Photo Courtesy: Jason Eaker/Oklahoma Baptist University)
THIS IS EPISODE 183 OF THE SPORTS SPECTRUM PODCAST
Jason Eaker joined Oklahoma Baptist as the head men’s basketball coach in April 2018. Eaker, who spent one season in a Bison uniform before finishing his playing days at Hardin-Simmons University, grew up attending to OBU games. His father, Allen Eaker, is an OBU Athletics Hall of Famer who played on the 1966 OBU national championship basketball team.
Eaker came to OBU from Mercer, where he was an assistant coach beginning in 2013. He has 15 years of coaching experience, including nine years as an NCAA Division I assistant coach. He has been in the postseason six times with three different programs, and has recruited or developed 16 players that have earned All-Conference honors.
Eaker previously worked as an assistant coach at Liberty University from 2007-2013, after being director of basketball operations for the Flames from 2005-2007.
Eaker spent a year as Kelvin Sampson’s graduate assistant at the University of Oklahoma in the 2004-05 season, and started his basketball staff career as a video coordinator at Texas Pan-American in 2003-04.
In Part 2 of our two-part conversation, Eaker opens up about a mistake he made that led to him stepping away from coaching. He shares why he did what he did, and the lessons he’s learned from God about healing, reconciliation and redemption.
“You can’t just tell a player to “be confident”. Confidence is only learned & developed through hours & hours in the gym. Confidence is knowledge gained from deliberate repetition.” @CoachJonBeck
THIS IS THE SPORTS SPECTRUM PODCAST HOSTED BY SCOTT LINEBRINK & JASON ROMANO, FEATURING MASON MILLER
Mason Miller is the stud closer for the San Diego Padres. He was originally selected by the Oakland A’s in the third round of the 2021 MLB Draft after a college career at Division-III Waynesburg University and one year at Division-I Gardner Webb. He made his MLB debut in April 2023, and in 2024 was named to the American League All-Star team. In July 2025 he was traded to the Padres, and in 2026 he was named to Team USA’s World Baseball Classic roster.
Today on the podcast, Mason Miller joins Jason Romano and Scott Linebrink to talk about throwing 104 mph, his newfound stardom, finding identity outside of baseball, growing in his faith, what “Jesus Won” means to him, and the experience of being traded in 2025 from the Athletics to the Padres.
San Antonio Spurs forward Harrison Barnes, Feb. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)
From 2012-2016, Harrison Barnes was a key piece of a Golden State Warriors team that went to the postseason four straight years and the NBA Finals twice. He averaged 33.0 minutes, 8.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game in the 2015 Finals for the squad that won the world championship.
Now at 34 years old, he’s back in the NBA Finals for the first time in a decade, this time with a new team and a much different role. After starting 52 games during the 2025-26 regular season for the San Antonio Spurs, he’s made no starts this postseason and is averaging 8.5 minutes with no points during the Finals. His role now is more as the wily veteran helping provide leadership to a young Spurs team led by emerging stars like 22-year-old Victor Wembanyama, 21-year-old Stephon Castle and 20-year-old rookie Dylan Harper.
The Spurs are back in the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014, and Barnes is grateful to have another crack at winning a title. Though much of the team’s core is young players with the majority of their career still ahead of them, he’s reminding his teammates not to take this opportunity for granted.
“This may be the last time both teams are in the Finals for a while. We have no idea,” Barnes said after shootaround on Friday, via Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News.
The Spurs will have to dig out of a 3-1 hole after surrendering a 29-point lead that eventually led to a 107-106 New York Knicks win in Wednesday’s Game 4, the largest comeback in NBA Finals history. If the Spurs are to come back, the leadership from Barnes could be a factor.
His teammates have already noted how valuable his presence is. As they navigate this deep playoff run early in their career, the wisdom provided by someone who’s been there several times is invaluable.
“Shout out to HB,” forward Devin Vassell told the Express-News. “It’s been great for us so far and just his wisdom and his knowledge being in so many different games, Game 7s, championship games, whatever the case may be. He’s been able to just kind of calm us down and just tell us kind of what to expect.”
After a decorated three-year career at North Carolina, Barnes was drafted by the Warriors in 2012 with the No. 7 overall pick and made the All-Rookie Team. He stayed with Golden State through the 2015-16 season, when the Warriors lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Finals. He’s since played for the Dallas Mavericks and Sacramento Kings before joining the Spurs ahead of the 2024-25 season. His last playoff appearance before this season was in 2023, when he averaged 28.0 minutes and 10.7 points per game for the Kings during a first-round series loss to the Warriors.
Now in his 14th NBA season, the Ames, Iowa, native is relishing the opportunity to play in the Finals once again. He told KCCI in Des Moines, Iowa, that he didn’t expect to be back in the Finals this late in his career.
“There were a lot of years where we were missing the playoffs,” he said. “…To be here this year where we’re in the NBA Finals, it’s a very unique and special situation.”
Earlier this year, he played his 1,000th career NBA game. He said he attributes his longevity to “having a village and day-to-day work and commitment. Obviously, it starts with my faith, but also my wife, Brittany, being the rock for me,” he told KCCI.
Barnes’ faith in God has been central to his life and career, and he’s been open about sharing how important it is. He calls himself a “devout Christian” on his website, lists the Bible verse Acts 4:12 in his X bio, and writes “#IJNIP” (In Jesus’ Name I Play) in his Instagram bio.
“Money, fame, and talent can be the top priorities for most professional athletes, but for Harrison Barnes, it’s his relationship with God that comes first. He is a Christian,” his website says. “Ever since he was young he grew up in the church. His faith has always been a big reason why he plays.
“On the inside of his shoes he has TGBTG, which is ‘To God Be The Glory’ and he just plays for Him. … He just realizes it is not his work, but His.”
Barnes’ faith began to take shape in high school, thanks in part to attendance at retreats, Sunday School and Bible studies. He even led some of those Bible studies.
“I wanted to leave an impact on the school, and I wanted Christ to be represented there,” Barnes told Iowa State Daily in 2009 after committing to play at North Carolina. “So I wanted to start that Bible study just to get a coalition of believers together and also integrate non-believers in there and just have that fellowship.”
He continued later: “I try to make [God] the center of my life and then just have that infiltrate all other spheres, such as glorifying Him on the basketball floor with all the gifts that He’s given me.”
The Spurs and Knicks continue the NBA Finals back in San Antonio for Game 5 on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET.
THIS IS THE SPORTS SPECTRUM PODCAST HOSTED BY MATT FORTE, FEATURING MARK MCKENZIE
Mark McKenzie is a defender with Toulouse in France’s top league, and a member of the U.S. men’s national team preparing for the 2026 World Cup. He played college soccer at Wake Forest in 2017, and then turned pro, signing with the Philadelphia Union of MLS in 2018.
Today on the podcast, Mark McKenzie shares his God-story, takes us inside his preparation for the FIFA World Cup, and talks about what it means to represent the U.S. in the biggest soccer tournament in the world. He also shares how soccer became his sport of choice and why he places his identity in Jesus Christ.
Julie Ertz (Photo courtesy of International Justice Mission)
THIS IS THE SPORTS SPECTRUM PODCAST WITH ANNABELLE HASSELBECK, FEATURING JULIE ERTZ
Two-time World Cup winner and legendary U.S. women’s national team player Julie Ertz is our guest today with host Annabelle Hasselbeck. They talk faith, the 2026 World Cup, and Julie’s work in fighting to end slavery with International Justice Mission.
Join Julie and others in the fight to end modern slavery by visiting IJM’s Freedom To Play campaign.
