The Sports Animal turned the sports/talk format into a cash machine, providing throngs of male listeners for advertisers and six-figure incomes for its top personalities. Al Eschbach, one of the Sports Animals' on-air talents, brought the sports/talk format to Oklahoma City in 1976 when he began a one-hour show on KTOK-AM 1000.
Last fall, the Sports Animal ranked No. 1 among sports/talk stations in the top 50 markets with a 4.5 share. Boston's WEEI was second with a 4.4. Both stations were featured in May on an ESPN "Outside the Lines” series on sports radio.
The Sports Animal's success has spawned two new competitors this year — Fox Sports Radio (KEBC-AM 1340) and Jox 930 (WKY-AM 930) — along with Norman's The Ref (KNOR-AM 1400). News talk KOKC-AM 1520 also launched an afternoon drive sports/talk show. Oklahoma City now has four sports stations, and that's not counting Enid's 1640 the Score and Perry's Triple Play Sports (FM 105.1, AM 1020 and 1580), which reach the northern metro.
Citadel launched Jox 930 in June as an alternative to the Sports Animal, aware that listeners scroll through the radio dial. Former coaches Billy Tubbs and Pat Jones are featured in the morning, and Ron Thulin and Jack Mildren make up a strong afternoon drive team. Listeners also benefit from ESPN Radio's strong lineup, including Doug Gottlieb in the evenings.
"As great as Jim (Traber) and Al are, there are some people who don't really like them,” Citadel operations manager Chris Baker said. "Now we have a real good alternative with some people who are known in this market.”
It's unlikely Oklahoma City can support four all-sports stations. The fall Arbitron ratings, due out in February, should provide the best scorecard as the sports talk wars should heat up during football season.
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After moving to West Texas I discovered that you can get OU games on the radio at night and almost all the football games are televised. You can read the stories you want online. During the day, the local radio stations carry news and talk shows. You are not bombarded with inane opinions from faulty experts and full time sports yakkers who are wrong most of the time. It is actually refreshing to follow OU closely with out all the noise pollution form OKC radio stations. Each year in August you get the same acenario: OU has lots of issues to resolve and OSU is about to stun the nation with its fast rising program. And of course, every week OSU will be someones "lock of the week, year or millenium"..With two wars raging we should be wondering who will be the next "Patton" not if Bobby Reid is the next "Vince Young." Socially, we should be worried about the dangerous alcohol problems at OSU especially in the BBall department... but that would require some critical analysis of the fabled Sutton family. Sampsons cell phone bill and Bomars beer get the media in a wad but at least no one is getting hurt. Drive very carefully in Payne county!
We really need good sports radio here. Al and Traber have gotten really stale. I don't care about Al's trips to 3rd world countries. Traber and his rant and rave about his rich brother. Blah blah blah. It's just really sad.
Rating the five afternoon drive shows is highly subjective, but here are my favorites:
1. Jox 930, Ron Thulin and Jack Mildren: Thulin, a former TBS college football broadcaster, and Mildren, the former OU quarterback and lieutenant governor, quickly have become an entertaining team. Although Thulin works out of a studio in his San Antonio home, he does a good job of keeping tabs of local sports.
2. The Sports Animal, Al Eschbach, Jim Traber (contributors Dean Blevins, 5:20 p.m.; Mildren, 6 p.m.): They occasionally get sidetracked from sports (I never was a fan of "The Sopranos”) and Eschbach can lower the conversation into the gutter. Traber is at his best when he's irritated and his blood gets boiling.
3. The Ref, Berry Tramel and Rusty Olson. Similar to his columns in The Oklahoman, Tramel likes to stir things up and make controversial statements. Olson, a former Sports Animal producer, has been a good replacement for Myron Patton. Station is hindered by a weak signal.
4. KOKC, James Hale, Jimbo Elrod and Dave Lanning: As a recruiting guru and devout OU follower, Hale likely will generate an audience once listeners find him on the news/talk station. A former OU All-American defensive end, Elrod is a knowledgeable Sooner observer. Lanning doesn't fit into the mix.
5. Fox Sports Radio, David Garrett and Jenni Carlson: Although David and Jenni make a good team, the lack of callers forces them to fill the three-hour show with too much of their own conversation. Also hurt by a weak signal.
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Thank you for joining our conversations on NewsOK.com. We encourage your discussions but ask that you stay within the bounds of our terms and conditions. Please help us by reporting comments that violate these guidelines. To review our rules of engagement, go to Commenting and posting policy.
Leave a comment. Log in below or sign up (it's free).Editor's note: It is not our intent to offer comments on crime or fatality stories.