Indianapolis and Tampa are two cities where its understood that competition for the sports radio listener’s ear is minimal. WDAE runs the roost in Tampa. 93.5/107.5 The Fan occupies the leadership position in Indy. Neither is close to being challenged for their spot atop the sports radio mountain in their respective markets.
That brings us to the quarterly ratings. In the winter book, both stations did what they had to do to position themselves for repeated success in 2021.
Starting with WDAE, the station finished the first quarter in 7th place with Men 25-54. Compared to last year’s results, WDAE gained nearly two full points and eight ranking positions.
Looking at the station’s weekday shows, Ronnie & TKras finished 6th in morning drive, Pat & Aaron were 7th during the midday, and Ian Beckles and Jay Recher secured 4th place in afternoons. The Dan Patrick Show, which is also part of the daily lineup, was 5th during its timeslot.
Meanwhile in Indy, 93.5/107.5 The Fan finished 4th for the quarter in weekday prime. That wasn’t far off from their winter book performance last year.
Bragging rights for the top rated sports talk show in the market this quarter belonged to John Michael Vincent. ‘The Ride with JMV’ was 1st overall in afternoon drive, up from 2nd a year earlier. Equally strong for The Fan was Dan Dakich who came in 3rd during his midday timeslot, also up from last year’s 4th place finish. Wrapping up in mornings, Jeff Rickard & ‘Big’ Joe Staysniak grabbed 4th place for the book, down one position from 2020.
The talent and play by play partnerships offered by each of these brands puts them in position to consistently succeed. Given their track records, it’s easy to see why challenging Tampa and Indy’s sports radio kings in the format isn’t on any other company’s to do list.
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.
