BSM Writers
CBS Sports Radio Wants Taz To Be Taz
“All Taz wants to do is be Taz and talk sports. That means you’re going to hear about his kid’s lacrosse career, and of course there will be some stories from his wrestling days too.”
Published
5 years agoon
Nineteen years ago, the wrestler known as Taz made a decision that would change the life of the man named Peter Senercia. If you didn’t know, Taz and Peter are the same guy. Also, if you didn’t know, the change had nothing to do with wrestling.
Taz was already a star during his run in Extreme Championship Wrestling. His defection to the WWF (remember, this was pre-rebrand) was big news in the industry, and the way the WWF chose to introduce him to their fans was even bigger news.
He was the mystery opponent that would face Kurt Angle at the Royal Rumble in 2000. It was a perfect introduction. Taz made Angle submit, and ended the former Olympian’s undefeated streak at Madison Square Garden.
So how did he go from that life to one that has him waking up well before dawn every morning to talk about Carson Wentz’s health or whether or not Anthony Davis will join LeBron in Laker Land?
His journey to a nationally syndicated sports radio show began, naturally, in the professional wrestling world. Long before he and Marc Malusis were handling morning duties for CBS Sports Radio, Vince McMahon was tricking Taz into auditioning for a role at the broadcast table on Smackdown.
“I got a couple of injuries. I tore my bicep and I had this recurring neck injury,” Taz told me as we sat in an empty office at CBS Sports Radio’s Manhattan headquarters in September.
It was the middle of 2001. The writers had put him in a feud with Smackdown color commentator Jerry “the King” Lawler. Vince had an idea to have Taz show how little he respected Lawler by doing his job for one match.
“They wanted me to sit in for the opening match as a color commentator, mocking him and working with Michael Cole. Just one match, then Jerry was supposed to attack me from behind and take back his seat,” Taz said.
“I was like ‘Cool. Yeah. No problem.’ And then I did the match and then I sat there. I was waiting for someone in my headset to tell me to leave, because Jerry Lawler never attacked me.”
Taz wasn’t the only one that was confused. As match after match started and ended he sat at the table with play-by-play man Michael Cole.
“I didn’t get it. I looked at Michael Cole and he was like ‘I don’t know, man.'” You can sense some frustration in his voice as he tells the story. “Guys come out, they wrestle, and I’m like ‘What’s going on here? Why am I just calling all these matches?'”.
Jerry Lawler eventually did attack him from behind, it just took longer than Taz was told it would. “I forgot he was coming. I mean, like, it really hurt.”
When he got back to the locker room, Vince McMahon told Taz that he liked the way Taz sounded. The only response Taz could come up with was “What do you mean?”
That is when Vince explained his vision for the next phase of Taz’s career. Injuries were mounting for him. Usually, wrestlers in that situation get released. They either retire or head back to the independent circuit working for a fraction of a fraction of what they got in the WWF. But that wasn’t what Vince wanted for Taz.
The travel schedule was taking its toll on Lawler, who was handling analyst duties on both Smackdown and Monday Night Raw. The WWF needed someone to take over those duties on Smackdown, and Taz made his home in the suburbs of New York City. It would be no problem at all for him to make the hour trip to the company’s Stamford, Connecticut headquarters to receive the training necessary to turn him into a star.
Taz would hold various broadcasting roles for the company until 2009. That didn’t mean he was entirely done in the ring. He would win a tag team championship in 2002, and when his time at the WWE was over, he would join the TNA Wrestling brand.
But something else happened while he was calling matches for the WWE that got us from there to here with Taz’s career.
Michael Cole, who had spent time working for CBS Radio as a reporter before finding his way to professional wrestling, had a connection at a radio station in Houston. This connection called Michael and said that Smackdown would be taping an episode at the Toyota Center while his morning show was on vacation for the holidays. Did Michael and Taz want to fill in on the show?
Cole pitched Taz on the idea. In his mind, it made total sense. The WWE was going to pay for their flight no matter when they got to Houston. Why not go a day or two early and have some fun on the radio?
Taz didn’t see it that way. “I didn’t want to do it, and he’s like ‘Taz, just do it. Come on. It’ll be fun.’ I said ‘Radio’s hard dude! I’m a TV guy and radio is very hard!’ I knew that much.”
Cole eventually won him over. They did the shows, and Taz was hooked. It wouldn’t be the last shows the duo would do together on radio either. They would go on to host a week of shows on Howard Stern’s Sirius channel and then periodically on New York’s Free FM.
Taz says the fact that radio was so hard is why it appealed to him and made him want to be on the air more. Michael Cole told me in an email that it wasn’t as hard for Taz as Taz thinks.
“Taz is a natural broadcaster. He has a very unique take on a wide variety of subjects and really connects with the audience.”
Mark Chernoff must have seen that natural talent too. The Format Captain for sports radio at Entercom isn’t putting just anyone in morning drive on any of his stations, let alone on the company’s nationally syndicated network.
When I asked him if he could see skills from Tazâs WWE days translating into his radio career Chernoff said, “Well, he’s an entertainer and if you don’t know how to entertain then being in the media and being on a daily radio show probably isn’t for you.
“You can’t teach entertainment. You know, people can pick up knowledge as they go, but personality and entertainment? Either you have it or you don’t. He’s got it. If you just talk to him off the air, he’s entertaining. He’s got a big personality.”
That big personality is key to what Taz and Marc Malusis do every morning on CBS Sports Radio, because all Taz wants to do is be Taz and talk sports. That means you’re going to hear about his kid’s lacrosse career, and of course there will be some stories from his wrestling days too.
See, Taz may not make a living in the ring anymore, but he is still wrapped up in the business. He’s never given up The Taz Show, his thrice-weekly podcast where he gives opinions and responds to listeners’ opinions on the most recent developments in professional wrestling.
If you’ve ever looked at ESPN or Fox and noticed how much their websites devote to WWE coverage or how often WWE Superstars show up on those networks, you have seen the reach of Taz’s influence. Radio.com, which hosts The Taz Show, was the first outlet that wasn’t wrestling-specific to offer real time reaction to some of the sport’s biggest events. That turned into the show streaming live on Radio.com everyday.
“I’ve been at every agent meeting and every production meeting in my history with ECW, the WWE, and TNA. I’ve sat with Hulk Hogan and in conference rooms with Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo and Vince McMahon and on and on and on,” Taz says as if he needs to sell me that he knows what he is talking about.
When I ask what it is about his show though that created an opportunity for him that didn’t materialize for other popular wrestlers-turned-podcasters like Steve Austin, Chris Jericho, and Jim Ross, his answer comes quick and is unwavering.
“Not only were we taking listener phone calls, but I was proud that (The Taz Show) wasn’t guest driven. It was topic driven. Those two things are very different, as you know.”
In that way, The Taz Show is structured way more like a sports radio show than any of iTunes’ other most popular wrestling podcasts. It also forced Taz to drive the bus and learn how to develop topics and opinions instead of being a good listener and reacting to someone else’s story.
Still though, a lot of what Taz & The Moose is is uncharted water for the pro wrestling icon. For one, he will admit that he is still learning to be a fan of everything. That’s not easy to do when you grew up a New York sports fan and are doing sports radio in New York City.
When I ask Taz how often he has to remind himself that the show can’t just be about the Yankees and Red Sox or what the Giants should do with Eli Manning in the offseason, he laughs. “Almost everyday,” he says. “And our bosses remind us.”
Chernoff says Taz doesn’t give himself enough credit. He thinks Taz focuses so much on what he isn’t supposed to do that he forgets how much he is doing right.
“Some of our meetings it’s just ‘remember that you’re doing a national sports show,’ and I give (Taz and Marc) lists of where they’re on. You have to remember where you’re on in national radio, and when you’re on. On the West Coast, stations that are taking the show live are airing it in overnight.”
Chernoff, who in addition to running CBS Sports Radio has run WFAN in New York since 1993, is very familiar with analyzing audiences and topics. He told me that what he wants Taz to remember is that it is okay to do local radio for the affiliates.
“On WXYT in Detroit or WJZ in Baltimore, if there’s things going on there, those are pretty big cities! Even in some of the smaller markets. You know, they’re on in a lot of Ohio. Ohio State football and all that is going on with Urban Meyer might be a local story for that audience, but there is huge national interest.”
Taz will always be able to connect with an audience regardless of what he is talking about. So what if he has to remind himself that maybe a listener in Kansas City might not care about how Manny Machado would fit in the Yankees’ lineup?
That listener probably isn’t counting on Taz to deliver a nuanced take on what Dedric Lawson allows Kansas’s offense to do when he is on the floor. They are coming to Taz to entertain them, because for so many guys in America, that is what Taz has been doing for nearly 20 years (25 if you’re an old school ECW fan).
Sitting across from him it is easy to see how he connects with people. We spent the better part of an hour together and I walked away feeling like we were buddies. Why? Because he tells great stories, has a big, infectious laugh, and just exudes charm.
I never asked Taz if he would give up his radio success to be able to get back in the ring and compete at the highest level of pro wrestling night-in-and-night-out again. I didn’t have to. It’s clear Taz is where he thinks he is supposed to be.
“There’s nothing like radio, and I am proud to say I’m a radio guy. I’ve become a radio guy, and that didn’t happen overnight. I feel like my career has evolved over the years. I’m blessed, and I am happy about that.
“I can tell you it is my dream job, doing daily radio. It’s tough, and yeah, it is a grind. There are some days you don’t want to go on air, but once the mic goes on, you gotta bring the energy to get people awake. You gotta have fun.”
Demetri Ravanos is the Assistant Content Director for Barrett Sports Media. He hosts the Chewing Clock and Media Noise podcasts. He occasionally fills in on stations across the Carolinas. Previous stops include WAVH and WZEW in Mobile, AL, WBPT in Birmingham, AL and WBBB, WPTK and WDNC in Raleigh, NC. You can find him on Twitter @DemetriRavanos and reach him by email at [email protected].
BSM Writers
The NBA Play-In Tournament is Simply About Money
By most estimates, the PIT has added millions of dollars in value for the leagueâs broadcast partners.
Published
14 hours agoon
April 17, 2024No, the NBA play-in tournament wonât save the league. But thatâs not the same as saying it doesnât matter.
In truth, the PIT, as weâll call it, has done almost exactly what the leagueâs owners had hoped it would. It drives up a little interest in the NBAâs product before the playoffs proper begin this weekend. Itâs sort of an appetizer for the courses to come.
It also drives a few bucks into the pockets of the leagueâs broadcast partners, and for Adam Silver & Co., thatâs the point, of course. Aesthetics aside, if the PIT wasnât a moneymaker, weâd never speak of it again, very happily.
This creature, after all, is a bit of a mess. Itâs clearly contrived. It was hatched during the pandemic as the NBA tried to figure out how to survive its 2020 bubble summer, which tells you most of what you need to know about the motives.
And it can skew ugly. This weekâs offerings featured two solidly sub-.500 Eastern Conference teams, Chicago and Atlanta. Under the NBAâs previous top-8 format, the Eastâs lowest-qualifying playoff team wouldâve been Miami at 46-36. Thatâs respectable.
But the PIT isnât about respectable; itâs about spectacle. As this yearâs version got underway, there were a couple of tantalizing storylines â only a couple, but thatâs all you usually need.
In the West, teams featuring LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, Zion Williamson, and DeâAaron Fox were all jockeying for their post-season survival. Why? Because their respective teams were merely okay for most of the season, never great.
But you can see why Silver and the NBA owners favored adding a few more playoff possibles in the first place. Again, going back to the top-8 grid of playoffs past, both the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings wouldâve been on the outside looking in. Instead, viewers got a Warriors-Kings elimination game on Tuesday night.
The notion of seeing Curry and his crew go out in a one-game tire fire is generally going to be worth a few eyeballs â and thatâs the whole ballgame here. Last yearâs six PIT games, broadcast on ESPN and TNT, averaged 2.64 million viewers, a 5% increase from the year before.
Thatâs how this works. By most estimates, the PIT has added millions of dollars in value for the leagueâs broadcast partners. You can argue that, depending upon the year, the 7-8-9-10 configuration also heightens interest in the last couple of weeks of the regular season, simply because nobody wants to be relegated to the 9-10 elimination game.
It all matters to a league that, like most sports enterprises in America, is trying to figure out the viewer landscape amid a rapidly changing market. Silver acknowledged as much last fall in an interview with Yahoo Sports, saying that the decline in cable subscriptions âhas disproportionately impacted the NBAâ because the leagueâs fan demographic trends younger but the remaining cable audience is older.
âOur young audience isnât subscribing to cable,â Silver told Yahoo, âand those fans arenât finding our games.â
Thereâs no doubt the NBA is addressing that issue as it negotiates with TNT and ESPN, whose rights expire in 2025. While cable options might be cut back, the league has to find a way to expand its reach through a significant streaming partnership. It could be part of the impending ESPN/Fox/Warner platform or something else, but it needs to be easily identifiable and easily accessed.
Youâd go a little crazy trying to figure out where the NBA stands in terms of viewership. Its opening night last fall was a bust, but the new in-season tournament was a ratings hit. The league got smoked by the NFL on Christmas Day, enjoyed a huge uptick on All-Star Saturday Night, then played a desultory All-Star Game only to see viewer numbers go up from the year before. (Granted, that was a rise from an all-time ratings low.)
Silver, whoâs wrapping up a contract extension that will keep him in the commissionerâs job through the end of the decade, has been warily eyeing the TV numbers for years. He isnât new to any of the concerns, and he has been forcefully behind both the in-season tournament and this PIT creation, which everyone involved has no problem labeling a blatant viewership ploy.
Thatâs because, for lack of a crisper phrase, it is what it is. The play-in is every bit as basic as it looks, and it was put in place for no reason other than to expand the playoff field and generate a little extra heat through the scheduleâs final few weeks, along with these early days of the post-season.
And it generates millions. For Silver and Co, thatâs the end of the conversation.
Mark Kreidler is a national award-winning writer whose work has appeared at ESPN, the New York Times, Washington Post, Time, Newsweek and dozens of other publications. He’s also a sports-talk veteran with stops in San Francisco and Sacramento, and the author of three books, including the bestselling “Four Days to Glory.” More of his writing can be found at https://markkreidler.substack.com. He is also reachable on Twitter @MarkKreidler.
BSM Writers
Verne Lundquist Deserved All The Praise and More During Final Broadcast
Verne Lundquist might be the last of a dying breed. And for all of the fantastic moments he’s had behind the microphone, there was a missed opportunity for one final hurrah.
Published
14 hours agoon
April 17, 2024Verne Lundquist deserved to call the final holes of The Masters for CBS Sports on Sunday.
While celebrating his 40th time calling golf’s grandest stage, it also marked the end of his illustrious broadcasting career. Lundquist has been a fixture not only at Augusta but also on CBS Sports properties like the SEC on CBS, the Army/Navy Game, and the NCAA Tournament.
But Verne Lundquist is part of the last of a dying TV play-by-play breed.
He was never going to make his final assignment about him.
When you tuned into a broadcast being called by the 83-year-old, you were bound to witness a broadcasting masterclass. The ability to weave humor in and out of the broadcast, along with tenacious prep work, fantastic storytelling, and an intricate knowledge of letting the pictures tell the story were Lundquist’s trademarks.
Take, for instance, his call of the famous “Kick Six” in the 2013 Iron Bowl. In 25 seconds of action, the only thing he says is “On the way ⊠No. Returned by Chris Davis. Davis goes left. Davis gets a block. Davis has another block! Chris Davis! No flags! Touchdown, Auburn! An answered prayer!”
He didn’t speak for the next 65 seconds, letting the pictures — some of which have lived on in infamy — tell the story.
It wasn’t overhyped catchphrases, screaming, or “look at me!” energy that has somewhat permeated modern television play-by-play that made Lundquist a TV legend. It was a dedication to the craft.
It was great to see so many tributes from not just fellow broadcasters but also from some of the PGA Tour players — especially Tiger Woods — for Lundquist in his final assignments.
Make no mistake about it: Verne Lundquist is a titan of the industry and deserved all of the praise that was heaped on him during his final assignment. And I’m not unreasonable, I don’t know that you could expect Jim Nantz — who gave up calling the NCAA Tournament — to step aside for Lundquist to call the final holes of The Masters, when he gave up another high-profile gig to spend more time focusing on golf’s biggest tournament.
But when a guy like Verne Lundquist — who you could argue belongs on the Mount Rushmore of TV play-by-players — is ending his career at a place that he says “means just about everything, professionally,” I think it has to enter someone’s brain to give him the chance to make the call.
Now, maybe the most likely scenario is that Nantz, or retiring CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus, did invite Lundquist to wrap his career by cementing Scottie Scheffler’s place in immortality at Augusta National. But watching Verne Lundquist from afar, it’s likely he decided to not shine the spotlight on himself. A quality that took him to the top of the sports broadcasting mountaintop.
I hope Lundquist appreciates all of the admiration shown to him over the past week, from contemporaries and those who participated in the action alike. It was our honor, and our privilege, to listen to Verne Lundquist for all those years. Not only at The Masters, but the Olympics, college football and basketball, and beyond.
Garrett Searight is the Editor of Barrett News Media and a weekly columnist for Barrett Sports Media. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH. He is also the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach him at [email protected].
BSM Writers
Q Myers, ‘GameNight’ Places Women’s Basketball at the Forefront on ESPN Radio
“I think everything weâve done has built up where we continue to allow ourselves to do more because of what weâve done and our consistency.”
Published
14 hours agoon
April 17, 2024It all started with an idea and aspiration that the momentum would persist and continue to move in the right direction. Qiant Myers, a longtime radio veteran who works as the program director for the Las Vegas Sports Network and hosts several programs centered on the Las Vegas Raiders, was looking to do something different on ESPN Radio GameNight leading up to the NCAA Division I Womenâs Basketball Tournament. With March Madness rapidly approaching, the program devised a strategy to implement discussion about the teams and players within the bracket, diligently preparing by booking guests to be interviewed and contribute to the discussion.
Myers and his colleagues take part in a weekly listening session in which they review different parts of GameNight and discuss both strengths and weaknesses. ESPN Radio afternoon program director Mike Urrunaga often joins in these calls to provide his insights and analysis, looking to bolster the quality of the on-air product. The program utilizes a rotation of several hosts, including Myers, Emmett Golden and Jonathan Zaslow, all of whom bring a consistent approach to serve as a source of information and entertainment while inviting listener opinions.
Being based in Las Vegas, Nev., Myers can evince the presence of womenâs sports and perceives its rapid proliferation in the marketplace. The Las Vegas Aces have won the WNBA championship in the last two seasons, while the University of Las Vegas is widely considered to have one of the strongest womenâs basketball programs in the country.
At the same time, he recognized the success of new teams in establishing fanbases over time, including the Vegas Golden Knights. The defending Stanley Cup champions frequently fill T-Mobile Arena to standing-room capacity, embedded within the zeitgeist and sports renaissance taking place in the city. Concurrently, the Aces averaged at the top of the WNBA in average attendance last season and have leveraged on-court play and stars to help expand its fanbase. With the possibility of more professional sports leagues considering the city for relocation and/or expansion, Las Vegas is among the quintessential examples of sustaining and thriving with both womenâs and menâs sports organizations.
âI felt like I already had a foot in the door because Iâm paying attention to whatâs going on,â Myers said. âIâve been watching womenâs basketball for a long time and really appreciate it.â
When Myers demonstrated his avidity for womenâs basketball prior to the start of March Madness, his co-workers recognized that predilection and capitalized on it. In essence, GameNight worked to become the radio home of the tournament by crafting a distinctive sound and disseminating it en masse. The initiative was not only about introducing the athletes to listeners, but also showcasing their personalities and establishing an interpersonal connection.
âIâm a big believer in if the hosts are passionate about something, that passion will carry and it will draw listeners in,â show producer Tara Sledjeski said. âAnything you do â if your hosts are into it â I think you can sell it to the audience because theyâre going to be interested in it if the hosts are into it.â
There were several coaches that appeared on the program whose husbands are members of the coaching staff. Additionally, some of the players presented anecdotes about how they would watch and attend womenâs basketball games when they were younger and became inspired to pursue the career themselves. By humanizing the guests on GameNight, the interviews were able to more readily appeal to listeners, especially those who are either unfamiliar with or unwilling to accept the burgeoning pantheon of womenâs sports.
âI think it is about finding those personal things of why you should be interested in these people, and I think with all sports, it always comes down to the stars, which weâve especially learned with womenâs basketball,â Sledjeski said. âCaitlin Clark â everyone cares about Caitlin Clark, so I think itâs just finding things that will make people resonate with these girls.â
Clark in particular has stood out among the pack of incoming WNBA players, catapulting to become one of the most eminent athletes in the world. Clark was recently drafted No. 1 overall by the Indiana Fever and became the top-selling draft pick in Fanatics history, garnering demand for her jersey from basketball fans around the world.
Nielsen measured the rematch of last yearâs National Championship Game between Iowa and LSU to amass an average of 12.3 million viewers. Peaking at 16.1 million, the game marked the most-watched college basketball game to be presented on ESPN platforms before the Final Four.
ESPN went on to break that record two more times in the next five days, beginning with the Final Four game featuring Iowa and UConn that averaged 14.4 million viewers. Although Iowa did not win the National Championship Game, it posted a valiant effort against South Carolina in a game that attained 18.9 million viewers, ending tournament coverage that was up 121% year-over-year.
The metric was significant for Sledjeski, who grew up watching menâs sports and playing softball. When the sport was removed from the Olympic Games in 2008, she wondered what encapsulated the acme of the game, and the fact that these athletes could no longer win gold medals in the games was disheartening and perplexing. Watching the womenâs National Championship game outdraw the menâs iteration for the first time in the history of March Madness represented a monumental achievement and step towards further prosperity.
While it can be difficult to attribute a direct correlation, those involved believe that GameNight had an effect on interest in womenâs basketball based on observation and logic. Associate producer Rachael Robinson, who also works on the evening program Amber & Ian, enjoyed taking part in the tournament-specific endeavor, during which she learned about personnel within the sport and their indelible impact on its growth.
âLooking back, that was a fantastic idea,â Robinson said. âItâs kind of fun to be ahead of the game. I always enjoy it. People might question you in the moment, but once it blows up, because you know itâs going to eventually, you look like a genius.â
Since GameNight is under the ESPN company umbrella, the program is able to leverage the deep roster of multiplatform talent and have them on for segments during the show. For example, basketball analysts Andraya Carter and Carolyn Peck appeared on the show to discuss the tournament. Following the Final Four games, analyst Jimmy Dikes and reporter Holly Rowe also joined the program to provide their expertise within the overall discussion. ESPN recently reached a new, eight-year media rights agreement with the NCAA that grants the network rights to 40 championships, including all rounds of the Division I Womenâs Basketball Tournament.
âItâs great that ESPN has the rights to all this,â Sledjeski explained, âbecause it helps us then to bring in our analysts and bring in people that were there and people that were on the call to give that insight of whatâs going on.â
âThey did such a fantastic job that it made ESPN, really truly the home not only on radio, but on TV,â Myers added. â….I felt like we were the voices leading into the tournament on the radio. I feel like it all worked together.â
Before the tournament began, the GameNight team worked to secure and feature several key figures from womenâs basketball, such as Notre Dame guard and ACC defensive player of the year Hannah Hidalgo. Big 12 Conference co-player of the year Madison Booker, Pac-12 Conference most improved player of the year Kiki Iriafen and MAAC coach of the year Carly Thibault-DuDonis were also among the guests at this time. Aside from discussing the games themselves, the program also found ways to engage in storytelling that would effectuate a comprehensive synopsis as to their personas both on and off the court.
âWeâre going to do all the research, [and] weâre going to get all the fun facts,â Myers said. âTara does a great job of that, and obviously Iâm going to do my research at the same timeâŠ. We did the show before the show because we were just so busy grinding, but thatâs the beauty of it.â
As the producer of GameNight, Sledjeski knows that it made the program a more compelling listen in going beyond the action on the court. Certain answers and details stood out within its coverage pertaining to a variety of topics, one of which was a joint interview with Iowa State freshman center Audi Crooks and freshman forward Addy Brown. The teammates became close friends throughout the season and discussed the camaraderie between them and the rest of the team. Furthermore, the program welcomed UNLV head coach Lindy La Rocue who shed light on balancing her personal and professional responsibilities.
âMy mind is still blown by her story because last year, she literally had her first child in early November and she was back on the sidelines coaching a week later,â Sledjeski said. âThat is mind-blowing, and she gave a great answer about her daughter always being around the team and how she canât separate things.â
Amid the tournament, GameNight had a plethora of athletes and coaches on the airwaves for interviews, including Oklahoma forward Skylar Vann, Oregon State guard Talia von Oelhoffen and North Carolina guard Alyssa Ustby. Sledjeski informed members of the show to tag the specific universities and basketball programs who the players were representing, which led to several subsequent posts and additional engagement. Robinson was responsible for posting audio from these conversations, and she hopes to augment the breadth of digital distribution accompanying the national radio exposure.
âI really enjoyed it because it was different, because a lot of shows were paying attention to it because it was an initiative and it was going so well,â Robinson said, âbut they were very good at getting the lesser-known stories out of the tournament and really pushing them and becoming the home of the tournament.â
In addition to guest interviews and discussion on the air, GameNight also cultivated a social media campaign where it ranked and created a bracket to determine the best Division I basketball program in the country. Womenâs and menâs programs engaged in head-to-head battles determined by fan votes on social media about who would win each matchup. Sledjeski presented the concept and seeded the teams for the six-round competition situated similar to March Madness. There were 16 teams within each division (East; Midwest; South; West), narrowing the bracket from 64 to the Final Four.
âThat was a whole lot of work to put that bracket together,â Myers said. âJust by her wanting to put that together got me excited about it. It made me want to be like, âYeah, letâs lean into this. Letâs do this. If sheâs willing to put in that work, letâs lean into it, letâs have some fun with it and letâs talk about it.ââ
Visualizing the competition in a bracket format tied into the theme surrounding March Madness, but determining the exact theme of the venture took several iterations. As she continued to ruminate on how such an effort could surface and elicit broad interest, she began to weigh teams experiencing current success and those who had been perennial champions of yore.
âThe more you think about it, itâs really tough with all sports and if youâre trying to cover all pros and programs,â Sledjeski said. âI was trying to narrow it down, and I really donât know what popped into my head, but I thought itâd be really cool when you think about, âOkay, we know the UConn women are doing really good; also then how do they compare to the Duke men?ââ
ESPN Radio shared polls on X with two basketball teams and asked users to vote on which one was the stronger all-time program. After 60 rounds of voting, the championship matchup came down to the North Carolina Tar Heels menâs basketball program against the UConn Huskies womenâs basketball program. In the end, the UConn womenâs team garnered just over 92% of the final vote, taking home the championship in the bracket competition. Monitoring the engagement and interaction on social media, Robinson noticed that there was palpable enthusiasm towards the project. In fact, many programs from around the country recognized the campaign and implored their fanbase to vote in an effort to capture the title.
âIt was a very interesting way to look at it because it wasnât the same, âOh, hereâs this; hereâs this,ââ Robinson said. âIt was, âLook at the history of these two sports and pick the best one.ââ
With the book on this yearâs edition of March Madness closed, it does not indicate the end of covering womenâs sports on GameNight and ESPN Radio. As teams across the WNBA prepare for opening night next month, collegiate stars including Caitlin Clark, Cameron Brink and Kamilla Cardoso aim to make an impact and assimilate into the league. Building off the momentum from the tournament, ESPN Radio intends to feature a WNBA player every week of the season, an effort that will likely coincide with games on television.
Viewership of the league last season reached a 17-year high with an average of 440,000 people watching games presented on ESPN, ABC and ESPN2. With national media rights for both the WNBA and NBA expiring after next season, respective league commissioners Cathy Engelbert and Adam Silver have addressed the growth of both entities. ESPN and Warner Bros. Discovery are currently in an exclusive negotiating window with the NBA that runs through next Monday, April 22. ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro believes that the WNBA will be included in a potential renewal with the NBA, a league that is reportedly aiming to implement a regular streaming element into its portfolio.
For now, GameNight is focused on utilizing its resources and platform to drive awareness of and interest in womenâs sports through storytelling and regular discussion. The shifting paradigm within athletics has placed womenâs sports at the center of conversations rather than it being disregarded or considered an afterthought.
âI think that itâs continuing to get better and growing, and obviously the star power is always going to help because now thereâs people in this tournament obviously that watch the game because Caitlin Clark was fantastic,â Myers said. âNow hopefully, now thereâs sticking power [and] now hopefully they come back and say, âOh man, let me see it againâŠâ Now I feel like I can feature more as well, and itâs appreciated instead of, âOh, theyâre trying to force feed it because theyâre trying to play nice with the ladies.ââ
Deloitte projects womenâs sports to generate more than $1 billion in revenue for the first time this year, coverage of which comes from ESPN through its radio, television and digital platforms. The team at GameNight and ESPN Radio have discerned and witnessed audience interest in various leagues, teams and games themselves that comprise womenâs sports. These discussions are not derivative or contrived in nature; rather, they are genuine opinions that emanate from keen focus on implications and outcomes therein. GameNight intends to continue shattering glass ceilings while not allowing prejudicial, misogynistic commentaries to impede the progress towards equality.
âI think everything weâve done has built up where we continue to allow ourselves to do more because of what weâve done and our consistency,â Myers said. â…Weâve earned the right to continue to build up what weâve already started and see how far it can go.â
Derek Futterman is a contributing editor and sports media reporter for Barrett Sports Media. Additionally, he has worked in a broad array of roles in multimedia production â including on live game broadcasts and audiovisual platforms â and in digital content development and management. He previously interned for Paramount within Showtime Networks, wrote for the Long Island Herald and served as lead sports producer at NY2C. To get in touch, find him on Twitter @derekfutterman.