Barstool The Dozen Trivia Season 5 Preview Part 1: Returners Same Rosters

The other night, we saw the 5th season of The Dozen Trivia League kick off with a bang. The Booze Ponies, led by Dana Beers & Taylor Lewan... I mean, sorry, Will Compton. My fault on the confusion.

With the Super Bowl live show, we begin another season of good trivia from the legend Jeff D. Lowe. As someone who is a live show merchant (check the Las Vegas live show tapes and put some respect on the name), as well as a fan All-Star team captain, I am the expert needed to preview this season's new roster of teams.

The Dozen Trivia League has consistently provided us with edge-of-our-seat entertainment since COVID...whether live shows with Josh Allen, Mintzy giving opponents answers pretty dang often, or Jenks answering Phone-a-Friend while taking a dump, all through a screaming Frank the Tank is in the background.

You don’t just get the rush of trivia, testing yourself against other Barstool legends, but also an entertainment value full of cartoon-esque antics. If you are newer to the Stoolie universe, this should be at the top of your binge-worthy shows to catch up on all the lore from the first four seasons this weekend.

But below, let’s take a quick look at each team, their strengths and weaknesses, before we hand out power rankings and predictions for the Boston Final Four.

In Part 1 of this series lets start with Returning Teams with the same rosters

Ziti

2024 Defending Champions!

Dave Portnoy – Team Captain, 2023 Captain of the Year, Owner of Barstool Sports (for the second time...also the only person to ever do this, kinda BIG deal)

• Strengths: Captainship, quickest final answer in the league, potential Caitlin Clark niche?

• Weaknesses: Any sporting event he didn't place a bet on

Clem – Snack Boy, 1x league champion, big Mets fan

• Strengths: Snacks on snacks on snacks, baseball, and timely use of Call-a-Friend

• Weaknesses: Health foods, college sports, and overthinking

Eddie – Reigning MVP, Snack Boy, Barstool Chicago Day 1, and Jon Gruden is in his corner

• Strengths: Snacks on snacks on snacks, NFL, MLB, Celebrity Mashup

• Weaknesses: Health foods and most likely rattled if you talk about the Chicago Bears

Overall, no funny business with this team. They come into every match all business and show up. They are a tough matchup for anyone, and their expectations are very high as they look to repeat—something that has never been done in The Dozen history.

Booze Ponies

Will Compton* – This is still up in the air. Hopefully, for the love of God, he is allowed to continue his captaincy of the Ponies.

• Strengths: Big vibes & locker room guy, has the clutch gene, and knows how to "math" very well

• Weaknesses: 95% of trivia questions asked

Dana Beers – Looks can be deceiving, boys...this guy is a Renaissance man. Leading candidate for MVP honors.

• Strengths: NBA players, college basketball anything, sneaky TV, movies, & music guy too

• Weaknesses: Overthinks his answers, NFL, & geography

Feits – The energy, the jokes, the style.

• Strengths: Snacks, pop culture, and ENERGY

• Weaknesses: College sports and even pieces of all sports categories

This team 110% has a case for the most entertaining in the league. I, myself, went up against them and fell to their powerful punch. Will delivers an all-time moment, as he does in most matches.

The big question mark for them moving forward is their captain, Compton. If he is out, their free agency add could make or break what could be a championship run.

The Experts

Brandon Walker – Captain, King of the South, and the main reason Jeff D. Lowe has to continue running this league against his own will.

• Strengths: The Cosby Show, Heisman Trophy, college basketball, and anything from the '90s

• Weaknesses: Clutch gene, songs after 2001, & geography

Fran – Doesn't miss Celebrity Mashup, plain & simple.

• Strengths: Celebrity Mashup, anything pop culture, and keeping the boys focused

• Weaknesses: Sports questions—any sport

PFT – Brings the ENERGY, seems like he wants to win it all, but sometimes... not so sure.

• Strengths: NFL, music, and trying to double up multiple categories after Celebrity Mashup

• Weaknesses: Throwing out a different answer on sports than Brandon, causing mass hysteria

The Experts, whew...one of the original teams of The Dozen. They have gone down on the last question and missed out on a chip before. Is this their year?

I will say...if they finally break through, it will be impressive, given this is considered the deepest the league has ever been.

The Yak

Big Cat – Reigning Captain of the Year, leader of the Bad Boys, claims to not know trivia very often.

• Strengths: Complimenting Jeff D. Lowe’s hosting of trivia, letting Cheah’s weirdness find an answer, and college sports

• Weaknesses: Trivia questions that are hard, and Cheah

Steven Cheah – A one-of-a-kind mind. He is the 3-point shooter on your team—it’s either pure or off the side of the backboard.

• Strengths: Draft picks, jersey numbers, and anything Tampa Bay Bucs

• Weaknesses: Himself & most pop culture

Rone – The Bad Boy OG. Rone is this team’s glue and vibes guy, massaging his team to trivia victory.

• Strengths: Music and most pop culture or wordplay

• Weaknesses: College sports & geography

The Yak is a pure mind-pretzel of a trivia competition...they will play mind games with anyone they can bring into their Bad Boy world.

IF they can get hot and get into the heads of the host or their opponents… watch out for a tourney run!

The IceDogs

Marty Mush – Captain and real GM of the Ice Dogs, as he signed on two former professional athletes.

• Strengths: Throwing out wild guesses that happen to be right, convincing two wildly popular Boston stars to join him for a fake trivia league

• Weaknesses: Basically most trivia questions and changing his teammates' answers on the final answer

Keith Yandle – Ironman of the NHL, made the Arizona Coyotes relevant, chirp god (Sonk)

• Strengths: Sonking, NHL, potential big-time Phone-a-Friend in pocket, & kinda pop culture

• Weaknesses: Lots of other sports questions

David Andrews – Pats legend, awesome southern drawl accent, vibes guy

• Strengths: Anything football, music, pop culture, or snacks

• Weaknesses: Other sports questions

The Dawgs are pure electricity from beginning to end. The hope is to get them in a live show this year because that would be peak.

Unfortunately, it’s hard to see them having the firepower to make a Final Four run.

Macrodosing

Big T – Calm, cool, collected. He captains this squad with only his final answers.

• Strengths: College football, NFL, NBA, and college logos

• Weaknesses: Taking his teammates’ answers over his own and Celebrity Mashup

Mad Dog – The glue of the team. She keeps the boys together when they seem to be on the brink.

• Strengths: Brings the pop culture BOOM, Celebrity Mashup & music are her must-gets

• Weaknesses: Sports...well really just anything sports

Arian Foster – Big Nick Turani guy, knows when and when not to attempt a question.

• Strengths: Video games...he is on it, some NFL or college football

• Weaknesses: Any football from when he was playing

Macrodosing is an interesting team. They show potential one week and then back it up with a lopsided defeat.

They are the team that can cover the spread any week. And as you know...good teams win, great teams cover.

Foreplay

Riggs – Has a place at Pinehurst.

• Strengths: Golf, and that is about it so far

• Weaknesses: Basically most questions outside of golf

Frankie – Loves every minute of this...his heart is all in.

• Strengths: Golf, NHL, and timely use of Phone-a-Friend

• Weaknesses: Most of the rest of the categories, to be honest

Trent – Big-time vibes guy for this team. When they are down (and that will be a lot), he keeps the smiles coming.

• Strengths: Some college football, of course golf, and pieces of pop culture (Big Bang Theory excluded)

• Weaknesses: Over Confidence on Big Bang Theory, and most categories as well

Ohhh Fore Play...they are very much at the bottom of the returning teams in terms of record.

But when it comes to watchability, they are top 5 in the league. They always bring energy, laughs, and memorable moments. A live show appearance by them would also be a must-see.

Frankettes

Nick Turani – Has an incredible case for Captain of the Year, multi-time live show champion, known for the nichest niches.

• Strengths: Cartoon characters, logos, & pop culture

• Weaknesses: College sports outside of West Virginia lore

Frank the Tank – A machine when he’s on. He can pull answers from 1950 to 2025...key word: when. If taken off his game by the Mets, it can get ugly.

• Strengths: MLB and most sports categories, including NBA, NHL, and NFL

• Weaknesses: Himself, the Mets (if they are on during filming), and music

KB No Swag – A walking Wikipedia, his niches are ungettable by opponents, and his geography knowledge is legendary.

• Strengths: ANYTHING related to geography & anything he can memorize from a Wikipedia page

• Weaknesses: College sports & other general sports questions

Fan Favorite team through it all, inlcuding continous playoff let downs. Live shows are almost too east for them as they feed off the crowds, but getting to that pivotal point in the playoffs has been their issue. Is this the year?(I hope so, fav team) Only time will tell, or maybe the Mets season outlook in May-June.

Part 1 of the season preview for the Dozen Trivia season 5 is in the books, I will have preseason predictions after the complete league is introduced, inlcuding a projected champion! Stay tuned for Part 2 VERY soon.

Bet Recap: 4-2 on the day, a couple of blowouts in the NBA had Lavine and Booker sitting out the last 12-15 minutes of the game killing us from a sweep. Nice picks from our readers 1-1. Meanwhile I move to 7-11 overall.

Bet of the Day

02-06

Maryland ML +114

Montana State - Northern Arizona OVER 145 -112

Saint Mary's - San Francisco OVER 131.5 -110

IF you parlay: +673