Drama involving Sean Payton, Russell Wilson and the Denver Broncos, Coach Prime creating a buzz in Boulder, and the return of the NBA defending Denver Nuggets and Stanley Cup contending Colorado Avalanche, there was a plethora of content options for local sports stations to work with in the Denver fall book. The Nielsen fall ratings reflected palpable interest in the market’s top two brands, and additional support for another local option.
Starting with Altitude Sports Radio, the station attained a 6.2 share in weekday prime (M-F 6a-6p) with Men 25-54. That put the outlet in a second place tie for the quarter. Altitude made improvements from the 5.3 share it delivered last quarter, when the station was tied for fourth. Year-over-year, the outlet gained 3.0 shares and moved up 11 spots.
Mornings with Marc Moser, Vic Lombardi and Brett Kane earned an 8.5 share for the book. That was the show’s third consecutive quarter with a first place result. The morning trio added 1.4 shares from their summer book when the show recorded a 7.1 share. Year-over-year Moser, Lombardi and Kane gained a remarkable 4.6 shares and nine ranking positions.
The early midday program (10a-12p) Dempsey and Company featuring Chris Dempsey and a rotation of co-hosts pulled in a 5.0 share, placing it sixth for the fall book. That was up from a 4.1, ninth place finish last quarter. During last fall’s ratings book, the program finished 16th with a 2.7 share, a 2.3 share improvement.
Following Dempsey’s program, Polumbus, Hastings and DMac took over from 12p-3p. Darren McKee joining the program in early November so he was only part of one-month of this book. The other two months included Josh Dover in the lead host’s chair. The daypart garnered a 5.6 share, fourth place finish in the fall. The show, which includes co-hosts Scott Hastings and Tyler Polumbus, improved its statistics by 1.3 shares and four ranking positions from the summer book. Year-over-year, PHD are up from 15th to fourth with a 2.8 share boost.
Afternoon drive with Nate Kreckman and Andy Lindahl generated a 6.3 share, which was good enough for third place. The program improved one tenth of a point and one ranking position over the summer book. Year-over-year, the show was up from a 4.0 share, 11th place result.
For Denver Sports 104.3 The Fan, the quarter included an eighth place finish in weekday prime (M-F 6a-6p) with a 4.8 share. That was up from a 4.7 share, seventh place finish in the summer. Moreover, it is a year-over-year improvement by one-tenth of a share while remaining unchanged in its ranking.
Mark Schlereth and Mike Evans continued to anchor mornings, attaining a 5.8 share in the fall book. The fourth place finish was a 1.5 share improvement from the previous quarter when it placed seventh in the market. Compared to last year, Schlereth and Evans moved up one ranking and improved from a 5.4 share.
Lineup changes were made at The Fan in mid September affecting both middays and afternoons. The station eliminated The Player’s Club with Orlando Franklin, Chad Brown and Nate Jackson, cut ties with Darren McKee, and split up Zach Bye and Brandon Stokley to restructure their weekday schedule. Middays now feature Josh Dover and Brandon Stokley from 10a-2p, and Zach Bye and former NFL and CFB running back Phillip Lindsay from 2p-6p.
In their first full book together, Stokley and Josh earned a 4.3 share, tenth place finish in middays. The new program improved the timeslot’s ranking by one position from the summer but lost four-tenths of a share. The show had an augmented performance this fall compared to last, gaining two-tenths of a share and remaining in tenth place..
The Drive in afternoons featuring Bye and Lindsay recorded a 4.8 share for the quarter, sixth in the fall book. Over the summer, the timeslot also ranked sixth but with a slightly higher share of 5.1. Year-over-year, the program lost one-tenth of a share and dropped by one ranking position.
Newsradio KOA, which features Dave Logan, Alfred Williams and Ryan Edwards talking sports from 3p-6p garnered a 2.1 share to finish eighteenth. In the summer, the program retained its eighteenth place standing but had a 2.3 share, losing two-tenths. The news was better however year-over-year, with the drive time crew gaining 1.1 shares and five ranking positions.
Looking at the full week (M-SU 6a-12a), KOA finished the quarter with a 3.3 share, which placed the brand in twelfth place. That was an improvement over the 3.0 share, fifteenth place ranking from over the summer. The station previously placed twentieth with a 1.6 share over the fall, more than doubling its share year-over-year.
For Denver Sports 104.3 The Fan, the outlet had a 5.0 share for the full week and finished sixth overall. Although its ranking position slipped by one for the quarter, it did add 1.3 shares. The outlet ranked tenth last fall with a 4.2 meaning the station added eight tenths of a point over a twelve months period.
Closing with Altitude Sports Radio, the brand finished the quarter with a 5.3 share for the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid). That ranked the station fifth in the fall book. Altitude improved by ten ranking positions and 2.7 shares year-over-year.
With The Fan retooling its lineup and adding a new program director, KOA gaining ground from improved performances by the Broncos and Colorado Football, and Altitude rolling in drive time and adding Darren McKee to middays, the winter and spring books should be fun to follow.
Ratings reports and analysis are written by BSM and sponsored by Crowd React Media, a division of Harker Bos Group. Learn more about the different ways sports media research can benefit your station and cut through the noise by clicking here.
