Day three of our BSM Top 20 of 2019 has arrived, and today we turn our focus to the sports format’s best midday shows. Before scrolling down the page to see the results and save the photos to promote your favorite hosts and programs on social media, here are a few things to be aware of.
First, the voting for our Top 20 series this year involved forty seven radio professionals from thirty cities and eighteen companies. Yours truly (Jason Barrett) does not vote on the awards, I simply collect the information, add up the votes, design the images, and present and promote the results.
Secondly, our voters were asked to consider the criteria below to judge the format’s best programs. Keep in mind that each individual values things differently and has deeper knowledge of some shows and cities than others. Though that may make this an imperfect science, we could say that about any list on any topic ever created. Therefore, we’re going to move forward and present a collective snapshot of what radio industry executives believe to be the format’s best shows.
- Strong ratings in 2019
- Industry track record
- Reputation and influence
- Finished 2019 with the network/station
- Ability to entertain and inform consistently
- Points are given for each spot (EX: 20 for 1st, 1 for 20th)
That brings us to this year’s the rankings for the Mid Market Local Sports Radio Midday Shows of 2019. After trading the top spot for the past three years, we have ourselves a repeat winner. Dan Dakich of 93.5/107.5 The Fan in Indianapolis has taken the top honor once again, holding off Nashville’s Midday 180 from 104.5 The Zone.
Dakich won the award last year by 22 points. This year, he increased his lead, taking home the top spot by 41 points, thanks to the most 1st place votes (9) and appearing in the Top 3 on more ballots than any other show in the category.
BSM congratulates Dan and his team at 93.5/107.5 in Indianapolis, as well as every other show that appeared on this year’s list. Now without further adieu, let’s take a look at the full results of “BSM’s Top 20 Mid Market Local Sports Radio Midday Shows of 2019!”




















Additional Notes:
- Dan Dakich earned the most 1st place votes with nine (9), Midday 180 were second with six (6)
- Spots 21-25 belonged to The V Show, Mayes & Eytan, Josh Cohen and The Home Team, David Glenn and The Brian Noe Show.
- The closest battles were The Really Big Show holding off Baskin and Phelps by 4 points, and Jason and John edging Erik Ainge by 1 point.
- 10 of the 45 shows eligible for consideration this year received at least one (1) 1st place vote.
Here is the remaining schedule for the BSM Top 20 of 2019.
- Thursday January 30 = The 2019 Top 20 Local Sports Radio Afternoon Shows
- Friday January 31 = The 2019 Top 20 Sports Radio Program Directors
- Monday February 3 = The 2019 Top 20 Major and Mid-Market Local Sports Radio Sports Stations
- Tuesday February 4 = The 2019 Top 20 Original Sports Podcasts

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.
Does anyone who votes actually listen to these shows? The Really Big Show is a thrown together, unprepared amateur hour which is an embarrassment to any professional radio station.