The Big Lead - At ESPN’s Super Bowl party last night in Indianapolis, apparently Massachusetts boys Ryen Russillo (ESPN) and John Dennis (WEEI) nearly started the fight they should have had seven years ago.  The 2005 backstory: Allegedly, Russillo was at a party in Boston and is rumored to have hit on a female. This female was the daughter of John Dennis. Naturally, Dennis wasn’t too thrilled – it’s unknown what else Russillo may have said – but he ended up leaving Russillo an expletive-filled voicemail …According to someone who was at the ESPN party Friday night, the two ran into each other again, words were exchanged, and they nearly came to blows.

@ryenarussillo

Always know, that when you looked in my eyes, you wanted nothing to do with me,you are a liar, and a fake tough guy

@JohnDennisWEEI

U were stumbling drunk, legless, & unintelligible. U embarrassed urself & #ESPN & got thrown out by security. #alcoholic

@ryenarussillo

That’s one version, why didn’t you follow through on your promise? You threatened me, had me fired and then backed down.

@JohnDennisWEEI


Ur friends/colleagues have LONG said Ur a real bad drunk. SVP apologized saying u were way out of line. Get some help #callAA

The important things to remember here are NOT who’s right and who’s wrong.  Who’s a fake tough guy and who is a drunken embarrassment to himself.  What matters here is that we recognize the site that gave the world that voicemail: A little site with big future ahead of it named Barstool Sports. And that it’s always fun to look back the Stool’s humble beginnings, so I went down to the archives, talked to the 900 year old knight who guards all that early stuff and he gave me the voicemail and Dave’s original blog about it. This was the breaking news that got the Barstool Radio Hour taken off the air and made Bill Simmons tell us we’ll get a lot of attention from this so we should try to write good blogs.  All that really counts here is that we recognize the Stool is what started this war that still rages today.  And that, when two Boston media guys get into an angry flame war, it’s a fight that we all win.  @JerryThornton1