ESPN 980 unveils new afternoon radio show, "The Drive with Cooley and Czabe"

[RSanz]

This is pretty crazy.  I feel like the Sports Reporters were an institution in DC sports radio.  I listened to them daily, and really I grew to like Andy.

 

Good luck, Andy.  Hope you land on your feet.  And I hope that this is the death knell for Lavar and Dukes because really, they are just insufferable.

[Skins n' Bones]

I think this will be great!  Cooley may be hesitant to criticize the current team/regime, but Czabe won't, so there's a dynamic right there.

 

Never had a problem with Pollin, I like him but he does seem to be too old school at times, and this to me is a sign that they are targeting the younger audience with this show.  Kornheiser seems to ALWAYS be on vacation or something, so Andy "filling in" for him may be more of a permanent postition than it sounds.

 

As for Lavar & Dukes, I can't get 106.7 in clearly where I live, so I've rarely listened to them, but from what i've read the past couple years, I should consider myself lucky.

[ZRagone]

Could be fun.  They're already jabbing at each other in the press release:

 

Czabe: "I will work tirelessly to make Chris Cooley the second most beloved ex-Redskin tight end on radio in the DC market. “

 

Cooley: “I have listened and enjoyed Czabe ’s show since I was a little kid. A real little kid. He kind of reminds me of a much older Sherm Lewis.”

 

 

And Andy Pollin gets relegated to Tony Kornheiser's vacation sub.

 

That press release was already funnier than any episode of the Sports Reporters I can think of recently. That's why I like Czabe's morning show better than him with Andy, because I think there's a little more "guy talk, shooting the breeze" type of feel to it. Its why I also LOVE when its Dukes and Danny or Dukes and Grant or Danny and Grant.

 

Then again, I was a huge WJFK fan and miss the days when I actually had a choice between SPORTS talk and Guy talk that included sports

[hail2skins]

Its nice that this is taking shape as August begins and focus starts on the Skins, but, as alluded to by a poster in the Tailgate, you do have to wonder how this is going to play from February thru July. 

 

Pollin's removal from TSR was long overdue......I agree with those who point out that Andy is anti-caller, and I'm one who prefers sports talk shows to be more driven by the audience. That's one thing that 106.7 seems to do right.

 

What I would've liked to see more is Kevin Sheehan paired with Czabe in drive-time and Andy paired with Loverro at lunch. Heck, Andy could've sucked up to Tony K during his show and they moved right in to yakking with Thom.

 

One thing I do miss is Andy doing the post-game show on 980.  A post-game show needs a host with at least some sort of entertaining opinion.  I'll give Galdi credit for making the effort on his weekend shows, but he comes across as too stale on the Skins postgame.  I much prefer to listen to Funny Danny on 106.7, even if Smoot's presence is a bit annoying.

[RAAZ227]

The Sports Reporters is a daily listen for me. I'm going to miss Polin for sure but he's been doing it for a long time. Cooley is definitely a lock for listeners and the combo of Czabe, Galdi and him will be a good listen.

I remember a few months back Polin and Czabe were suspended for a couple days because of some comments they made. I wonder if there was some fallout because of that....?

[authentic]

I hope Andy isn't stuck just doing the MMQB show with Sheehan.. Though i really like the program, Andy needs to have his own gig. Replacing Him on Tony's 10-12 slot wouldn't be a bad idea. 

[Zazzaro703]

Is Cooley going to be too close to the situation to be honest though?  He was just on the roster last year and now he's gonna be criticizing his homeboys if the situation calls for it?  We'll see about that.  Guys like Doc and BMitch are far enough removed and outspoken enough to say what they really think.  I just hope Cooley doesn't self censor himself to protect his homies.  Cuz that makes for a useless host.  

Should be interesting because Cooley for example seems to love the current regime so could he criticize it if need be?   As for your point about Loverro, for my taste at least he recognizes this is a Redskins town and says so and even when he's solo without Kevin he covers the team.  And heck he watches the games.  But yeah he got on my nerves recently when he said Russell Wilson does everything a little better than RG3.  

 

As i commented, I just couldn't believe tuning into 980, Monday morning after a Redskins game and hearing Tony Kornheiser being indifferent to the Redskins and owning up to not watching the games.  I just don't get how you can have a guy on a Snyder owned radio sports station have a talk show host that is so loathe to watch the Redskins that he can't even force himself to watch them as homework for his job.  To me its just strange how much more 106.7 devotes to the Redskins than Snyder's station does. 

I like that though, I personally like straight homerism on the local radio, let the national media be objective. There's never blind optimism on the local DC radio for the skins other than Larry and while I appreciate what he does, I'd like to see him replaced with someone that isn't as lame in the booth. Hopefully Cooley makes it that far one day.

[AlvinWaltonIsMyBoy]

Awesomeness.  Dallas week is gonna be a fun listen.

[Darrell Green Fan]

The post about Lavar and Dukes' negativity was spot on.  I tuned them out a long time after I kept hearing Duke and callers treat Lavar like he was Derick Thomas and not an extreme disappointment.  Dukes is a plain old A-hole, period.

 

Initially I was sad at this news.  When you listen to the same guys every evening on the way home from work for over a decade they almost become friends as strange as that sounds.  I liiked Andy, but mosty becasue he was a contemporary of mine being the same age and from the same area.  I've always liked Czabe.

 

I'm not a fan of Al at all and I love Knocke.  I'm going to miss him big time.  But this show could be good, we'll see. 

[Bantu]

The one thing Cooley has displayed whenever we heard from him was how candid he could be, even though I thought he said too much sometimes. That might be very valuable for the new radio show.

 

My only reservation is he might be another version of LaVar in that he is more personality than good at analyzing the game. 

[RonArtest15]

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

 

Yeah, the comments section is THE place online to find factual truths lol...

[Bantu]

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

 

Unfortunately, yes. L & D's show pwns the afternoon time slot and 980 lineup has been getting crushed for awhile.

[RonArtest15]

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

 

Yeah, the comments section is THE place online to find factual truths lol...

 

Or message boards. 

 

*edit*

 

Thank you, Bantu....for the actual response. 

[2006Skins]

This will be a good lineup. I've always felt Czabe would be best with a personality like Cooley to reign him in. I've never liked Lavar as a press guy. Cries too much for my taste.

[Botched]

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

 

Unfortunately, yes. L & D's show pwns the afternoon time slot and 980 lineup has been getting crushed for awhile.

 

Wow seriously? That's hard to believe.

 

L&D is honestly the worst sports radio show I've ever heard. I'm not just saying that because of some bias against Lavar Arrington either. It's legitimately awful.

[Califan007 The Constipated]

 

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

 

Yeah, the comments section is THE place online to find factual truths lol...

 

Or message boards. 

 

*edit*

 

Thank you, Bantu....for the actual response. 

 

Do you, at all, see the irony in your post? lol

[HateYanksDukeCowboys]

I'm happy to have Cooley on the radio and appreciate that he needs a 'real radio guy' with him, but can we finally get one show on 980 witout the same, tired schtick that Czabe brings.  His only trait is that he always goes against the grain to stir up listeners.  That is fine if that is what you really think, but with Czabe, that is his only trick.  Get rid of that pony and pair someone else with Cooley and then you have a winner.

 

Czabe is BY FAR the best sports radio host/personality in the MD-DC-VA market.  His talent is at the national level and we're lucky to have him.  More like a 30-trick pony if you listen to him long enough.  Try his morning show if you haven't already.  It's awesome.

[Warhead36]

Czabe is excellent and isn't nearly as negative as some of you think he is. In fact he was downright giddy at times during last year's win streak. I remember when he came on MMQB after we beat Dallas to clinch the division and he just trolled Romo sits to pee non stop.

 

Not a fan of this new lineup though. Just don't think they'll have the chemistry that Czabe and Andy had fostered after so many years together.

[RonArtest15]

 

 

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

 

Yeah, the comments section is THE place online to find factual truths lol...

 

Or message boards. 

 

*edit*

 

Thank you, Bantu....for the actual response. 

 

Do you, at all, see the irony in your post? lol

 

I did after I noticed the redundancy of factual and truth. 

[Califan007 The Constipated]

 

 

 

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

 

Yeah, the comments section is THE place online to find factual truths lol...

 

Or message boards. 

 

*edit*

 

Thank you, Bantu....for the actual response. 

 

Do you, at all, see the irony in your post? lol

 

I did after I noticed the redundancy of factual and truth. 

 

Not redundant. Facts are indisputable. Truth is a state of reality.

 

And the irony (which I'm guessing you didn't really see lol) is in you thanking a message board poster for their info after taking a jab at message boards as being no better than comments sections for discovering info.

[RonArtest15]

 

 

 

 

Are the ratings for 106. THAT good?  I've been reading comments on WaPo, and some seem to think that this was a desperation move by 980 to try to catch up to L&D with listeners. 

 

Yeah, the comments section is THE place online to find factual truths lol...

 

Or message boards. 

 

*edit*

 

Thank you, Bantu....for the actual response. 

 

Do you, at all, see the irony in your post? lol

 

I did after I noticed the redundancy of factual and truth. 

 

Not redundant. Facts are indisputable. Truth is a state of reality.

 

And the irony (which I'm guessing you didn't really see lol) is in you thanking a message board poster for their info after taking a jab at message boards as being no better than comments sections for discovering info.

 

LOLLOLOL...this guy...

 

Here's what you don't understand.  I brought a question to this thread based off of a comment I read elsewhere.  It's simple.  Either answer it or ignore it.  You chose to be snarky and condescending while providing little to nothing else. 

 

*edit*

 

My message board comment was SPECIFICALLY directed to you b/c you were clearly trying to insult my intelligence by being condescending.  If what I was posting was a fact, I would have said so.  I clearly asked a question.  I would have asked the same question if I read someone's post here on ES. 

[TK]

Football can't get here soon enough for two of you. ;-)

[Botched]

Czabe is excellent and isn't nearly as negative as some of you think he is. In fact he was downright giddy at times during last year's win streak. I remember when he came on MMQB after we beat Dallas to clinch the division and he just trolled Romo sits to pee non stop.

 

Not a fan of this new lineup though. Just don't think they'll have the chemistry that Czabe and Andy had fostered after so many years together.

 

During that 6-2 run in the 2008 season, Czabe was basically declaring us Super Bowl Champions, and mocked anyone who wasn't on the bandwagon. In retrospect, it was hilarious.

[Rocky52Mc]

I can't believe people actually liked sports reporters. Is it because Lavar and Dukes upset you guys that much? I've listened to many other area's media markets and the sports reporters was one of the most stuck up, negative, egotistical for all the wrong reasons shows I have ever listened to. I had to turn it off more times than I can count. I wish Cooley got an actual radio presence and not just paired with some guy who thinks his knowledge of sports is worthy of a book. He's just a talker.A real bad one at that.