When the football season ends, stations usually add extra weekend programming to make up for the loss of NFL and College Football play by play and shoulder programming. On the network level, the strategy is no different, and this year ESPN Radio is making moves to strengthen its weekend offerings.
The network will team up three of their highest profile female personalities with the debut of “The Trifecta“. The program will be hosted by Sarah Spain, Jane McManus, and Kate Fagan and air on Saturday’s from 12p-3p starting January 9th. Spain has been a contributor on Dan Le Batard’s show and previously hosted a weekend program with Prim Siripipat. McManus is one of espnw’s top NFL reporters and columnists, and Fagan also writes for espnw and has been a refreshing addition to “Around the Horn“.
In addition, the network will launch another new Saturday program. ESPN New York’s Dave Rothenberg will join forces with Mike Golic Jr. and ESPN.com NBA reporter Michael Wallace Saturday evenings from 5p-8p. The trio will also debut on January 9th.
Turning to Sunday, Fagan will add another program when she teams with ESPN contributor Will Cain for a new show titled “Will and Kate“. The show will air from 7a-10a and officially premiere on Valentine’s Day.
NBA talk programming will get ramped up with the pairing of NBA reporters Israel Gutierrez and Amin Elhassan. “Izzy and Amin” will broadcast every Sunday from 10a-12p.
And last but not least, “Booger & Burns“, featuring former NFL Defensive Player and current SEC Network Analyst Anthony “Booger” McFarland and SEC Network Host Peter Burns make their debut on the network also on Valentine’s Day. Their program will air from 10p-12a.
Altogether the network is adding 5 new shows and 12 fresh voices, and that should peak the curiosity of sports radio weekend listeners across the nation.
Jason Barrett is the President and Founder of Barrett Media since the company was created in September 2015. Prior to its arrival, JB served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He also spent time programming SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jason also worked on-air and behind the scenes in local radio at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years on the national stage, producing radio shows for ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT. Among them included the Dan Patrick Show, and GameNight.
You can find JB on Twitter @SportsRadioPD. He’s also reachable by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
