Welcome to the Jungle (and by Jungle, I mean the internet). If you just stumbled into Nightcaps for the first time — don’t worry, you’re not lost. Pull up a chair, grab an adult beverage (or a frosty Diet Coke, whatever works), and let’s get into it.
If Joe Kinsey’s Screencaps is your morning coffee and “Real America” talk radio, consider Nightcaps your happy hour. This is where we decompress from the chaos of the day.
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I’m Amber, and I live in Nashville. Well, a suburb of Nashville. I’m an avid hiker, a tortured Tennessee Vols and Miami Dolphins fan, and I take my dog everywhere. He’s a rescue German Shepherd named Rocky. You’ll hear about him a lot.
God, is this starting to sound like a dating profile? I do like long walks on the beach, too, by the way… with my husband. You can leave me out of that Vrabel-Russini mess. More on that later.
Anyway, Nightcaps is a community, which means we actually want to hear from you. Agree with me? Think I’m off my rocker? Have something to say about one of the stories we cover? Want to vent about something or show off your cool dog? Reach out.
Nothing is off limits. Just… don’t make it weird.
Here’s where you can find me:
📩 Email: amber.harding@outkick.com
Send your thoughts, stories, tips, rants and photos of your dog.
🐦 Twitter/X: @TheAmberHarding
📸 Instagram: @amberharding
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, kick back and let’s do some Nightcaps.
Ella Langley is on top of the world. Her hit “Choosin’ Texas” is already the longest-running country No. 1 single by a woman in Hot 100 history (7 weeks). And now, she now has the No. 1 album in the U.S. with Dandelion.
Over the weekend, Ella jumped on stage with Morgan Wallen at Bryant-Denny Stadium (barf) to debut a new song, “I Can’t Love You Anymore,” which will be released on Friday.
That barf was for Alabama, by the way, not for Langley or Wallen. The song is lovely.
But — because some people can’t just enjoy things — the Internet outrage mob is losing its mind. How dare Ella associate herself with “MAGA Morgan Wallen“?!
I have no idea what Morgan’s political affiliation is, actually. If he’s said so publicly, I missed it. But the Left loves to take anyone they don’t like and call them MAGA. Even if they aren’t. Let’s peek at the top comments on that post!
Weird that you’re playing Kid Rocks Klan rally concert. Thought you were better than that.
Oh ok maga
Ew, MAGA.
Girl we were ALL rooting for u 😩 why u gotta be maga
Hope everything tanks for now that you’re a big trump supporter. Enjoy the fame while you can rodent.
Ah, yes. These are the words of sane people. Calling Ella Langley a “rodent” because she had the audacity to perform a song with one of the biggest stars in the industry.
Oh well, Ella’s not sweating it. While the miserable bridge trolls of the internet are seething, she’s celebrating her No. 1 song AND No. 1 album in a bikini on the lake.
Good for you, Ella.
If you’re wondering if married Mike Vrabel is sorry about getting caught at a luxury couples resort in Sedona — linking hands and soaking in the hot tub with married Dianna Russini — he is not. He is sorry, though, that those pesky photos took the attention away from football.
“I’ve had some difficult conversations with people that I care about, with my family, the organization, the coaches, the players. Those have been positive and productive,” Vrabel told reporters at the start of his first press conference since the saga and photos attached to it became public.
“We believe in order to be successful on and off the field, you have to make a good decisions. That includes me. That starts with me. I never want our actions to negatively affect the team. We never want to be the cause of a distraction.”
That’s about as personal as you’re gonna get from Mike Vrabel. So if you were expecting some sort of heartfelt admission or him groveling on his knees, I have several bridges to sell you.
PATRIOTS COACH BREAKS SILENCE ON DIANNA RUSSINI PHOTOS THAT LED TO ‘DIFFICULT CONVERSATIONS’
I haven’t really weighed in on this whole Vrabel-Russini saga. I don’t personally know either of these individuals, and it’s none of my business to try and say with authority what happened at that resort.
But I will tell you a true story. Back when I covered the Arizona Diamondbacks for MLB.com, I was driving cross-country from my parents’ house in Indiana to my home in Phoenix. I stopped overnight at a hotel in Albuquerque. I was out walking my dog when — unbelievably — I ran into one of the D-backs players. In Albuquerque! He was also walking his dog, he was also driving cross-country back to Phoenix, and he happened to be staying at the same hotel. What are the odds?
Anyway, we hugged and said hello. We chatted in the parking lot for 5-10 minutes while our dogs sniffed each other, and then we said see ya later, alligator, and retired to our separate rooms. We did not interlock fingers, and we certainly did not enjoy the evening together in the hot tub.
So all I’m saying is that if I were Dianna Russini and I were innocent (as she claims to be), there’s absolutely no way I would resign and give up my job and my livelihood. I would produce the receipt to show I had my own hotel reservation. And I would produce photos of my friends who were supposedly on this “girls’ hiking trip” with me.
…unless, of course, those receipts and photos didn’t exist. And that’s all I’ll say about that.
Not that I’m giving Vrabel a pass, by the way. But sadly, “pro athlete/coach cheats on wife” is about as shocking a statement as “the sky is blue.” And frankly, they aren’t beholden to a journalistic code of ethics.
Natisha Hiedeman — who plays for the WNBA’s Seattle Storm — just discovered Mount Rainier.
No, really, she just realized it was there.
My sister in Christ, that is a mountain.
Now, in Natisha’s defense, she only just joined the team about a week ago, so she’s new to Seattle. But she says she never realized there was a mountain despite sitting “mad times” on her balcony.
Naturally, people in the comments had a heyday.
Now, I’ve never been to Seattle, so I can’t pretend to be an expert on Mount Rainier. However, after a little digging, I have learned that Natisha’s revelation actually isn’t that weird. In fact, there’s a whole website — called “Is Mount Rainier Out?” — dedicated to letting people know whether you can see the mountain or if it’s shielded due to fog, clouds, rain and various other weather conditions.
So it’s entirely possible that this is the first time she’s seen Rainier in the week she’s been there. However, I’m surprised no one told her it was there. Or she’s never seen a photo?
You know what they say about 14,000-foot-tall active volcanoes, though. They’ll sneak up on you.
Speaking of mountains! For those who are new here, I’m also the person behind OutKick Outdoors, where we cover everything from hunting and fishing to camping, hiking, extreme sports, wildlife boating and drinking beers on patios.
If that sounds like your jam, be sure to give us a follow on Instagram and TikTok. So, among other content, you can see cool videos like this:
Here’s an Outdoors story from last week: Meet Lincoln, The Real Bald Eagle Behind The Super Bowl’s Best Commercial.
Jon C. Writes: Enjoyed the story about Lincoln. Here is a tangent story that I’m surprised doesn’t happen more often.
My former hometown of Shreveport hosts the Independence Bowl. One year featured Air Force vs Ga Tech. Of course AF brings their falcon to fly around the stadium pre-game. Handler lets it loose, it circles a few times then disappears. It was found sometime in the 3rd quarter downtown hunting pigeons. Retrieved and taken back home to Colorado.
Dane Writes: Big fan of the site and great article on Tuesday afternoon. I especially liked the shoutouts and videos of the pups. Especially the San Diego LEO K9 in San Diego, then, followed by Smokey the Bluetick.
Those GSD’s and Belgians LEO pups are truly incredible. Fearless when going after bad guys, then sniffing out narcotics coming into the U.S.
As a Coonhound lover myself, with several as members of the family over the years, I had to attach a current pic of Mildred, my TWC.
I’m a local photographer here in PHX and had the pleasure of helping out the K9 Legacy Foundation in Sahuarita, AZ, over the weekend. They had their annual golf tournament fundraiser over the weekend. I recall you having a soft-spot for GSD’s and Belgians, so here’s a few pics attached of some retired pups from local LEO’s down near the US/Mexico border off I-19 who showed up to the fundraiser to get some belly rubs.
These guys and gals at the K9 Legacy Foundation are a 501(c)(3) organization in Southern AZ, who help LEO K9’s and their handlers/families handle any vet costs and end-of-life costs that they incur during the dog’s service and also even in retirement. Great cause. Those pups give everything, and the foundation gives them their legacy.
Amber:
Awesome organization. Awesome cause. Awesome dogs.
A few more working canines, while we’re at it:
That’s Dale’s word, not mine. And he’s the cutest alleged terrorist I’ve ever seen.
OutKick Nightcaps is a daily column set to run Monday through Friday at 4 p.m.
