Going Deep with Donnovan Bennett

2024 is rapidly coming to an end, and to look back on a busy year in sports, Donnovan brings on Breakfast Television's Sid Seixeiro to put a few items in perspective. They take a spin around each major North American league, and debate who is currently the best QB in the NFL, the NBA seemingly suffering from a lack of compelling stars, the NHL marching towards best-on-best once again, and MLB handing out gargantuan contracts in the middle of their off-season. Plus, they chat about Canada Soccer and get into the many (many) college football bowl games. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

It's official, the first international WNBA franchise has a name: the Toronto Tempo! With the name and logo out in the world, Donnovan chats with Teresa Resch (2:01), Tempo President, on what went into the naming process, the colour scheme selection, the reaction to the name/logo being accidentally leaked, and the timelines behind what comes next. Afterwards, Donnovan takes a look at the wide world of Formula One racing, and chats with The Athletic's F1 senior writer Luke Smith (43:08) about the F1 season wrapping up - they discuss what was an unpredictable season in many ways, including Lewis Hamilton deciding to drive for Ferrari and General Motors announcing they will soon enter the grid as a new team. Toronto Tempo Website: https://tempo.wnba.com/ Bringing Home The W Podcast: https://bringing-home-the-w.simplecast.com/ Luke Smith's F1 Book 'On The Grid': https://linktr.ee/onthegridf1book The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Donnovan takes a trip back to his Scarborough roots, where the Giants of Africa Foundation hosted an all-girls basketball clinic in the neighbourhood of Malvern. He speaks to the Raptors' Masai Ujiri (1:20), the creator and founder of GoA, and the coaches of the two teams in Team Canada's Kia Nurse (8:56) and Tamara Tatham (15:49) - they discuss the many reasons why these events are important, the impact Giants of Africa is having in both Canada and abroad in Africa as well, and Tamara gets into her own Scarborough roots, having grown up not too far from where the clinic took place. Afterwards, Donnovan chats with Scarborough native and Paralympian Marissa Papaconstantinou (23:13), as the Scarborough Health Network (SHN) is raising funds to better serve the 25% of Toronto that live in the east end - they discuss her upbringing, including how she received her care at SHN while growing up with her disability in Scarborough. Donate to Giants of Africa: https://giantsofafrica.org/donate/ Donate to SHN: https://www.shnfoundation.ca/ The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

The PWHL returns for another year, complete with team names and logos, and as the teams hit the ice, Donnovan chats with the league's SVP of Hockey Operations and Hockey Hall of Famer Jayna Hefford (3:05) - they get into what went into the success of the league's inaugural season, what next steps look like, and how they continue to grow both the league and hockey at-large. Afterwards, Donnovan chats with Canadian composer Andrew Lockington (25:08), who is behind Amazon's Monday Night NHL theme song - they discuss what goes into making an iconic theme song, how he became a composer in the first place, and shares some love for his favourite hockey team, the Toronto Maple Leafs. Plus, with American Thanksgiving giving viewers more NFL games than usual, Donnovan and Sho chat with Andrew Brandt (44:23), former NFL VP with the Packers and now host of the Business of Sports podcast - they get into the running back resurgence across the league (including monster years for Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, and Josh Jacobs) and discuss the rise in international games over the years. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

With the calendar almost ready to flip over to 2025, Donnovan looks ahead at the coming year for Canadian soccer at all levels - to start, he's joined by former CFL Commissioner Mark Cohon (3:04), who has recently signed on to join the new Northern Super League as chair of its board of directors. What will the inaugural season look like in the spring and how do you manage a new group of team owners? Afterwards, Donnovan chats with Kristian Jack, Vice President of Media for the Canadian Premier League and broadcaster on OneSoccer (25:00) - they discuss the recently concluded CPL season, Jesse Marsch and the men's national team competing in the CONCACAF Nations League tournament, the recent Canada Soccer independent review, and their beloved Three Lions getting set to finally replace Gareth Southgate with Thomas Tuchel in the new year. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

With Vince Carter's no. 15 now hanging in the rafters at Scotiabank Arena, Donnovan brings on his old pal Joseph Casciaro, writer and podcaster at The Score, to re-examine the legacy of one of the Raptors' most famous (and infamous) players. They discuss the ceremony itself, including shoutouts from Carter's former teammates, the waterworks, the speech, and also get into some other off-court comments, including Drake and DeMar DeRozan having a disagreement about who goes up next. Plus, they also take a look around the world of basketball, including the recent locker-room conduct discourse involving Joel Embiid. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Donnovan sits down with hockey legend Jarome Iginla (1:50) for a conversation inspired by a new content series called 'Skipped Exits', in partnership with Lincoln Canada. It’s a series about unconventional paths to success, about the exits we take and the exits we skip on the road to sometimes-unexpected destinations in life - Donnovan and Jarome speak about his own unique and unexpected experiences, including his path as a multi-sport athlete early in life, his son Tij getting drafted into the NHL this past year, and reminisces about assisting Sidney Crosby on the golden goal back in 2010. Afterwards, Donnovan chats with Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman (27:58), as the guys discuss the recent retirement of Vince Carter's jersey at Scotiabank Arena, how it compared to the return of Mats Sundin, and get into the idea of the growth of sport at the grassroots level when it comes to multi-sport athletes. Plus, they discuss the coming Four Nations Cup and the return of best-on-best international hockey - who's the team to beat? This episode of Going Deep is brought to you by the all-new 2025 Lincoln Aviator. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

With trades flying left and right, Donnovan chats with famed NFL agent Leigh Steinberg on how agents help players navigate the world of getting traded, and what the relationship is with front offices at this time of year (2:34). Afterwards, Donnovan is joined by former CFL kicker and Grey Cup champion Dan Giancola, who is the author of 'Be That One: Why Does It Have To Be Someone Else, Why Not Me?', detailing the triumphs of his own life and tells people that they can be anything they want, no matter how big the obstacle (20:42). Plus, Donnovan chats with Olympic gold medallist and now-television host Jon Montgomery, who has partnered with Movember to raise awareness around men's health issues (38:07). The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

The 2024-25 Toronto Raptors season has officially tipped off on Sportsnet, and with it has come a partnership with a number of Canadian artists from around the country. Before it all began, Donnovan travelled to the network recording to chat with three of them: Choclair (3:23), Rochester AKA Juice (21:08), and Paris (34:33). He spoke with all three of them on their NBA and Raptors fandom, the evolution of their music, and what it means to collaborate with a major sports network in Sportsnet. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

With the release of the PWHL schedule, Donnovan chats with The Hockey News' Ian Kennedy (2:05) on the storylines that await the league's second season. Ian also gets into the recent release of his latest book, 'Ice in Their Veins: Women’s Relentless Pursuit of the Puck', available wherever books are sold. Afterwards, Donnovan is joined by the CEO of Canadian Women & Sport Allison Sandmeyer-Graves (40:40) to discuss a recent collaboration and efforts to build a sustainable pro women's sport industry in Canada - how does growth continue to happen at all levels? PWHL 2024-25 Schedule: https://www.thepwhl.com/en/stats/schedule/all-teams/5/all-months The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.