Matt and Paul are back, and this week they're hanging out with San Francisco 49ers legend and three-time Super Bowl champion Randy Cross! But first, the guys catch up on Paul's European adventures and Matt's trip to the Nashville Film Festival. Then it's time for a beloved new San Francisco Giants October tradition: watching former Giants play meaningful postseason baseball for literally anybody but the Giants. It's a magical time of year when the leaves change, the playoffs heat up, and Giants fans get to watch their exes thrive. Nothing says October in San Francisco quite like watching everybody else have fun.

(13:20) Then Matt and Paul sit down with Randy Cross for a hilarious, nostalgic trip through the golden age of San Francisco 49ers football. Randy was there before Joe Montana, before Bill Walsh, before the championships, when the 49ers were still trying to figure out how to win a football game. He takes the guys back to his UCLA days, upsetting Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, getting drafted by San Francisco in 1976, and watching Bill Walsh transform a struggling franchise into an NFL dynasty. Randy shares behind-the-scenes stories from The Catch, the legendary goal-line stand against the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XVI, the wild celebration after winning his first championship, and the nearly perfect 1984 season. He also reveals what it was like being a rock star in 1980s San Francisco, including wild nights out with Joe Montana, Dwight Clark and Ronnie Lott. Plus, the toughest defensive lineman he ever faced, the most underrated 49er he played with, which teammate he'd want beside him in a bar fight, and why he decided to retire on top. And because this is Beat LA, things eventually go completely off the rails. Randy talks about his iconic Miller Lite commercials, his unlikely connection to WWF wrestling star Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, whether professional wrestling ever came calling, and his broadcasting career with CBS and NBC, including a hilarious Hank Stram story. The guys also get Randy's take on Kyle Shanahan, Brock Purdy and today's 49ers, including the biggest factors that could make or break their Super Bowl chances.

Later, the guys return with their predictions for the 49ers' upcoming showdown with the Atlanta Falcons. Can the Niners stay undefeated? Matt says yes, while Paul goes to The Neg Zone and says no. Then in Best Things They Saw, Matt dives into the return of Netflix's The Diplomat, the new Josh Hartnett series Below, and HBO's War, where Sienna Miller proves she's still got it. Paul apparently hosted his own international film festival at 35,000 feet, catching F1, the Michael Jackson movie, the Oasis documentary, and Hokum on his flights to and from Europe. All that and more on another episode of Beat LA, where the football takes are questionable, the movie reviews are unsolicited, and the Giants are already on vacation.

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Hosts: Matt Ferrucci & Paul Ruehl

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Matt and Paul are back with a great interview with former 49ers wide receiver Trent Taylor. But before the guys get to Trent, they check in on the final days of one of the most miserable San Francisco Giants seasons in recent memory and debate whether almost losing 100 games might actually have been the best thing for the franchise. Then it’s time for Paul’s Super Bowl, the US Open. The guys debate whether Ben Shelton has officially taken the next step as a legitimate Grand Slam contender and Sascha Zverev’s hilarious post match interaction with Shelton’s girlfriend Trinity Rodman. Plus, has the US Open gotten too big for its own good? Matt and Paul get into the three in the morning matches, the commercialization of the tournament, influencers taking over Arthur Ashe and whether making tennis less stuffy has turned the US Open into Coachella.

(17:00) Then Matt and Paul sit down with former 49ers wide receiver and Louisiana Tech legend Trent Taylor for a hilarious, wide ranging conversation about life in the NFL. Trent breaks down the 49ers hot start and what he sees in Brock Purdy that fans might miss, takes the guys inside the Kyle Shanahan offense, and tells stories from coming into the league alongside his best friend George Kittle. Trent also looks back on the arrival of Jimmy Garoppolo and Trent’s infamous “flu game” in Chicago, playing in a Super Bowl with Joe Burrow and the Bengals, his welcome to the NFL moment, returning to San Francisco for a second stint with the Niners, and what really goes through a receiver’s head when the rest of us are sitting on the couch wondering what the hell just happened. Plus, Trent talks retirement, what’s next and why scouting might eventually be in his future.

(1:06:12) Later, Matt and Paul make their 49ers vs. Dolphins predictions and in Best Things They Saw, the fellas review the FX show Furious, which might be the show of the summer, Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen Season 2, and The Shards, an FX series they somehow managed to hate watch all the way to the bitter end.

Thanks for listening! Don’t forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, TikTok and Instagram.

Hosts: Matt Ferrucci & Paul Ruehl

Follow, Subscribe & Watch the Show on:

Watch Episodes on YouTube!
Instagram: @beatlapodcast
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Follow Matt Ferrucci on Instagram: @matt_ferrucci

Follow Paul Ruehl on Instagram: @llruehlj

Website: https://www.beatlapodcast.com/

Matt and Paul are back with an all-timer as 49ers legend and four-time Super Bowl champion Jesse Sapolu joins the show. Four rings. Fifteen seasons. Montana. Young. Walsh. Candlestick. This one’s for the Faithful. But first, the guys dive into the latest Bay Area sports chaos, including the Giants somehow finding a new rock bottom, Rafael Devers continuing to mash after the season has been mathematically, spiritually and emotionally decided, and whether there’s finally some legitimate hope coming from the farm system. Plus, the Warriors actually make a couple moves, adding Georges Niang and Brandon Williams, and the guys congratulate Klay Thompson as he heads to Miami.

(18:12) Then Matt and Paul welcome Jesse Sapolu for a wide-ranging trip through one of the greatest eras in NFL history. Jesse takes the guys back to being an 11th-round draft pick out of the University of Hawaii and walking into Bill Walsh’s building. He shares what made Bill Walsh such a brilliant coach and gives an incredible inside look at playing alongside Joe Montana and Steve Young during the 49ers dynasty years. He tells the story of Montana spotting John Candy in the stands during the legendary Super Bowl XXIII game-winning drive, reflects on winning four Super Bowls, explains why beating the Dallas Cowboys in the 1994 NFC Championship Game meant more than beating the Chargers in the Super Bowl that followed, and shares what it was really like playing in the trenches during an era when football was a very different game.

The conversation comes full circle to today’s 49ers, as Jesse breaks down Brock Purdy, the offensive line, the pass rush, Kyle Shanahan and whether this team has what it takes to make another Super Bowl run in 2026. Jesse also talks about the growth of Polynesian players throughout football, his work with the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame and Men In The Trenches, and what it means to help develop the next generation. It’s nearly an hour with a guy who didn’t just witness 49ers history. He was standing right in the middle of it.

Thanks for listening! Don’t forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, TikTok and Instagram.

Hosts: Matt Ferrucci & Paul Ruehl

Follow, Subscribe & Watch the Show on:

Watch Episodes on YouTube!
Instagram: @beatlapodcast
TikTok: @beat.la.podcast

Email the show at: beatlapodcast@gmail.com

Follow Matt Ferrucci on Instagram: @matt_ferrucci

Follow Paul Ruehl on Instagram: @llruehlj

Website: https://www.beatlapodcast.com/