The Rundown: The Ultimate Podcast for Sports Event Presentation

Since 1994, Don Costante has produced more than 3,000 live events for premier sports organizations, including MLB, NBA, WNBA, AHL, NAIA, EPL, and NCAA. With over 30 years of industry leadership, he is a nationally recognized expert and the author of Beyond the Scoreboard: The Ultimate Guide to Sports Event Presentation (SBJ Publishing). Renowned for his meticulous execution and strategic insight, Don consistently delivers best-in-class experiences that elevate every facet of the live event environment. The Rundown Podcast is your go-to source for sports event presentation, featuring behind-the-scenes insights from top professionals across the sports and entertainment industry. Each episode explores the strategies and creative tactics that drive unforgettable live experiences.

Set the Tone: The Impact of Team Introductions 08/04/2025

Set the Tone: The Impact of Team Introductions Season 3 kicks off with Jason Lodato joining Don for a conversation on the strategy and creativity behind unforgettable fan experiences. From his early days in the industry to leading game presentation for top teams and iconic venues, Jason shares how his journey shaped his event presentation philosophy and approach to gamedays. The episode takes a deep dive into one of the most climactic moments in sports—the team introduction. Hear how Jason brings this high-energy moment to life to ignite the crowd, set the tone for the game, and elevate the overall fan experience. /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/37594975

Interview with Sharon delPilar 11/05/2021

Interview with Sharon delPilar In this episode, Don interviews Sharon delPilar who shares her path to becoming the Production Stage Manager for Magic Mike Live. Listen as Sharon illustrates the differences between stage management and production stage management and provides a behind-the-scenes look at what she does for the show. Also, she identifies the skillset required to be successful in this field, outlines her self-development strategy, offers some resources for anyone looking to become more marketable, and much more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/21064703

Interview with Chad Folkestad 08/17/2021

Interview with Chad Folkestad In this episode, Don has a conversation with Chad Folkestad who shares his career path, event presentation philosophy, and talks candidly about storytelling and the creative process he utilizes to generate award-winning content. Listen as Chad illustrates his methods for creating an organic environment that relies heavily on spontaneity. They touch on a variety of topics including… keys to great storytelling, getting players to “buy in” to projects, tactics for generating content ideas, facilitating meaningful ideation sessions, getting ideas approved through leadership, and much more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/20172653

Interview with Andrew Johnson 07/14/2021

Interview with Andrew Johnson In this episode, Don interviews Andrew Johnson who shares his path to becoming the mascot performer for the Houston Texans. Listen as Andrew breaks down the three areas every great mascot should focus on. Also, he provides advice to those who manage mascots, identifies the ideal skillset for performers, points out some of the biggest mistakes made by mascots today and much more! If you’re a mascot, someone who oversees a mascot program, or you enjoy a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the sports industry… you’re going to love this discussion! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/19812017

Interview with Ahmaad Crump 05/11/2021

Interview with Ahmaad Crump In this episode, Don has a conversation with 16-year NBA in-arena host veteran, Ahmaad Crump. Listen as Ahmaad shares his experience and talks openly about his path to becoming an emcee for the Cleveland Cavaliers. During their conversation, they touch on several topics including communication between Game Director and Emcee, handling situations with multiple hosts, advice on becoming a successful emcee, common mistakes, and much more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/19070006

Tim Tubito, National Football League 04/06/2021

Tim Tubito, National Football League Don has a conversation with Tim Tubito who shares his event presentation philosophy and takes listeners “behind-the-shield” revealing the NFL’s methodology in facilitating two of their large-scale events… the NFL Draft and the Super Bowl. Tim uncovers logistical details that illustrate exactly why the NFL is considered a leader in the sports and entertainment industry. Tim provides insight into his role as Club Liaison, the pandemic’s impact on the NFL Draft and Super Bowl, and much more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/18626873

Interview with Michelle McComas 03/09/2021

Interview with Michelle McComas In this episode, Don interviews Michelle McComas who shares her career path, event presentation philosophy, and reveals entertainment best practices that have helped position the Chicago Bulls as a leader in the NBA. Listen as Michelle speaks passionately about her strategy for utilizing and incorporating entertainment resources, development and recruitment of talent, the creative process for performances, importance of branding, how she measures success and much more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/18253688

Interview with Sean Belgrade 02/01/2021

Interview with Sean Belgrade There’s one sporting event that goes beyond traditional fan engagement and totally immerses its spectators into the fabric of their brand like none other… The Daytona 500. In this episode, Don interviews Sean Belgrade, Managing Director of Consumer Experience for NASCAR, who shares his event presentation philosophy and takes listeners behind-the-scenes of the Daytona 500, uncovering logistical details that have elevated the fan experience to mirror the prestige of the race itself. /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/17778098

Interview with Brian Clapp 01/11/2021

Interview with Brian Clapp Don and Brian talk candidly about the job search process. Listen as they discuss several job seeking tactics that may get you thinking differently about the way you approach the sports industry’s job market. They touch on important topics including the first step you should take before starting a job search, construction of a resume, impact of a cover letter, effective strategy for building a professional network, and much more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/17509565

Robert Alberino, Award-Winning Director 12/14/2020

Robert Alberino, Award-Winning Director In this episode, Don has a conversation with Rob Alberino who shares his approach to achieving award-winning content. A variety of storytelling topics are covered including how to generate initial concepts for stories, ingredients of a great story, workflow during the creative process, importance of developing characters, how to get players and fans to participate and achieve desired results, the impact a great editor has on storytelling, and advice on developing one’s storytelling ability! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/17190935

Interview with Maurice “Mo” Brazelton 11/16/2020

Interview with Maurice “Mo” Brazelton In this interview with Don, Maurice shares his event presentation philosophy and provides a behind-the-scenes look at the NBA Bubble and the steps taken by the NBA to ensure proper execution of game operations. During their discussion, Maurice details the days leading up to the bubble, the NBA’s communication process, the comprehensive health and safety protocols, the on-site preparation and execution of gamedays, the technology that was utilized, life for staff inside the bubble, activism and much more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/16831013

Jonny Greco, Seattle Kraken 10/14/2020

Jonny Greco, Seattle Kraken In this episode, Don has a conversation with Jonny Greco who shares his game presentation philosophy and reveals his methodology for tackling the startup process with a new franchise. Listen as Jonny reflects on the lessons he learned from Vegas, how he plans to approach the gameday experience for Seattle, sheds some light on his creative process, provides insight into the facilitation of his ideation sessions, explains the importance of proper execution, and more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/16402535

Self-Development Tip with Lumenbrite 09/10/2020

Self-Development Tip with Lumenbrite In this episode, Don has a candid conversation with Anthony Bueno who is an Adobe Certified Trainer and Lead Consultant with Lumenbrite. Listen as Don talks about the benefits of learning creative software and the impact it has on him professionally. During their discussion, they talk about maximizing the potential of software that spark creative and innovative thinking! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/15964118

Danelle Winfield, Los Angeles Sparks 08/14/2020

Danelle Winfield, Los Angeles Sparks In this episode, Don interviews Danelle Winfield who shares her career path, event presentation philosophy, and reveals best practices that have helped position the Los Angeles Sparks as a leader in the WNBA. Listen as Danelle speaks passionately about understanding your audience, developing team chemistry with staff, the importance of passing knowledge forward and more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/15605162

Duncan Wardle, Former Head of Innovation and Creativity for The Walt Disney Company 07/15/2020

Duncan Wardle, Former Head of Innovation and Creativity for The Walt Disney Company This episode features Former Head of Innovation and Creativity for The Walt Disney Company, Duncan Wardle. During this interview with Don, Duncan shares his philosophy and some tools from his Design Thinking Innovation Toolkit. He explains what what’s wrong with marketing today, identifies the right mindset required for innovation, describes the key barriers to innovation and creativity, highlights several creative behaviors that enhance the collaboration and creativity process, and much more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/15221897

Tracy Allen, Walt Disney Company & Ace Productions 06/16/2020

Tracy Allen, Walt Disney Company & Ace Productions In this interview, Tracy Allen shares his best audio practices as we discuss our days working together in the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs. Listen as Tracy takes us behind-the-scenes of being an audio director for the Spurs and reveals his philosophy and techniques that has made him the best in the business. /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/14852843

Diane Ferranti, Detroit Pistons 05/07/2020

Diane Ferranti, Detroit Pistons This episode features Emmy Award Winning Producer and 2019 Information Display & Entertainment Association (IDEA) Hall of Fame member, Diane Ferranti. During this interview with Don, Diane details her event presentation philosophy, provides insight into managing staff, outlines her formula for creating impactful team introductions, gives the secret to developing successful contests, discusses digital production, highlights the latest technology she’s most excited about and more! /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/14329901

Q&A with Don Costante 04/20/2020

Q&A with Don Costante Don answers questions submitted by listeners. Hear Don’s insight on a variety of topics that include: issues switching from NBA to MLB, using activations from one sport to another, what to do if you can’t secure a full-time position, can’t get “hands-on” producing experience but want to be a producer, ideal skill set for a producer, suggestions for how to ideate in-game elements, finding alignment with team operations, and how to combat negative statements that prevent innovation and more. /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/14068076

Jackie Maldonado, Houston Texans 03/13/2020

Jackie Maldonado, Houston Texans In this interview, Don chats with Jackie Maldonado who shares the Houston Texans event presentation philosophy and also provides her incredible insight into what it takes to produce an NFL game, establish effective communication (both on and off the field) and facilitate a first-class halftime performance. Additionally, Jackie goes into great detail as to her path into the sports industry and offers tremendous advice to those looking to get into the industry as well as those already in positions. /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/13536908

Scott Cunningham, Atlanta Braves 02/10/2020

Scott Cunningham, Atlanta Braves Don interviews Scott Cunningham who shares his event presentation philosophy and takes you behind the scenes giving you full access to the inner workings of the Atlanta Braves off-season planning process, partnership integration strategy and development of a new mascot program. Topics include staff involvement, upper management’s role, collaboration, creative process, communication, maintaining control over in-game inventory, promotions, challenges and more. /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/13090358

Chris Miles, Professional Emcee/Host 01/14/2020

Chris Miles, Professional Emcee/Host Hear from one of the best emcees in the business. In this episode, Don interviews Chris Miles and goes in-depth into what it takes to be a successful emcee. Topics discussed include Chris’ path to the mic, the preparation required before an event, tips on how to deliver a performance that connects with the audience, what separates a good host from one that is extraordinary, advice to those who oversee emcees, his overall philosophy and much more. /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/12691097

The Rundown Podcast Introduction 01/14/2020

The Rundown Podcast Introduction Since 1994, with more than 2,000 events produced Don Costante has created authentic experiences for premier sports organizations such as MLB, NBA, WNBA, AHL, NAIA, EPL, NCAA and others. /episode/index/show/costantegroup/id/12736781

The Rundown: The Ultimate Podcast for Sports Event Presentation

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