Love this photo – mgoblue.com Certainly by now you’ve heard of Michigan’s epic comeback from down 14 runs to Northwestern this weekend on Senior Day. The story made it to SportsCenter and prompted ESPN to ask, ‘Are you Serious?’ WTKA’s Ira Weintraub called the game on the radio and was kind enough to forward over a clip of his call the Dufek’s bomb. Per Ira, “Not a great call, but not bad for a guy who has now called 8 baseball games in the last 10 years!!” Not to bad indeed, and note Weintraub using the Harwell technique of letting the crowd and band paint the scene after the blast: [display_podcast] . For more, check out frequent mgoblog diarist FormerlyAnonymous who gave his account of the game. (HT: Ace @ TWB) And speaking of WKTA 1050AM, Rich Maloney’s call into Sam and Ira this morning is worth a listen. Maloney effectively acknowledged the was over at 13-0, telling his players that no team of his has ever quit during a game, and it wouldn’t be happening today. That said, he did tell the guys that the wind was blowing out and their pitching was a bit depleted. Who knew? Unfortunately I don’t see the podcast up there yet; it is comes up I’ll toss up a link.
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Jamie Morris on Columbus Radio on Rodriguez, Harbaugh (audio)
So I went over to the Columbus’ 97.1 The Fan website to find the audio of Rich Rodriguez’s call today, and stumbled on this. Jamie Morris, Michigan football legend, WTKA Sunday radio host and most importantly an official within the U-M athletic department spoke to the Columbus host (Bruce Hooley…Chris Spielman was away) about the upcoming Ohio State game, but also answered a few questions about Rodriguez and Jim Harbaugh. My frustration with Morris on WTKA is that he’s been such a company man towing the company line on WTKA, that it’s prevented him from offering actual opinions. But give this is listen as Morris gets candid. I don’t know if this is just Jamie measuring his words, but he didn’t exactly serve up a wild endorsement of Rodriguez and admitted that Harbaugh would be welcomed back to U-M if he were the Michigan football coach at some point beyond RR’s tenure. It’s not so much what he said, but that Morris never says anything remotely beyond the company line. Give this a listen, it gets interesting about 3 minutes in: [display_podcast] . Notes/Quotes: For starters, he referred to Harbaugh as “Jimmy” instead of “traitor”. Hooley asked for a general sense of the radio caller support for Rodriguez. Morris: “I think we’re at a 50/50 split now…” When asked about…
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“Sweeping Cuts” at WDFN, Stoney & Wojo Gone!
What a shocker! WDFN 1130AM, the leading voice for Detroit sports radio, cut most or all of its local talent including the prolific drive-time standby, the Stoney and Wojo Show. Obviously, I’m stunned. The show, which features Mike “Stoney” Stone and Detroit News columnist Bob “Wojo” Wojnowski, had been the go-to show in Detroit since its debut in April 1995. Wojo’s paper got the scoop and quotes from the hosts: “It’s a really sad day because I loved working at that station,” Wojnowski said. “And I know a lot of Detroiters have loved listening to the station for the past 14-15 years. It’s just another sign of the times, a very sad sign.” Said Stone: “I will miss it terribly. People tell me the show meant something to (them). That’s amazing. Hopefully, somebody will want to pick up ‘Stoney and Wojo.” This site has (had?) a relationship with WDFN on its Michigan football page and I’ve swapped emails with WDFN program director Rona Danziger in the past. I sent her an email tonight hoping for some reaction. Included in the cuts was solid mid-morning man Sean Baligian (of ‘It is what it is‘) who apparently didn’t learn of the cuts until after this morning’s broadcast. Said Baligian, “..we’ve all been hearing rumors for a while that something big was going…
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WTKA Moves Huge Show to 6-8pm slot, on delay
For those who listen to 1050AM WTKA may have noticed that the Dan Patrick Show has run the last couple days in the slot that used to be occupied by Michigan radio host Bill ‘Huge’ Simonson. WTKA has moved the Huge show out of the drive time slot and onto a 6-8pm window and on delay. I called the station to ask about the decision. Sounds like it came down to a ratings and perhaps a few complaints from listeners. While Huge is technically a local show, the frequent focus on Central Michigan athletics I think wore thin on some Ann Arborites. So they’re moving Dan Patrick into the slot. I didn’t hear Huge’s reaction to the show (because Dan Patrick was on!) and I didn’t hear the delayed show. I’m sure he’s pissed but sometimes radio hosts downplay setbacks like this. A few quickly scribbled thoughts: * I’m not a fan of the Dan Patrick show. To me, Patrick is still a witty teleprompter highlight reader and not a radio host. The cute frat boy towel whipping humor is really for the birds. * I’d prefer a local host, Huge included, cover this critical slot especially during football season. I still miss Dennis Fithian [MVictors interview] and without knowing the financials behind the decision, think it was a big…
