Ricky Cobb: The man behind the Super 70s Sports dream
August 14, 2024
Ricky Cobb, the creator of the popular social media account Super 70s Sports, has left his job as a college professor to pursue his dream of becoming a full-time sports talk show host.
Cobb’s show, “The Ricky Cobb Show,” premiered on OutKick’s social media channels this week. The show features a blend of guests, including former NFL great Drew Bledsoe, and discussions on the modern news of the day, as well as the evergreen images of sports nostalgia that Cobb has become famous for.
Cobb, a 52-year-old father of five, was a sociology professor at Moraine Valley Community College outside Chicago for the past 21 years.
He told The Post that he felt like Miley Cyrus’ Disney character, Hannah Montana, when he was living a proverbial double life in the classroom by day and making pithy sports jokes online by night.
“I was Mr. Cobb, as I’ve always been, and then on the other hand I just kind of ended up falling into some level of internet celebrity,” he said.
“I became kind of known, but at the same time I just went into college and taught the classes like I always had. I had been there for over 10 years when I created the account, and then the first few years before it became known very well, and then after it became known.”
There were a few big steps in his career: He had certain tweets go viral, like one with a photo of Howard Cosell, O.J. Simpson and Bruce Jenner in 2017 with 45,000 reposts that had the caption, “Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve looked into the future and you will not believe this s–t.”
He credited features by The Post’s Mike Vaccaro and in the Chicago Tribune with raising his profile even more.
Cobb then landed the “Super Maximum Retro Show” last year that was produced by ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel.
The 10-episode series, which featured popular comedians on a 70s-themed set, aired on Vice.
“Even now, the Super 70s name is bigger than my own,” Cobb said.
“With those stories, more people started to know my name. The Kimmel show may have helped a little, though it didn’t translate into viewers, unfortunately.”
Cobb, who grew up in Horse Cave, a Kentucky town with a population of 2,300 and “one or two red lights,” speaks with a laidback southern drawl and gives off the vibe that when he encounters obstacles in this world they do not make him sad or anxious.
At OutKick, he is seeking to convert his text-and-photo-based following into an audience that watches him speak.
“First of all, I want to be myself. I’m not smart enough to go in there and try and figure out how I’m going to be a personality now,” Cobb said.
“Being almost 53 years old and coming to this from a very unconventional path, what I gained on Twitter just came from me being me. I was the most surprised of anybody that that took off and became anything. I don’t know what I thought that account would be. I certainly didn’t think it would lead me anywhere. I’m just going to be me. I hope people like it. If they don’t, that’s OK.”
Cobb was recruited to OutKick, the platform founded by longtime sports (and now news) personality Clay Travis, through a series of meetings in New York and Chicago with Gary Schreier, the site’s SVP and Managing Editor.
When Cobb announced he was collaborating with OutKick, there was a smattering backlash from followers who were turned off by the site’s conservative bent, but Cobb was undeterred.
“You know, I got that some with Kimmel, too, actually, from the other side,” Cobb said.
“I remember being surprised because at the time, you’re looking for your break, right? And that show with Kimmel, I thought, was a big break for a guy like me. You put it out there, and you’re like, ‘I’m working with Jimmy Kimmel,’ which is a big name, a top-dog kind of guy. I caught it from that side, with that announcement.
“I knew it was coming with OutKick, just because of the perception that some people would have, but the reaction was, I would say, 10-to-1 positive when I posted it.”
