WFAN: Who We Like

This is basically an old article that we wrote for our old site which was the motivation for rating the announcers.

Benningo & Roberts

Devo: These guys are to sports talk radio what Straight Up Sports is to blogging. (Known by 3 people?) Simply the best. They’ve got damn good chemistry on the air, combining the old (Benningo, 50-something years old) with the new (Roberts 24 years old).

First off, Benningo is nothing if not a man of the people. He was Joe from Saddle River until he won a “host for a day” contest and held his own. One Connecticut School of Broadcasting degree later, he became a cult figure at WFAN. I guess the best compliment I can give him is that his disgust with his teams (Mets/Jets/Knicks) comes through with great clarity on the air. Oh, and I can't get enough of him and Carl Banks discussing the Knicks.

Roberts, meanwhile, is my long lost brother. He’s 24, I’m 25. He spent some time in Baltimore before returning to New York, I’m spending some time in Maryland before returning to New York. He’s a big Nets fan, the Nets are one of my top 4 favorite NBA teams, which sadly, classifies me as a top 10 Nets fan. Evan Roberts, you my boy.

White Boy: I have to be fair here. I love Joe Benningo. He was and forever will be the greatest over-night talk show host of all time. His Jet, Met and Knick tirades will forever warm the cackles of my heart as will his infamous 1995 prediction, “the Mets will make the playoffs before the Yankees.” His ads for ‘UMBEEEEEEEEERTOOOOOOOOS CLAMHOUSE!” were my lullabies. Evan is also great. Unlike Devo, Evan is an authentic diehard Nets fan which I guess I give him credit for; he might be the only one. He, like Joe, is a man of the people and like Joe you get the feeling he won’t ever change in that way. He is also very bright and speaks very well, which unfortunately, not everyone does at WFAN. (Russo) My only issue is that I think Joe’s bombastic and loud style has been curbed by the powers that be at WFAN. Now instead of all out tirades, he makes simple and short loud comments interspersed with calm analysis. I guess that’s the right format for mid-day radio but I miss the days where Joey B would spend literally 3 separate 20 minute segments just going ballistic about a 4pm loss to the Bills at home or Pedro choking away the 2003 ALCS. Joe Benningo, greatest overnight host of all time, R.I.P.

Carlin & Jones

Devo: The Continent and the Hottie. As I’ve said before, in a profession where most everyone is fat, Carlin is still known by his peers as The Fat Guy. But more importantly, big ups to Carlin for being from Chatham and going to high school literally around the corner from me at Oratory Prep. Do people remember the make-shift morning shows from last summer? Carlin was fantastic as the sports update dude on them, showing remarkable chemistry with Francessa especially. Big fan of Carlin. And Kim Jones? Only a knowledgeable hottie who’s probably been boned by half the Giants and Yankees. Is anyone else excited for the inevitable showdown between Shockey and Jeter for Ms. Jones affection?

White Boy: I think Jeter and Shockey are friends so maybe they just agreed to let Jeter have him. Jeter has definitely hit that. Sadly, instead of being jealous of Derek, I root them on because they would easily be my favorite celebrity couple of all time. (Minor celebrity in Kim’s case) As for actual show quality, they do an amazing job. Sadly they are much better than the real morning duo of Carton and Boomer. Carlin is kind of like the anti-Jim Rome. He says a lot without saying too much, he is not a good looking man, and he doesn’t talk as if he’s better than any of his callers. Still, like Marc Malusis, he seems to be a little too much like Mike and Chris in that he echoes almost all of their sentiments. Also, Chris, you hate the Yankees you can’t keep hosting those Yankees in the Park nights in Bryant Park. I love ya but you are selling your sports fan soul by hosting those nights. Oh and you do a good job on Giants post and pre game too even though you are a Steeler’s fan.