Reporter's Notebook: What The Hell is Rough And Rowdy?

For the last four years, as a USA Today sports host and reporter, my job was to cover big sporting events; set the scene, tell stories, interview athletes and provide pregame and postgame context and commentary.

In my time there, we got to see it all. I covered two World Series’, Three College Football Playoffs (including the National Championship), three Super Bowls, three Final Four’s, two NFL Drafts, two NBA Finals, the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, and two NBA Summer League’s.

As you might imagine, the fanfare is epic. The volume is through the roof. The anticipation that has been building all year is now in overdrive. And the feels. The elation of victory and the drastic let down of defeat. The burning smell of champagne wafting in the air. The squishy, wet carpet from said champagne. And confetti. There is always LOTS of confetti.

But in all of my time covering these big events, I can truly say that these experiences will pale in comparison to what I’m about to see next. Rough and Rowdy 10.

When I got to Barstool I had never heard of this event. No clue. Everyone at the office kept referencing it. Friends from DC asked me if I was going to cover “it”. I had no idea what “it” was.

So what the fuck is Rough and Rowdy?

According to what I could gather, Rough and Rowdy is an amateur fighting event. Locals from the area can sign up (as long as their not professional fighters) to enter a single elimination tournament to compete in refereed boxing matches. Most of the fighters are untrained and if you watch tape, some of the fighters look like they came straight from working in the coal mines. Washington Post called it the event “where the forgotten town dukes it out once a year”. WOW. Love it.

THAT got me interested.

I then dug a little deeper. I watched the promo video, some clips of prior fights, sideline reports… you know, all standard sports fare. Only, this was not like anything I’d ever seen before. One man was throwing haymakers in jeans. One person had milk, YES milk, thrown on them. There were Romeo and Juliet style familial feuds that turned into brawls IN THE CROWD!

Another wrinkle on this is that Dave and Big Cat commentate the whole thing, improv style. That’s worth the price of admission alone. Caleb and Rone work the sidelines and interview fighters and folks in the crowd. The spontaneous banter is AMAZING.

I’m ENTHRALLED.

I’ve now made it a personal mission to go inside, like the former journalist I am, and get the inside scoop.

This. Should. Be Wild.

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RNR 10

Rough N' Rowdy

25 videos

1
Frank The Tank & Rone Breakdown The Abel Brothers Main Event And More Matchups From Rough N' Rowdy 25

Frank The Tank & Rone Breakdown The Abel Brothers Main Event And More Matchups From Rough ...

2
WATCH: Ring Girls Flexed, MikeyBets Made The Abel Brothers Bleed, Methhead Leprechauns Showed Up And More From The RNR25 Weigh-Ins

WATCH: Ring Girls Flexed, MikeyBets Made The Abel Brothers Bleed, Methhead Leprechauns Sho...

3
My Prediction For The The Un-Abel Brothers Main Event Against Mikey Bets At Rough N' Rowdy

My Prediction For The The Un-Abel Brothers Main Event Against Mikey Bets At Rough N' Rowdy

4
Mikey Bets WILL Knockout Zach Un-Abel At Rough N' Rowdy 25 And Here's The Training & Trash Talk To Prove It

Mikey Bets WILL Knockout Zach Un-Abel At Rough N' Rowdy 25 And Here's The Training & Trash...

5
WATCH: Redneck Twins Wage Boxing War VS. Frank The Tank Ahead Of Their LOSER LEAVES TOWN Main Event

WATCH: Redneck Twins Wage Boxing War VS. Frank The Tank Ahead Of Their LOSER LEAVES TOWN M...

6
Watch The Trailer For BEHIND THE BRAWL... An Inside Look At Camp Abel VS Team Frank Before Their Rough N' Rowdy Main Event

Watch The Trailer For BEHIND THE BRAWL... An Inside Look At Camp Abel VS Team Frank Before...

7
6'9" 300lb Wrestler VS. 6'4'' 400lb Repair Man Fighting In A Main Event Tonight... WHO YA GOT?

6'9" 300lb Wrestler VS. 6'4'' 400lb Repair Man Fighting In A Main Event Tonight... WHO YA ...

8
Rough N' Rowdy 24 Is Live From West Virginia Tonight Starting At 8 PM ET

Rough N' Rowdy 24 Is Live From West Virginia Tonight Starting At 8 PM ET

9
WATCH: 6'9'' Wrestler VS. 7 Security Guards, Ring Girls Flexing, Tattooed West Virginia Maniacs Yelling... Rough N' Rowdy 24 Weigh-Ins Had it All

WATCH: 6'9'' Wrestler VS. 7 Security Guards, Ring Girls Flexing, Tattooed West Virginia Ma...

10
Rough N' Rowdy 24 Four Loko Weigh-Ins | BuyRNR.com To Watch 20 Fights This Friday Night

Rough N' Rowdy 24 Four Loko Weigh-Ins | BuyRNR.com To Watch 20 Fights This Friday Night

11
WATCH: Matchup & Main Event Preview With Robbie & Large For Rough N' Rowdy 24 This Friday Night

WATCH: Matchup & Main Event Preview With Robbie & Large For Rough N' Rowdy 24 This Friday ...

12
Massive 6'9" Wrestler Trains To Box 400lb Behemoth By Bodyslamming Me Into The Canvas

Massive 6'9" Wrestler Trains To Box 400lb Behemoth By Bodyslamming Me Into The Canvas

13
Massholes Nearly Came To Blows, Grown Men Assaulted Dwarfs, Frank Went Tarps OFF... Welcome To The Rough N' Rowdy 23 Weigh-Ins

Massholes Nearly Came To Blows, Grown Men Assaulted Dwarfs, Frank Went Tarps OFF... Welcom...

14
Rough N' Rowdy 23 Four Loko Weigh-Ins | 20 Amateur Fights + Ring Girl Contest $19.99 on BuyRNR.com

Rough N' Rowdy 23 Four Loko Weigh-Ins | 20 Amateur Fights + Ring Girl Contest $19.99 on Bu...

15
Frank The Tank & Rone Preview The RNR23 Main Events Including Knockout Artists, Dwarfs, Former Cheerleaders, Old Moms And More On January 25th

Frank The Tank & Rone Preview The RNR23 Main Events Including Knockout Artists, Dwarfs, Fo...

16
Jenks Is Stepping In To Defend Frank The Tank At Rough N Rowdy - How We Got Here

Jenks Is Stepping In To Defend Frank The Tank At Rough N Rowdy - How We Got Here

17
You Have The Right To Remain Knocked Out

You Have The Right To Remain Knocked Out

18
Rough n' Rowdy Is Back And I Just Signed A Fucking MONSTER!

Rough n' Rowdy Is Back And I Just Signed A Fucking MONSTER!

19
RNR21 WEIGH-INS: Security Had To Separate The Dwarfs After A Taunt About Titty Milk Was Made...

RNR21 WEIGH-INS: Security Had To Separate The Dwarfs After A Taunt About Titty Milk Was Ma...

20
Top 5 Boxing Calls By Dave Portnoy | REF N' ROBBIE EPISODE 4

Top 5 Boxing Calls By Dave Portnoy | REF N' ROBBIE EPISODE 4

21
Chicks Attack Champions, Booty Daddy Returns, Frank The Tank Gets Assaulted, The Abel Brothers VS Jeff Nadu, Welcome To The RNR20 Weigh-Ins

Chicks Attack Champions, Booty Daddy Returns, Frank The Tank Gets Assaulted, The Abel Brot...

22
Top 5 Moments from Outside the Ring | REF N' ROBBIE Episode 3

Top 5 Moments from Outside the Ring | REF N' ROBBIE Episode 3

23
WATCH: Intro Video For Rough N' Rowdy On Friday With 20 Fights, 3 Title Belt Brawls, Ring Girl Contest

WATCH: Intro Video For Rough N' Rowdy On Friday With 20 Fights, 3 Title Belt Brawls, Ring ...

24
RNR Legend Spider Relives His Craziest Moments | Ref N' Robbie Episode 2

RNR Legend Spider Relives His Craziest Moments | Ref N' Robbie Episode 2

25
Top 5 Knockouts in RNR History | Ref N' Robbie Episode 1

Top 5 Knockouts in RNR History | Ref N' Robbie Episode 1