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Crowe Named PD at KNBR; Hammer Shifts To VP of PXP

Jason Barrett

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Jeremiah Crowe has been given the reigns to set the tone and vision for one of the most successful sports radio stations in the country. After serving as Program Director of KNBR 1050 (KTCT-AM) and as Assistant Program Director of KNBR 680, Cumulus Media have elevated Crowe to program KNBR 680, one of the company’s most powerful and successful sports radio properties.

KNBR has been built on a combination of strong local programming and play by play, and fortunately for Crowe he’ll have an experienced hand available to guide him along. Longtime PD Lee Hammer will remain involved and shift to a new position of Vice President of Sports Play by Play Programming. Hammer will become more involved in navigating the relationships and on-air opportunities with the San Francisco Giants, San Francisco 49ers, and other Bay Area sports partnerships.

VP/Market Manager Justin Wittmayer said, “Jeremiah Crowe and Lee Hammer are the ‘Dream Team’ for outstanding sports radio programming and together, will continue to drive the growth of these powerhouse sports stations. Jeremiah has done a remarkable job leading the re-launch of KNBR 1050 over the past year, while expanding our high-engagement social media platforms for Bay Area sports fans. In this new role as Program Director of both KNBR 680 and KNBR 1050, he will focus his considerable expertise and efforts into growing these stations and the KNBR brand as the Bay Area’s most powerful name in sports programming.”

Wittmayer continued, “As VP/Sports Play-by-Play Programming for Cumulus Media-San Francisco, Lee Hammer is a major asset to our senior leadership team. This appointment reflects our continued investment in KNBR, with an enhanced focus on our play-by-play partners, the Giants and the 49ers, and our commitment to bringing the very best play-by-play programming to Bay Area sports fans.”

Crowe joined KNBR after spending four years at crosstown rival 95.7 The Game. He added, “This is an opportunity to bring a fresh perspective to a strong KNBR brand that means so much to Bay Area sports fans. Our format is at a pivotal point in its evolution, and the KNBR staff is primed to pioneer a landscape where terrestrial radio and digital assets are converging. I want to thank Lee Hammer and Cumulus’ leadership for their support. I couldn’t be more excited to get started in my new role as Program Director.”

Hammer also chimed in by adding, “The relationships we have with our play-by-play partners, the Giants and the 49ers, are key components to the overall success of KNBR. This new role will allow me to devote more time to enhance and expand these key partnerships, resulting in increased value for our listeners and our clients.”

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Sports Radio News

Jim Rome: I Don’t Want to Talk About How the NFL Sucks Every Day

Rome argued that “hate is the new dopamine” while noting that he doesn’t want to talk about what he hates all day.

Jordan Bondurant

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Jim Rome
(Photo: CBS Sports Radio)

Jim Rome didn’t want to have to be that guy on Tuesday, but he had no choice.

Rome opened his CBS Sports Radio show by prefacing his comments on Monday night’s Bears/Vikings game by saying his goal isn’t to just ridicule the NFL schedule into oblivion.

“I don’t come in here every single day looking to bag on and hate on NFL primetime games,” Rome said. “And yes, I’m the one who said it – hate is the new dopamine. But that’s not how I get down. That’s not my deal.”

Jim Rome added that just saying everything sucks isn’t a sports take. But he pivoted from there saying that it’s OK to say 95% of the primetime games in the NFL suck because it’s true.

“Then not only is it a take, it’s the only take,” he said. “How are these games actually managing in primetime to get worse and worse? And how is anything going to top the atrocity that we sat through last night?”

Fans in theory should get a more competitive, high-scoring affair on Thursday night when the Seahawks take on the Cowboys. But Rome just couldn’t believe how torturous Monday night’s contest really was.

“Technically, the Bears did win that game. But technically, really, we all lost,” he said.

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Mad Dog: Gus Johnson ‘Bothered The Hell Out of Me’ Saturday

“For crying out loud, Michigan/Ohio State isn’t even better than North Carolina/Duke, who play twice a year. So let’s be careful with the hype machine.”

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A photo of Chris "Mad Dog" Russo
(Photo: SiriusXM)

FOX Sports college football voice Gus Johnson has made no bones about his affinity for Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. However, Chris “Mad Dog” Russo has heard enough.

During his Mad Dog Unleashed program on SiriusXM, Russo shared that not only was Johnson obnoxious for the constant use of a nickname he bestowed up Harrison, but he was also misguided for calling Ohio State/Michigan the greatest rivalry in sports.

“Gus Johnson — the hype machine that he is — please, when you broadcast a ballgame, I don’t need to hear about Maserati Marv, number one. And number two, that’s not the greatest rivalry in sports history. Have you heard of the Yankees and the Red Sox? Giants and the Dodgers? How about Bears/Packers? Have you heard about that?

“For crying out loud, Michigan/Ohio State isn’t even better than North Carolina/Duke, who play twice a year. So let’s be careful with the hype machine. That bothered the hell out of me.”

When a caller pushed back on Russo’s opinion on the Michigan/Ohio State rivalry, he continued by saying “That rivalry’s not Yankees/Red Sox. To compare college football to the Yankees and the Red Sox is ludicrous.”

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Nashville Predators Radio Voice Pete Weber Calling 2,000th Game Tuesday

“I always wanted to be there for the birth of a team. I feel like I’ve been a pretty fair midwife here.”

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A photo of Pete Weber
(Photo: Nashville Predators)

Nashville Predators radio voice Pete Weber is set to hit a career milestone Tuesday, as he’ll call his 2,000th game for the NHL franchise.

Weber told The Tennessean that he has relished the opportunity to be the voice of a team since its inception. He claimed he applied for and was a finalist for the radio play-by-play job when the Carolina Panthers were conceived, before ultimately landing with the Predators.

“I always wanted to be there for the birth of a team,” said Weber. “I feel like I’ve been a pretty fair midwife here.”

Despite missing time late last season due to a rare brain condition, Weber said he has no plans of retiring anytime soon.

“I have not thought about it, other than when I thought about how (former Philadelphia Phillies announcer) Harry Kalas was carried dead out of the broadcast booth in Washington,” Pete Weber said. “I thought, ‘Well, that’s an interesting way to go. I don’t necessarily know that I want to do it like that. But it could happen. I’m not going to say no.”

Weber’s 2,000th game will come as the Nashville Predators play host to the Pittsburgh Penguins. 102.5 The Game is the flagship home of the Predators Radio Network.

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