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Under The Radar – July 5, 2018

Jason Barrett

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It’s been a while since we brought you an Under The Radar column but to borrow a line from Mike Greenberg “we’re back and better than ever.” OK maybe that’s a stretch but if it’s sports media industry news you crave, then you’ve come to the right place.

The following message may sound repetitive if you’ve read this column before but it’s important that we get it out to keep you informed. The only way we can help tell your story is if you take the time to let us know about it. All it takes is sending an email to [email protected] and including a few details about your individual or station’s news story, and when the next UTR piece comes out we’ll try to make sure you’re included. It’s that easy.

Now that we’ve tackled that issue, let’s move on to the latest news!

Friday marks the final day of Chris Oliviero‘s tenure as EVP of programming for Entercom. The highly respected radio executive announced on June 22nd that he’d be leaving the company to explore new opportunities. He is expected though to remain in an advisory role thru the remainder of the year. Prior to joining Entercom, Oliviero spent 22 years with CBS Radio, helping establish the company as one of the best in broadcasting. Many of the top sports talk brands in America have either been created, strengthened or rebuilt under his watchful eye. BSM wishes Chris the best in his future pursuits. To stay in touch with him via email click here.

As interest rapidly increases in sports betting content, VSiN have been on quite the roll. The Vegas Stats and Information Network has secured new radio partnerships with the Mighty 1090 in San Diego, 104.5 ESPN in Baton Rouge, FOX Sports 1290 in Wilmington, DE, FOX Sports 960 in Salisbury, MD and Sports Radio 1450 in Springfield, IL. That’s in addition to prior partnerships announced with 670 The Score in Chicago and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. A few other major market brands are expected to be announced soon once agreements are finalized. Some sports brands in states which have yet to legalize sports gambling have taken a wait and see approach towards increasing their sports betting content, but their tentativeness has opened the door for rock stations who also target the Male 25-54 demographic. The content after all appeals to both audiences. How that will factor into future partnerships with VSiN will be interesting to follow. One thing’s for certain, the interest level from brands is only going to increase as we inch closer to football season.

As great as Colin Cowherd is at delivering analogies and opinions, what he did on Thursday’s show to turn a lemon into lemonade was worth highlighting. It’s a great lesson for talk show hosts on how to handle things when a curveball gets thrown in your direction. Cowherd’s guest booker Dave Coelho asked Colin if he’d want former Laker great Norm Nixon on the show to discuss LeBron’s arrival in Los Angeles. Cowherd agreed and Coelho texted him to set it up and then sent a car to bring him to the studio. Except when Coelho went downstairs to meet Nixon to bring him to the studio he discovered that Nixon looked nothing like the guest he thought he had booked. It turned out that Norm Nixon Jr., an actor, writer, music producer and comedian, and the son of the Lakers great was the recipient of the texts. Cowherd said it was the first time in 30 years that he had ever experienced a situation like that. To watch the way it unfolded click here.

Sad news out of Charlotte. Entercom Charlotte digital director Nathan Richie lost his life in a motorcycle accident in mid-June. Richie spent over two decades working in the market including the past year with Entercom and was highly regarded. To show their respect for a fallen teammate, Market Manager Matt Hanlon and his programming teams utilized their on-air, online, and social platforms on all local brands to highlight the impact Richie made on those he came in contact with. It was a very classy gesture by the operation. A funeral service was also arranged by Richie’s family to allow those who knew him to say their final goodbyes.

Also in Charlotte, former WFNZ host turned Charlotte Hornets radio play by play voice Chris Kroeger has launched a podcast for his new NBA employer. Kroeger has made good use of his newfound access, sitting down with new GM Mitch Kupchak and head coach James Borrego, and visiting with this year’s draftees Miles Bridges and Devonte’ Graham. He’s also chatted with the franchise’s 1st ever draft selection Rex Chapman. To hear any of the episodes click here.

Chicago sports radio personality Jason Goff has been a busy man as of late. The former 670 The Score afternoon host has appeared on Laurence Holmes‘ “House of L Podcast” and been a frequent contributor on television, making visits to NBC Sports Chicago, ABC-7 and FOX-32. Goff has also spread his wings beyond the windy city hosting on WFNZ in Charlotte and Mad Dog Radio and the NBA Channel on SiriusXM.

Kate Scott made a return to the Bay Area radio airwaves for a fill-in assignment on her former station KNBR 680. Scott stepped in to host for Paul MacCaffrey on Tuesday July 3rd working alongside former morning colleague Brian Murphy.

Props to 790 The Ticket in Miami for once again providing live and local overnight programming on the night of NBA Free Agency. It was the 3rd straight year the station created a live show to report and let listeners sound-off on one of the biggest night’s of the NBA off-season. Despite the flood of news pouring in at midnight on Saturday/Sunday, a time when radio station’s don’t usually sell sponsorships, The Ticket’s sales team used the specialized the event to generated new revenue from three clients. A nice job by all involved.

Miami is also where you’ll find sports radio veteran Josh Darrow diving into the podcasting space. Darrow’s forthcoming digital audio offering will be titled “The 5 Rings” and will focus heavily on the Miami Hurricanes. The podcast will be part of the 5 Reasons Sports Network which was co-founded by former Miami Herald writer and 790 The Ticket afternoon host Ethan Skolnick.

1010XL in Jacksonville recently made some internal adjustments. The station has moved afternoon personality Lauren Brooks into mornings alongside Jeff Prosser and Dan Hicken. A few producer moves have occurred as well. Midday producer Andrew Gibson has shifted to afternoons, morning producer Tyler Devitte has moved to middays, and afternoon producer Ryan “Big Country” Bonifant has taken on new responsibilities behind the scenes and left the afternoon show.

The stars continue to align for former 1010XL on-air contributor MacKenzie Thirkill. Thirkill announced in late June on social media that after two and a half years working with the Orlando City Soccer Club she was leaving her on-air position for a new opportunity. That new opportunity involves reporting and hosting for the Orlando Magic on their digital platforms. Thirkill says she’ll also make television appearances on FOX Sports Florida during the NBA regular season.

The end of the line has been reached by John Semar in St. Louis. After ten years behind the scenes working for 101 ESPN and 590 The Fan in St. Louis and 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, “The Sea Monster” as he was known to colleagues has decided to leave the radio business. During his career Semar produced shows featuring Bryan Burwell, Bob Stelton, Pat Parris, Tim McKernan, Zach McCrite, Rick Venturi and the Rise Guys.

Continuing in St. Louis, congrats are in order for former Jim Rome Show producer Austin Huff. The Mizzou graduate has accepted a position working for 101 ESPN. Huff spent three years in California on Rome’s program after starting his radio career in Nashville working for both 104.5 The Zone and 102.5 The Game. While at The Game he served as an EP for FOX Sports Radio personality Steve Gorman.

SB Nation Radio is undergoing a lineup overhaul. The network is searching for a new afternoon host after Sean Salisbury left for SportsTalk 790 in Houston. That isn’t the only drive time affected though. Mornings are changing too after the network made the decision to pull the plug on its previous show featuring Steve Solomon, Tim Murray, and Scott Linn. In order to figure out the best way forward, SB Nation Radio is bringing in Jason Page, Carter Bryant and Eytan Shander for fill-in shows. Other names may also be added to the mix as time progresses.

Staying in Houston, Sports Radio 610 host Marc Ryan has earned an opportunity to expand his presence on the national circuit. Ryan has been tabbed by the CBS Sports Radio Network to make his on-air debut this Sunday night from 6p-10p ET. Among his scheduled guests for his debut program include actor Seth Rogen, Kristen Ledlow and Ryan’s former Tampa radio teammate and new Monday Night Football sideline analyst Anthony “Booger” McFarland.

Also in Houston, former SB Nation Radio producer Joe George has moved over to Sports Radio 610. Meanwhile his former SB Nation Radio teammate Adam Sager who produced Sean Salisbury’s show has seen his time at the network come to an end after four years. Sources say there could be interest from 790 to bring Sager on board but as of now he remains a free agent. You can contact him for opportunities by clicking here.

Ann Meyers Drysdale and John Ramsey are the newest members of the So Cal Sports Broadcasters Hall of Fame. The duo will be inducted at the 28th annual SCSB Awards Luncheon on January 2019. Drysdale enjoyed a long broadcasting career working for the UCLA Radio Network, Pac-12 Network, ESPN, the LA Sparks and covered a number of Olympic games for ABC, NBC and TNT. Ramsey was the original public address announcer for the Angels, Dodgers, Kings, Lakers and L.A. Raiders as well as the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, five Super Bowls including the first Super Bowl, seven World Series, two Major League All Star Games, two NBA All Star Games and ten NBA finals. For more information click here.

Some unfortunate news for Molly Sullivan. After six years on the sidelines with the Philadelphia 76ers, Sullivan was informed by NBC Sports Philadelphia that she wasn’t being brought back. The decision caught her off guard and has led to Philadelphia sports fans being upset by the decision. For a deeper read and listen to Sullivan’s side of the story with Richard Deitsch of The Athletic click here.

Sullivan wasn’t the only one covering the Sixers to be let go by NBC Sports Philadelphia. Jessica Camerato announced on Twitter on Thursday that she too was informed her time had come to an end after two and a half years.

National Sports TV interviewer Graham Bensinger has announced that his program In Depth with Graham Bensinger is now available in podcast form. The full uninterrupted interviews that Bensinger conducts with high profile national sports figures can be heard by clicking here.

In writing news, the Chicago-Tribune has named Jimmy Greenfield their new Chicago Blackhawks beat reporter. The Athletic has hired Antonio Morales to cover USC Football for their Los Angeles outlet, and the Arizona Cardinals have added radio veterans Mike Jurecki and Craig Giralou to their digital team. Both men will host podcasts, videos, and pre/post game shows for the Cardinals. Meanwhile the Boston Globe .

And finally, Amanda Stein has agreed to join the New Jersey Devils full-time as their All-Access host and digital reporter.

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Jason Puckett Launches PuckSports.com

“I am super motivated right now and I can’t wait. I have probably been busier now than I’ve ever been in the last 48 hours.”

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Logo for PuckSports.com

Jason Puckett, who decided to walk away from a contract offer from iHeartMedia’s KJR in Seattle after finding out his partner Jim Moore had been laid off, has launched a new venture – PuckSports.com. ‘Puck’ has a baseball opening day show posted on the Puck Sports YouTube page and also posted an introductory message about his new venture and what led to creating it.

“I wanted to talk to you guys, the listeners out there, the viewers out there, sorry for all of this,” an emotional Puckett said. “Sorry for what has happened and what has taken place. Thank you for all of the comments and the well-wishes and what you have said about myself and Jim.

“It has been a whirlwind of a last few days, for sure and I do want to say that I feel for the people that we used to work with. “I know it’s not easy to go through that, I have been on that side of it many, many times in this industry when someone is let go and you have to sit there and answer all the questions about them and for them…It’s unfortunate and it shouldn’t be that way, but the reality of this business is it’s like that.”

Puckett then told his fans that PuckSports.com and YouTube are where you will be finding his content along with Moore. “I am going to take what I have learned over the years and apply it to a new age of media,” he said and noted this was a direction he had been thinking about for a while.

As for what took place that led to his decision to not sign his contract and talk away, he said, “I just want to take you briefly back to last week. I don’t want to get too much in the weeds, I’m not here to lay any blame or point any fingers at anybody…there’s too many good people that I have worked with that I don’t want to drag into this. It was a process that was at times handled fine, handled perfectly, and at other times it got to a point where it just went on too long. But that’s corporate media and that’s what happens.”

Continuing on Puckett said, “…I had been without a contract since about January…when I was away from the station that was something that we and the station agreed upon…to see if we could get something done and we were all hopeful that we would…I was only supposed to be gone a couple of days…unfortunately as these things sometimes happen, it just went a little bit longer…We received the deal and it was what we wanted, but unfortunately with that news a few hours later came the news from corporate that Jim had lost his job. Obviously there was a mix of emotions with that from me.

“I wrestled with that and the decision and what I would do. It was hard for me to move forward…I couldn’t fight the perception more than anything that I had received a new deal while at the same time, my partner and good friend, guy I love to death, who I grew up reading…it was a hard reality…The loyalty I have, I couldn’t live with myself even though Jim knew what the truth was.”

Puckett said he was aware Moore was planning to step away from the radio show at the end of the year and was looking forward to the nine months they would have left to work with one another. Then, when iHeartMedia made the decision to make Moore a casualty of their latest round of layoffs, Puckett knew he needed to revisit the idea of starting his own venture.

He said, “It has kind of changed my timeline as far as what I wanted to do and where I felt I was at…I am super motivated right now and I can’t wait. I have probably been busier now than I’ve ever been in the last 48 hours.”

Puckett said several of the show’s regular guests would stay with the show and he thanked several sponsors who he said would remain supporters of the show with the new venture. ‘Puck’ noted that starting next week, “…We get underway in full force…I’m going to continue to try and make people laugh and entertain you and talk about sports…and all of the other things you have become accustomed to with this show.”

As he started to wrap up, Puckett said, “I’m jumping into the deep end of the pool and I am going to see if I can swim or sink.”

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Kirk Minihane: WEEI is “Going to be Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb in Afternoons”

“Maybe the two most sensitive c***s in the history of radio. That’s a show we are going to ruin.”

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Photos of Kirk Minihane and Rich Shertenlieb

As the speculation continues on where Boston sports talker Rich Shertenlieb will end up, one former WEEI host said he has the scoop on what is going to happen. Kirk Minihane, now with Barstool Sports, said, “What I heard was, initially, was they were moving Rich Keefe from nights to middays, moving Adam Jones from afternoons to middays and keeping Fauria there, and moving Andy Gresh to afternoons…But now it appears Rich Shertenlieb is going to do afternoons with Andy Gresh.”

On Wednesday, Boston Globe sports and sports media columnist Chad Finn put out a post on X, saying, “Didn’t think Rich Shertenlieb would end up at WEEI after leaving Sports Hub. I do now, most likely in afternoon drive. Audacy management has been telling people to expect changes.”

Minihane continued commenting on the matter, saying, “It’s going to be Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb in the afternoons, which is going to be so awful. Maybe the two most sensitive c***s in the history of radio. That’s a show we are going to ruin…we haven’t done that in a while, we are going to take that show down…Once that show starts, we are just going to blitz them with phone calls because Gresh can’t handle that.

“What they don’t understand, because they are so dumb, is that…Rich Shertenlieb has no fan base…no fan of [Toucher and Hardy] in the morning is going to be like ‘I’m not going to listen to Felger in the afternoons, I’ll now listen to Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb.’ It’s going to be dreadful.”

Recapping what he has heard the rest of the WEEI lineup will be, Minihane said, “…And then in middays you have Adam Jones, failed afternoons. Rich Keefe who has now failed middays, drivetime, nights and is now going to fail again in middays… and Christian Fauria who has never drawn a rating in his life.”

WEEI has not commented on any of the speculation. BSM will have more as the story unfolds.

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Former 670 The Score Host Tommy Williams Has Died

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Photo of Tommy Williams
Courtesy: Lakeshore Public Media

Tommy Williams, who was heard for a decade on 670 The Score, died on Wednesday at the age of 66.

Williams began his broadcasting career in his hometown of Gary, Indiana in 1982 at WLTH before moving on to The Score. In 2003, Williams became the PA Announcer for the Gary Southshore RailCats of the American Association where he had his signature call to get the attention of the fans, “People, People, People.”

A story in The Times of Northwest Indiana said, “The longtime RailCats public address announcer and Lakeshore Public Media sports journalist was known for broadcasting countless games, interviewing countless athletes and covering Region sports at all levels. The Gary native and co-host of “Prep Sports Report,” “Prep Football Report,” and “Lakeshore PBS Scoreboard” often signed off shows saying, “Gary, Indiana, you know I love you.”

“The cadence he had in his voice echoed across the Region in a way we may never see again. He was widely known and widely loved,” Tom Maloney, vice president of radio operations at Lakeshore Public Media told the paper.

“He’d want to be remembered as the voice of Lakeshore sports,” his Regionally Speaking co-host and producer Dee Dotson told The Times. “Most people will remember him for covering prep sports all the way up to semi-pros. He’ll be remembered for treating each of his subjects like they were world champions. His depth of knowledge of sports at all levels is commendable. He was a walking encyclopedia of stats.” 

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