Around this time last year, Hot Takes origins began. The boys started to build a vision of what this podcast could turn into. They began to get comfortable after they shot their first few podcasts across the holidays. The next year and a half looked bright until COVID-19 began. 

School going virtual two different times has caused Hot Takes to put the podcast on hold. On top of that, each time the group has been in school or had the opportunity to shoot a podcast, one of them was quarantined because they got COVID-19. All three of them showed symptoms and took days to recover, although they are all recovered and healthy now.

“Having COVID was rough, but being quarantined taught me some things,” Andrew Hansen said.

As the second semester comes closer, Hot Takes had started to make big plans for when they are back in school together in January. There is so much going on in the sports world right now and these guys are as enthusiastic about spreading the knowledge about it more than ever.

“Thinking about the second semester gives me a lot of stress, although I am really looking forward to getting back to making pods with the boys,” Patrick Lynch said.

It hasn’t been any easy year for a group that had such high expectations and were looking to bring something new to the school’s publications. Although not giving up on the goal and having a positive outlook through everything they have been through, Hot Takes is ready to grow the way it had been envisioned too. The first podcast to start this new chapter is planned to release in early January and from there Hot Takes looks to light it up all semester long bringing the best sports content to the people around them.