1050 ESPN Radio Personalities (Local & National Dudes)

Mike and Mike in the Morning

White Boy: A+ This might be the most perfect pairing in sports radio history. (Sorry Mike and Chris) The comedic interplay between the beefy ex jock Mike Golic and the diminutive and somewhat narcissistic Mike Greenberg is perfect for the morning drive time airwaves. Whether it’s Golic making fun of Greeny’s hair gel, or Greeny making fun of Golic not remembering his first ever game playing against Brett Farve; these two have the kind of chemistry that Oscar and Felix had on the Odd Couple. They also complement each other perfectly as sports analysts. Greeny is the typical sports dork who knows all the odd stats and figures and Golic is typical of the ex jocks who are able to effectively communicate to the listener what it is like to be in the huddle in the end of a tie game in the 4^th quarter. Quite simply, this program boasts the most professional production on either station.

Devo: A- So their banter definitely deserves an A+. Like White Boy said, they have unbelievable chemistry together. My main problem is that because they are on ESPN radio, they always have tons of guests who frankly, I’ve already heard dozens of times and couldn't care less about. Sometimes the interviews are good, but I’d rather hear the two of them talk about whatever’s going on. Also, as a morning show, they basically have a G rating. There's not much better in the NYC area, but down in the DC area, I'd rather listen to The Sports Junkies. (Picture Sports Guy on the radio) So yeah, I enjoy these guys, but if they were on another station, perhaps one not owned by Disney, they’d be even better.

Steven A. Smith

White Boy: B+/A- Steven A is truly one of a kind. He is as likely to open up a show breaking down the NBA trade deadline deals as he is making fun of random Coldplay song for being white boy trash. He is as loud as he is opinionated. In case you ever forget he is black, he says something alluding to his race or to an issue surrounding race. Sometimes this gets annoying but sometimes he brings up issues that need to be discussed but that other hosts are afraid to talk about. His basketball acumen is the strongest on the New York airwaves but his ability to break down the x’s and o’s of baseball leaves a lot to be desired. He, like his rivals on WFAN, sometimes is too quick to dismiss a caller whose opinion contrasts with his own. However, he provides much needed color to an otherwise pale radio scene. Take that to mean whatever you want it to mean.

Devo: A- Say what you want about the man, but there’s truly no one else like him on the airwaves. I’m not always in the mood for his sometimes-over-the-top analysis, but like White Boy said, sports talk radio would be a lot duller without him. He’s the type of guy who I really enjoy listening to now that the Knicks are embarrassing. He makes no bones about their putrid play and becomes as embarrassed as your standard Knicks fan. That said, I like listening to him talk football and baseball for the same reason that I like listening to ex-Georgetown coach John Thompson talk about those sports: when they talk about football and baseball, they’re not experts but simply as knowledgeable as the average sports fan. But the weirdest thing about Steven A.? He blatantly steals his intro from Mike & the Mad Dog.