If you’re an NFL fan, you should be spending this offseason hyping the hell out of the Texans.

The Titans haven’t proven anything. And with an entirely new coaching staff and rebuilt offense, no one is going to go on a limb and pick the Titans. Not in a division with both CJ Stroud and Trevor Lawrence, who have both won a playoff game each since the Titans 6-18 skid started. But even the steam on the Jags has died down tremendously because of the disappointing year they just put together. The national media, especially sports talk radio, is reactionary. It’s not predictive. They get paid for explaining the market, not predicting it. And no one is picking the Titans to do anything based on what we’ve seen recently. If the rest of the country is Logan Roy, they view the Titans as the Connor Roy of the AFC South. And unless they win the presidency, they’re probably not getting the company (or anything) from dad.

The good news for Titans fans: we’re used to this role. Frankly, I LOVE this role. If the Titans end up sucking, so what? Everyone was expecting it anyway. But if they are good? Then the national media gets whiplash when turning their heads to watch the Titans. And we all love seeing other people in neck braces, right?

The post The National Media Does Not Care About The Titans, And That’s OK… (For Right Now) appeared first on Korked Bats.