Upon its debut in 1989, WFAN’s signature afternoon show, Mike and the Mad Dog, quickly became an institution in sports radio and part of the daily routine in the New York area. Debates, callers and entertainment flooded the airwaves and precipitously catapulted the show at the top of the local ratings. Accordingly, it became the template for various other sports radio shows, many of which remain successful today.
Russo left WFAN in 2008 to launch a SiriusXM channel, Mad Dog Sports Radio, and one of the entity’s top targets was Adam Schein. During his college days at Syracuse University, Schein interned at WFAN over the course of two summers – one of which he spent cutting tape – and ultimately found his way back to the institution. When he was first approached with the idea of joining the novel SiriusXM channel, Schein declined and opted to wait until the situation was right for him. Eleven years later, he is thriving in a multiplatform media career spanning far beyond sports talk radio, and looking to stay at the forefront of the industry.
“I wanted to be Mike and Chris,” Schein said. “They were idols of mine, and they were always great when I was at the radio station as an intern.”
Even before the launch of WFAN in 1987, Schein knew he wanted to pursue a career in sports media – but settling on a niche was the challenging aspect. Marv Albert was a bonafide part of his commentary soundtrack, along with SportsCenter host Charley Steiner, but they commentated and reported rather than discussing the events at length. Upon the launch of WFAN, everything changed – and it inspired Schein to become a part of a television program through his four years of high school. After years of deliberation, he finally had a path forward in sports media.
“I was just sports radio [and] sports TV obsessed,” Schein said. “And I love the elements of talking sports and watching a game and reacting to it and giving a take. I was doing that from the time I was 10 years old.”
One day while he was on the radio at Syracuse University’s student-run station WAER, Schein was discussing whether Robbie Mulligan or Jason Gebhardt should be the starting goaltender on the lacrosse team. As he gave his opinion, the program director of WHEN-AM in Syracuse, N.Y. was tuned in, unbeknownst to Schein, and liked what he heard. The fortuitous occurrence ultimately parlayed itself into an opportunity to take his talents to the professional level before graduating college as a fill-in host on the all-sports outlet.
As Schein began to gain repetitions both at WHEN and made connections at WFAN, he was receiving inspiration and advice from various sports media professionals. Syracuse University alumni such as Sean McDonough and Mike Tirico made time to speak with and mentor students, and both were instrumental in Schein’s journey. Early on in his tenure at the university though, Schein sought out and received mentorship from another decorated alumnus – Ian Eagle.
“I wrote him a letter in my freshman year and he got right back to me, and I sent him tapes and he reviewed them,” Schein said. “He could not have been more gracious with his time [and] with his feedback…. That’s why when I hear from a student who wants advice or help, it’s always important to pay it forward and to give back.”
Once Schein graduated from college, he was named the afternoon drive host at WHEN in Syracuse where he discussed collegiate and professional sports teams. In March 2001, he returned to New York City to fill in as an overnight host on WFAN when Syracuse was competing in the Big East tournament. It was a significant opportunity to prove his worth to station management and company executives, and Schein wanted to make sure everything went off without a hitch.
“[It was] the only time in my life I ever rooted against Syracuse because they would have played on the Saturday night [and] I would have to skip a championship postgame show for my main job,” Schein said, “but they lost on a Friday night and there was no conflict with my on-air audition. It was amazing being at WFAN having grown up listening to the radio station.”
The audition proved successful and Schein continued taking the WFAN airwaves on a part-time basis throughout the rest of the year, primarily on the weekends. He was tasked with driving for over four hours from Syracuse to New York City on most Fridays. Luckily for Schein, he was able to stay with his parents in Rockland County or then-girlfriend in New York City.
By February 2002, Schein departed Syracuse and focused on excelling at WFAN. He also had joined FOX Sports Radio, where he hosted a national weekend show, Game Time React.
Even in the middle of the night, there are plenty of callers in New York yearning to talk about sports. Schein recognized the importance of audience interaction with shows. One caller – Sal from Ronkonkoma – consistently impressed Schein with his acumen and fervor for New York sports. In a commercial break, Schein entered the control room and spoke to him off the air to thank him for his calls.
Shortly thereafter, Sal began to intern at the station and eventually hosted overnights himself. Now, years after he was a frequent caller, Sal Licata is set to join Brandon Tierney for WFAN’s midday show when its new lineup takes effect on July 24, while also keeping his hosting duties at SNY.
“True story – he was a huge Mets fan [and] Falcons fan, and I was just obsessed with his calls,” Schein said. “Sal and I became friends, we worked together at SNY and I could not be happier for Sal getting this opportunity.”
Schein ultimately left WFAN in 2004 and joined Sirius to contribute to its NFL coverage. Steve Cohen, who took over the senior vice president of sports programming role in the same year, was critical in recruiting Schein to the outlet.
As a host on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Schein had the opportunity to work on shows with storied football personnel including John Riggins, Solomon Wilcots and John Madden. Moreover, he was the host of the Sunday pregame program and anchored its live coverage of the NFL Draft, proving nimble and adept on the air. In 2012, Schein signed with NFL.com to continue writing his Schein at Nine column for the website – something he continues to this day – after beginning it with FOX Sports online.
When Russo officially divorced Francesa as his hosting partner and started his own channel with Sirius shortly before its merger with XM Satellite Radio, Schein knew he always wanted to return to hosting in an all-sports format. While he appeared on television shows, including Loud Mouths with Chris Carlin, he did not have a full-time opportunity to express his thoughts on everything going on in the turbulent, vigorous landscape.
Although Cohen and Russo, along with Scott Greenstein and Steve Torre, originally wanted Schein to be part of the channel, the morning time slot was not initially available. Once the situation changed a few years later, Schein was elated to sign on and work with his childhood idol.
“It’s a dream job, and I want to work for Mad Dog Radio for the rest of my career,” Schein said. “Chris isn’t going anywhere – he’s still at the top of his game [and is] the best to ever do it. It really truly is a dream scenario.”
Schein has been the host of Schein on Sports since 2013. Listeners can expect a daily dose of knowledgeable, opinionated and entertaining sports talk. Whether he is conducting an interview, delivering his opening monologue or interacting with his producer Bob Stewart, Schein ensures he arrives for every show ready to give the audience the best performance possible. He expects the same of his colleagues and concludes each show with an affirmation of reaching the goal by saying, “Best show we’ve done,” with the intent of raising the bar when dusk turns to dawn again.
“There’s nothing fabricated – it’s exactly how I feel,” Schein said. “The audience knows there’s a lot of preparation put in terms of my takes [and] in terms of why I’m taking the time to talk about different topics.”
Entering a show, Schein and his colleagues consider what topics are most timely and appealing to the audience for discussion, and then the focus turns towards the execution thereof. Sometimes, Schein includes other voices outside of the program to give their perspectives on current events or upcoming matchups; however, the paradigm is arbitrary and always subject to change.
“There’s no specific formula in terms of what time we have guests or how many guests because that’s when I think you get in trouble,” Schein said. “You need to be fluid in terms of your thought process on a daily basis on what’s going to make the absolute best show for that specific day.”
From the onset of joining Mad Dog Sports Radio, Schein greatly valued an AM time slot for a variety of reasons, one of which is being able to reach both coasts of the United States with pertinent subject matter. Through his monologue, Schein touches on everything ranging from the Damian Lillard saga in Portland to the injury progression of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy. There are undoubtedly topics Schein is more passionate about than others, but he is fully cognizant that oftentimes, the material is out of his control.
“There are certain days you choose the topics [and] certain days the topics choose you if that makes sense,” Schein said. “I hope it does because if there’s a big game, I’m going to want to talk about it.”
The morning time slot, aside from giving Schein the ability to reach the whole country, also affords him a chance to express his thoughts on the previous day and set the tone of the forthcoming docket. The Morning Men show precedes Schein on Sports on Mad Dog Sports Radio, but by the time it concludes, it is 6 a.m. on the West Coast. Many residents are asleep or just waking up. For these listeners, Schein is often the first voice they hear on the radio, and he values the immediacy and understands the responsibility it places upon him.
“I think if you do a show in the style we do it, there’s an art to taking great calls that genuinely enhance a program, and for our channel, that’s part of the calling card,” Schein said. “We’re a paid service, and callers and subscribers are an important part of what we do. That differentiates us from other national sports radio stations.”
Once Schein’s morning radio program ends, he has a brief respite to eat lunch and familiarize himself with developing stories he might have missed while on the air. While most radio hosts would be finished for the day, Schein is genuinely just getting started. The planning commences for Schein’s afternoon television show, Time to Schein, on CBS Sports Network.
“It is an absolute dream job,” Schein said of the program, which originally launched in 2015. “I love working for CBS Sports – the culture at CBS; the people I work with; the people I work for. You couldn’t ask for better people to be around in our industry, and I truly love going in and chopping it up with my producers and texting with them around the clock.”
The show challenges Schein to communicate information in a different way each day, and it is almost entirely extemporaneous aside from tee-ups written by producers. Taking a similar approach to how he hosts his radio show, everything Schein says during a segment is conceived through his encyclopedic knowledge of sports and capability to perceive what is interesting to an audience.
In addition to the radio, television and writing duties, Schein hosts his own podcast titled Rise and Schein. Listeners can expect interviews with monumental figures in sports and media, during which they reflect on their journeys and divulge untold stories from their time in media. Some of Schein’s guests on the podcast have included Stephen A. Smith, David Wright, Olivia Amato and Jerry Rice – all of whom he has approved and anticipated would provide value to the audience.
“I only interview people that I want to talk to [or] want to learn about what makes them tick,” Schein said. “That’s a simple thing – it almost sounds elementary, but I only talk to people that interest me in terms of going into their career path and what they do and how they do it on a daily basis and what makes them successful.”
WFAN is set to endure a variety of lineup changes due to the departure of afternoon host Craig Carton. Rather than continuing to balance his job at WFAN and hosting a morning television show on FOX Sports 1, Carton will concentrate on the television program and free up more time to spend with his family.
It is safe to say that Schein, like Carton, is among the busiest personalities in sports media. While Carton and Schein have different schedules and circumstances, both value the medium of radio. At the moment though, Schein has no intent of ceding any of his gigs and will continue to balance his life being fully immersed in the delirium of sports and competition.
“I love the combination with radio; with SiriusXM and doing Time to Schein on a daily basis – it brings me such joy,” Schein said. “It’s such a great show with such a great flow [to] it. That’s the kind of job with Schein on Sports; these are the kinds of shows where you want to have both for the rest of your life.”
