KICKABOUT: Talking Tennessee Football (& Fútbol) w/ "JUAN WARD" • #44

Knox Soccer Podcast

You’ve heard his viral Twitter commentaries, now listen to Carlos Lopez—the man who Tennessee sports fans are affectionately calling “Juan Ward”—share his story.

An immigrant from Venezuela, Lopez found a home on the (American) football field as a student at Seymour High School. He went on to play for Carson-Newman University and MTSU before becoming only the third Venezuelan to sign a professional gridiron football contract (he played briefly for the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League).

Since 2014, Lopez has been a kicking coach for powerhouse Alcoa High School. He’s now making his move into Spanish-language commentary, after his live video of a Tennessee touchdown during its big win over Alabama went viral in October.

Our very own passionate (i.e., crazy) Hispanic commentator Brian goes one-on-one with Carlos in this intimate, high-energy, and first-ever SPANGLISH KICKABOUT episode, featuring a WORLD CUP FINAL prediction!

[This episode was recorded on Wednesday, Nov 9, so go check out the Tennessee basketball video that Carlos teased about!]

Related links:

* Carlos Lopez on WBIR during Hispanic Heritage Month 2019 to talk about coaching Alcoa football

* Carlos on WVLT after his videos commentating on Tennessee touchdowns during the Kentucky game

* Popular Twitter videos: the first viral video; Juan Ward compilation

* Brian’s essay, “The Redemption Song of Lionel Messi,” after Argentina won the 2021 Copa America.

Follow Carlos on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit knoxsoccerpodcast.substack.com