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At many radio stations. conversations and interactions are limited between hosts on different shows. But at 93 WIBC in Indianapolis, midday host Rob Kendall and afternoon host Jason Hammer have teamed up for a side project centered on sports betting that has seen their profiles and personal passion projects grow into something more fruitful.
The Degenerates Next Door — the sports betting podcast hosted by the two Hoosier radio hosts — has grown in popularity since its August launch.
Hammer joked that he’s been sports betting “both legally and illegally” for a number of years. Outside of his time working in radio, Hammer spent time working at an Indiana casino, giving him insight into the sports betting space that he “learned from people who have put dudes in trunks.”
But, in his eyes, the sports betting content space wasn’t representative of people who actually wager. So, he took matters into his own hands.
“It just really works because Rob is a really good broadcaster, and he gets me, and we just kind of embraced the whole degenerate angle,” Hammer said. “The way we market this thing is we’re actually people you’d want to hang out with or have a beer with. Because if you watch some of the national sports betting people, those dudes look like male Kardashians. They’ve got so much botox, they’re wearing skinny jeans. Nobody wants to be those guys friends.
“On the other side, you’ve got the super hot blonde chicks that will never in a million years talk to you unless you’re buying an OnlyFans membership. So I feel like we really represent the real gambling base,” continued Hammer. “We’re making these bets. I’m in my 40s. I got two kids. Rob’s got a kid. We’re dads. We yell at college kids when we lose. The term degenerates is a badge of honor.”
What was once viewed as an incredibly taboo subject, sports betting has rapidly grown into an incredibly mainstream hobby. Rob Kendall and Jason Hammer believe they’ve pounced on an opportunity because, in their eyes, most sports betting content is backward.
“A lot of these people are gambling folks trying to do a show, and that is not entertaining. Ours is a show. We try to entertain the audience,” said Hammer. “You can get the stats and the numbers anywhere, but it’s the humor, it’s the commentary. We’re self-deprecating. So many of these people take themselves so seriously. Rob and I can bust each other’s balls a little bit. I make fun of him, he makes fun of me, I’ll make fun of myself. That’s how dudes work. And I think that’s why the show resonates with people.”
“It’s knowing your audience, knowing what they want to hear, and knowing what they’re interested in,” Kendall added. “That’s one of the reasons we’re doing really well, even though we just started. People hear about sports the way they think about sports. If a college kid misses a kick that costs them $50, they’re pissed off about it. They don’t want to hear some analytical breakdown about it. They wanna hear ‘He cost me my beer money, and I’m pissed off about it.’ And that’s the perspective we bring. We bring the regular guy’s perspective to this. We don’t hold back, and I think people relate to how we view and how we bet on sports.”
Kendall said it’s amazing to watch Jason Hammer dive into the content of the show, joking that it’s borderline concerning how much the 93 WIBC afternoon host knows about each individual team, player, and statistics that influence his wagers.
“I tell him at the end of each show ‘I like your bets a lot better than mine, because I feel like you know a lot more’,” Kendall said with a chuckle.
The duo said they get more bets correct than they get wrong, but aren’t afraid to point out which wagers they tab incorrectly and share frequently with listeners that they are not professional handicappers.
Even though the podcast from the 93 WIBC hosts is in its infancy, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t already plans for the future.
“We’re gonna try to grow this thing as much as we can,” Hammer said. “I believe (Radio One Indianapolis/93 WIBC is preparing) to put a sales rep on our program … It’s a lot of time. Rob’s got a family. I’ve got a family. We put a lot of time into this podcast … but we’ll just see how much we can grow this thing. We enjoy doing it. We’re gonna make these bets regardless, so we might as well talk about it, record it, and entertain some people while we do it.”
It’s obviously a high-strung moment in American history. As we’re in the midst and final days of a contentious, consequential election, talking about the daily happenings in politics can become a grind and can be depressing in some ways. But Rob Kendall noted that being able to chat about one of his hobbies with a friend and co-worker, while entertaining an audience has been a nice change of pace.
“It’s a huge relief and release, because nobody hates you for your opinion on if you’re taking the Vikings -3.5 against the Bears,” said Kendall. “Now, they might be a little upset if it doesn’t turn out, but people are not enraged about you. You generally don’t get hate mail about it.”
He concluded by noting that the motives for listening to a sports betting podcast can differ wildly from why someone may tune into a news/talk radio station like 93 WIBC. And that shared interest creates a connection that the pair hopes to continue to tap into.
“People you share points of commonality with, everybody’s listening to your sports betting podcast. And you feel like, if they’re taking your advice on a bet — unlike politics — everybody’s cheering together for the same result,” Kendall said.
The Degenerates Next Door is available on all major podcast platforms.
Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing daily news stories, features, and opinion columns. He joined Barrett Media in 2022 after a decade leading several radio brands in several formats, as well as a 5-year stint working in local television. In addition to his work with Barrett Media, he is a radio and TV play-by-play broadcaster. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
