Sometimes in life, change is good. For Tiki Barber, he already had a great gig at WFAN doing middays with Brandon Tierney, his radio partner of 12 years, going back to their days together at CBS Sports Radio since the network’s inception in 2013. But this past summer, there was a schedule shakeup at WFAN moving Tiki to afternoon drive where he was paired with Evan Roberts.
There was an adjustment period, but Tiki is having a blast in the afternoons.
“It’s been great,” said Barber, the former Giants running back who is in the team’s Ring of Honor. “It took a little bit of time to get Evan’s personality because I didn’t really know him before but I actually embrace it because he’s a nerd like I am just in a very different way.”
Tiki not only had to adjust to a new partner in Roberts, but “Evan and Tiki” also features two other voices on the show in sidekick Shaun Morash and Executive Producer Tommy Lugauer. The show, in essence, is not just about a duo but is about a foursome of voices that makes for a wildly entertaining afternoon drive program.
In many ways, it’s like a morning show but instead of 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., it’s heard from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
“I think what makes the show work is that we have a lot of different voices that have different opinions on similar topics, so the conversation feels wider, and it’s been enjoyable,” said Barber. “We have these layers of conversation around almost anything. It allows it to feel like we’re just sitting at a bar talking sports but veering into anything.”
It’s not surprising that Barber has formed a bond with Roberts so quickly because it happened when he was paired with Brandon Tierney. When CBS Sports Radio started, Barber was on the morning show with Tierney and Dana Jacobson. When Jacobson left the show in 2015, “Tiki and Tierney” was born and the show eventually moved to middays and then to afternoon drive on the network. In January of 2022, the show moved to WFAN and the duo stayed together until the schedule shakeup that came following Craig Carton’s departure for a full-time opportunity at Fox Sports.
Sometimes change can be good, even at the expense of saying goodbye to someone who was more than just a co-host.
Tiki and Tierney had become close friends.
“Everybody needs new opportunities at times,” said Barber. “BT is like me…he’s old school, just wants to talk sports and wants to hammer it and have a strong opinion. With Evan, he learned how to have fun with Craig so it’s starting to incorporate that into my repertoire. BT was awesome for me because I felt so comfortable with him. It’s like we were brothers and boys. With Evan, I feel like my craft has grown a little bit.”
There were many people in the industry who wondered why WFAN just didn’t move Tiki and Tierney together to afternoon drive. It was a legitimate question and one that VP of Programming Spike Eskin answered at the recent Barrett Sports Media Summit in New York City.
Eskin said he didn’t think that the duo would work in afternoon drive.
“Brandon and Tiki had worked together a long time,” said Eskin at the BSM Summit. “But I thought they could both be better in different situations. I didn’t see the show as a future drive-time show.”
When the time came to deciding what to do in middays and afternoon drive, Eskin decided it was best to break up Tiki and Tierney and create two dynamic new shows.
“Spike told me the same thing when we first started entertaining moving to the afternoon,” said Barber. “He’s like you guys actually block each other because you’re so alike. In order for a conversation to have a texture to it, you kind of have to have different opinions. You have to look at things in different ways.”
So, because Barber and Roberts came from different backgrounds, Eskin and WFAN felt like they would be the right fit for the afternoon show.
“(Evan) was this stat nerd and loved baseball and went to games and scores everything and I’m the former athlete,” said Barber. “With BT, he was an athlete like I was so our backgrounds are very similar and our approach to having conversations is very similar. In the afternoon, you have to have a little bit more of a comedic touch.”
And part of that comedy recently has been the fun that the show has been having with Evan Roberts’ beard and the different colors he dyes it every day. What started out as kind of a goof has now become a mainstay on the show.
“I kind of like it,” said Barber. “Early on, we had input and now it’s kind of a panel of all of us. We kind of do it collaboratively. It’s kind of taken on a life of its own. It’s a fun bit. If he ever cut it, I would be like who the hell are you?”
Roberts, who worked for a long time with the legendary Joe Benigno in middays, has a different edge to him on the air these days and a big part of that came from working with Craig Carton. Since Evan is a huge WWE fan, the analogy is that Roberts has turned from a “babyface” into a “heel” and that has led to magic being created with Tiki.
“He’s definitely turned heel,” said Barber of his new partner. “But we alternate going between heel and babyface on the show.”
When Barber turns heel, it’s really not him. It’s “Bad Tiki”, a weekly Artificial Intelligence creation from WFAN digital’s Tom Izzo, that has become a huge part of the show. The content certainly pushes the envelope with what “Bad Tiki” likes to say, but the real Tiki thinks it’s great.
“I absolutely love it,” said Barber. “It’s the anti-me. You gotta give Izzo credit for coming up with that concept. It’s a hit and not too much of it because it’s only three minutes once a week. You never know what he’s going to say. Sometimes it’s so deep like I don’t even get it but it’s fun.”
But while “Bad Tiki” is just a bit, Barber did get some heat nationally for his “you’re dead to me” comments when former Giants running back Saquon Barkley signed as a free agent with the rival Philadelphia Eagles.
In wrestling terms, when you attack someone on the microphone it’s called a “promo.” In this case, Barber was cutting a promo on Barkley, but some people looked at it as a “shoot” that Barber was serious.
Barber maintains that it was simply good radio and it’s a side of him that has been brought to life by his new partner.
“It’s interesting that Evan is turning me into a fan,” said Barber. “My fandom changed because I grew up a Washington fan but when I became a Giant, I lost fandom. Now that I’ve been here on radio for so long now, first national and now local, I’m starting to re-engage that fandom.”
So, when Barkley signed with the Eagles, Barber decided to think about what was going through the mind of Giants fans at the time.
“We did it tongue and cheek,” said Barber. “That’s our job. Our job is to inform and to entertain and sometimes to be a fan. Eventually I’ll connect with Saquon and say don’t fall for the bit. The bit is just what we do.”
One person, in particular, who took exception to Barber’s comments was ESPN analyst and former NFL safety Ryan Clark and Tiki wasn’t happy about it.
“Ryan Clark…I have no opinion on,” said Barber. “He doesn’t know me so to talk about me like that it undermines his credibility.”
“Good Tiki” or “Bad Tiki”, Tiki Barber has made a successful transition from middays to afternoon drive at WFAN. Barber, thanks to Evan Roberts and the rest of his teammates, has started to follow wrestling and has been enamored with the return of “The Rock” as a heel.
So, whether you look at Barber as a “heel” or a “babyface,” the bottom line is that you have to smell what he’s cooking on Evan and Tiki.
Peter Schwartz writes weekly sports radio features for Barrett Media. He has been involved in New York sports media for over three decades, and has worked for notable brands such as WFAN, CBS Sports Radio, WCBS 880, ESPN New York, and FOX News Radio. Peter has also served as play by play announcer for the New Yok Riptide, New York Dragons, New York Hitmen, Varsity Media and the Long Island Sports Network. You can find him on Twitter @SchwartzSports or email him at DragonsRadio@aol.com.
