Today we welcome ESPN college sports sideline reporter Samantha Ponder. Sam has become one of the most popular and recognizable personalities at ESPN almost overnight with her debut on College GameDay last year and subsequent marriage to Vikings QB Christian Ponder. I talked with Sam about her new life in the fishbowl, her rise at ESPN, and the upcoming college football season. Topics include…

-Her meteoric rise through the industry and why the Spelling Bee is her favorite gig.
-The one lesson she learned in her first year at ESPN.
-How she approaches sideline reporting and providing something different for viewers.
-Why criticism of her husband is more difficult to deal with than herself.
-The perils of social media and why she took Twitter off her phone.
-Working the ESPYs red carpet with her husband.
-Which college football personalities are the best and most difficult to interview.
-The situation at Texas A&M and the saga of Johnny Manziel.
-Should college athletes be treated as kids or adults?
-The importance of her charity work.

In case you've missed any of our podcasts, check out all of our interviews and subscribe via iTunes or our AA Podcast RSS Page.  

For more from Sam, follow her on Twitter @samsteeleponder.

Recent Podcasts:

AA Podcast 56: NBC's Rebecca Lowe on the start of the EPL season

AA Podcast 55: Mike Tirico on calling the biggest events in sports

AA Podcast #54 – Rob Stone on Fox Sports 1 and the USMNT

AA Podcast #53 – SB Nation's Steve Lepore on Nate Silver, Keith Olbermann and more

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