Sports Business Journal - TV/Radio critic review of Fricke/Landry FSR show

Fricke-on-Fox · #1 09-19-2008

FSR's GameTime Rewind� A Must-Listen For Football Fans

By Jim Williams, Correspondent

Fox Sports Radio's "GameTime Rewind" with John Fricke and Chris Landry is a must-listen for football fans each Saturday and Sunday night (11:00pm–2:00am ET). For my money, it is by far the most intelligent and fan-friendly call-in talk show offered on national radio. The reason I enjoy the show is simple: It is old school. There are no trumped-up distractions here in the name of sports "entertainment." That means there are no screaming hosts, no blustering analysts, no belittling of callers and no one blowing their own horn. The only thing that these two guys are selling is a willingness to share well thought out and informative answers to callers' questions from all over the world that involve anything and everything that is football.

DYNAMIC DUO: Fricke is a smooth veteran talk show host who handles a number of programs for Fox Sports Radio. He has established himself as a top notch college and pro football play-by-play broadcaster on both radio and television as well as a pre- and post-game show host for teams from San Diego to Atlanta. Fricke's strength on "GameTime Rewind" is the manner in which he is able to drill down to the core of a caller's rambling question, restate it in a succinct, intelligent and respectful style, and then toss it over to his partner Landry, all the while keeping the show collegial and friendly. For his part, Landry is one of the most learned men in football. Thanks to his 25-year background as a veteran NFL scout for pro teams like the Browns and the Oilers/Titans as well as his experience as a director of the NFL Scouting Combine, he has an unparalleled knowledge of players from both the college and NFL arenas that sets him apart from other analysts.

REMOTE CONTROL: One interesting aspect of the show is that the duo can be so in sync while never working together in the same studio. They interact, take calls and joke with one another, but few know that Fricke is in an Atlanta studio while Landry is at his home in Baton Rouge. Meanwhile, back at network headquarters in L.A., producers coordinate the calls and send them on to the duo. And then the show gets rolling. For example, Fricke: "Mike from Atlanta, let me get this straight. You think it wasn't a big deal that USC beat Ohio State tonight because if they played in the SEC they would be at best the third team in the league? Tell you what Chris, is it fair to say that USC could not play well in the SEC?" Landry: "Everybody talks about the conferences and it is what it is. I think USC is the best team in country. I think it would be a great matchup if they played a Florida or Georgia or an LSU on a regular basis; that would be very interesting. One of the things I have found, John, on my scouting travels and being around college football in all different parts of the country, it's amazing how provincial football is. I grew up in the South and in the South people don't know anything about Pac 10 football or Big Ten, and vice versa. It's that regional pride that is what makes college football fun."

CHALK TALK: Other times, Landry makes it interesting because he does not shy away from talking about coaches like some analysts do. When Rachel from Ann Arbor was upset about Michigan's loss to Notre Dame, she asked why the brass did not stick with the "Michigan Way" and hire a coach with ties to the Wolverines; perhaps someone like the young and energetic John Harbaugh. Landry: The reason Michigan did it is because Rich Rodriguez is a better coach. I think he is going to have immeasurable success at Michigan. The job he did at West Virginia is one of the best I have seen in a long time with the limited resources he had there. He is, I am telling you, one of the cutting edge offensive minds in all of coaching. I think Michigan really did their homework and got themselves probably as good a hire as they could have had. I really do. I think in 3 years you'll be calling in and saying, "Boy, I knew Rich Rodriguez was a genius and boy this offense is dynamic."

OLD SCHOOL FEEL: Whatever the topic, Landry and Fricke give their listeners a forum to talk about their teams win or lose on over 300 Fox Sports Radio affiliates nationwide, Sirius-XM Radio 144 and around the world on Armed Forces Radio. For me, the show helps clarify what is happening in college and NFL football in an educational, informative and most of all entertaining way. It is an "Old School" radio show, and sometimes getting back to basics is a good thing.

Jim Williams is a seven-time Sports Emmy Award-winning TV producer, director and writer who lives in Baltimore. He will be reviewing sports programming occasionally for SportsBusiness Daily and SportsBusiness Journal. He can be reached at jameswilliams360@comcast.net.