Mike Francesa
| Mike Francesa | |
|---|---|
Francesa at the annual Bar A show in Belmar, New Jersey in 2008
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| Born |
March 20, 1954 Long Beach, New York, U.S. |
| Show |
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| Station(s) | WFAN (New York City) |
| Time slot | 1–6:30 p.m., Monday–Friday 9 a.m.–12 p.m., Sunday (during the NFL season) |
| Style | Sports radio |
Michael Patrick "Mike" Francesa, Jr. (born March 20, 1954) is an American radio talk show host and television commentator. He is primarily known in his former role co-hosting the Mike and the Mad Dog show on WFAN in New York City. Francesa now hosts his own show, Mike's On: Francesa on the FAN, during the afternoon drive slot formerly occupied by Mike and the Mad Dog.
Francesa started his career by spending six years at College and Pro Football Newsweekly. He was hired by CBS Sports in 1982 as a researcher, focusing primarily on college sports. At CBS Sports, he was initially a behind-the-scenes, statistic-wielding editorial assistant, but network executives were so impressed by his knowledge that he was made a studio analyst for college basketball and football and acquired such a reputation that The New Yorker termed him "Brent Musburger’s brain."
When he was a studio analyst at CBS Sports, he said the most common complaint he heard was about his New York accent.
ESPN tried to lure Francesa as its studio expert on college football, college basketball and the NFL in 1991, but he declined their offer.
Francesa announced on the radio that he quit CBS on April 1, 1993 before the 1993 Final Four began.
When WFAN was launched in 1987 Francesa thought he would be good at radio, and applied for a host job. However, station management was looking for top-shelf types rather than someone with no experience, and he was only offered a producer's job, which he ended up rejecting. With his then-wife Kate's encouragement, Francesa continued to pursue WFAN. Finally, WFAN gave him a job as a weekend host talking college football and basketball in August 1987. Because of the positive reviews, Francesa began to guest-host other shows.
Because of his initial success as a weekend and fill-in host, he was teamed with local New York City host Ed Coleman, and the duo had a popular show on the 10 a.m.–2 p.m. slot. In 1989, WFAN was looking for hosts to replace the controversial Pete Franklin in the afternoon drive time period between 3 and 7 p.m. Station management decided to team the knowledgeable, but somewhat dry Francesa with the young and vibrant Chris Russo. While Francesa's brand of sports commentating was considered hard-hitting and serious, Russo's was lighter, unconventional, and more entertaining. The show was dubbed Mike and the Mad Dog. The show quickly gained popularity and was a staple of the New York sports scene from 1989 to 2008. The duo won the 2000 Marconi Award for Major Market Personality of the Year. They were the first sports-talk hosts ever to win the award.
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