Watching since 1964

Billsrcursed and OCinBufffalo, You guys do a way better job here of providing 'sports talk for smart people.'

The format does seem to work for him, and I think he likes it. Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has a lot of fun with it covering the Cards. He calls himself the Chatmeister and his chats 'the tsunami'. lol

Sullivan delivers some good one liners in his chats. Someone asked him if he prefers blue cheese or ranch on wings. He replied 'blue cheese, but sometimes I go commando to save a few bucks.'

I had tuned out months earlier because of the attitude the host. But I took a chance and tuned in to the postgame show after a game at the Ralph last year. The very first caller I heard had an opposing viewpoint to the host and was quickly and loudly drowned out before he could finish making his statement. It was embarrassing to listen to. So that was it for me. Addition by subtraction.

I'm sensing the anger towards Schopp leaving this thread. I'll blame... NEWMAN!!!

When a lot of the news sadly is focused on athletes failings, these kind of columns, for me at least, help balance my view out of the well paid and privileged athlete. Looking at the early lives of certain stars that will go unnamed in all sports who seem to constantly be in trouble, self destructing their short careers; a common thread seems to be that they were intentionally or unintentionally abandoned in some way by one or both of their parents. I haven't had that happen to me, but I would guess they try to harden themselves so much to pretend they don't hurt and they don't care. Trying to prove they don't care is one thing that seems to get them into so much trouble. Another factor is that some have been spoiled since their talent began to manifest in high school and they haven't been held accountable by anyone really since then. No one has told them 'no' in years. Some athletes seem to be trying to make others pay because they can't get back at the parent(s) who left them. Others crave intention and do anything to get it, both on and off the field/court/rink because they never got it from a parent(s) while growing up. I actually believe someone reading the ESPN article might be influenced to make better choices as a parent or as a child. When Mr. Maybin took away Aaron's being on the wrestling team for awhile because of poor grades, he risked his sons rejection of him. But he chose not to give into that fear and spoil his child. He held him accountable. Some parents sadly wouldn't...preferring to be their childs' 'buddy' I guess. Aaron learned a great lesson from that and I think others can to. Although this article certainly has a lot of non-NFL related content in it, Mr. Graham takes care of the football nuts and bolts portion by writing this: "The biggest question about Maybin is whether one great season is enough to project NFL success." I believe Mr. Graham also assumes his readers know that being a well grounded #1 pick doesn't insure success on the field, but it surely is a great weapon against preventing the failures we see so many talented players have. Some sadly are no longer even allowed on the field.

Not to be condescending, but I don't think they personally have a clue how bad the show is. Maybe Schopp does though and so he takes his misery out on the listeners/callers since misery loves company.

I listen to Dan Patrick occasionally take calls. A smart radio host would choose to learn a lot from how a big name like Patrick treats callers. Since Entercom has no problem with their host treating people like he does he gets away with it. I've said it before, but complaining to the shows' advertisers would seem to be the only way to get a positive change to take place. The slower way is what likely will keep happening, more and more people see no improvement from the guy and just don't tune in when he's on.

Why is Schopp still on the air? That's a very popular question it seems. Perhaps Entercom's thinks their dumbing down format is a very bright idea. That combined with maybe they signed Schopp to a long term deal due to being wrongly impressed by his less than impressive subbing on ESPN radio a few years back. We take talk radio here personally and of course to Entercom it's just profit or loss. So we lose.

I agree generally, especially from football and hockey players, its usually teamspeak. Bad interviews I've heard come from most network announcers, they just give the company line, nothing controversial at all. Once in a while you will get a player, obviously very secure in their status, speak their mind. I'm not talking about the diva wide receivers but a guy like Favre. People bash him, but at least its him speaking, not PC teamspeak. I watched a great interview live when Griffey Jr. had his presser when he re-signed with the Mariners. It's probably still up on the MLB and Seattle Times websites. He really spoke his mind about the problems the M's had in the clubhouse last year and what he was going to do about it personally. He also added a good deal of humor as a bonus, even poking fun at the wardrobe of the sacred cow called Ichiro. Reminded me of Torii Hunter's LA Angels press conference. He sat a rally monkey on his shoulder. Very funny guy.

IMO I think if you had local ownership of WGR 55 things would be a lot better.

Thanks. For those of us contacting sponsors we can do this in a pleasant way and still get our point across. Last thing we want to do is be arrogant like the radio host being discussed here. He has the right to broadcast his opinions of sports and the shows listeners/callers; and we certainly have the right to 'broadcast' our opinions of his actions.

Update: I called Satellite Solutions toll free number 888.856.2257 and left them a voicemail message advising them the email address on their website didn't work.. http://www.satellitesolutionsofwny.com/ I also said that due to how their spokesman Mike Schopp treats listeners/callers I no longer listen to WGR. I advised them of this thread and left my name and ph#.

I just sent an email to: info@satellitesolutions.com ...but it came back undelivered. So I called them 3x ..none of the calls went through. I'll try later. I don't listen anymore, but for someone who does, if you post the advertisers I'll send some emails or call them. Change can happen if people want it bad enough to do something about it.

Andy Roth, expecting us to believe your above statements is insulting to our intelligence. Not that you care. Since there is no excuse for Schopp being rude to callers year after year and you allowing it, your above statements are not surprising though. Don't blame anything else on declining afternoon listenership except the lead host's behavior.

Collectively I would guess a fair amount of listeners and ex-listeners (I'm in that category) have emailed WGR 55 management with complaints during Schopp's tenure there. It obviously hasn't improved the quality of the show or how their lead host treats the listeners. However, if advertisers were contacted consistently with complaints, I believe then you'd see some sort of improvement. Like a number of other Bills fans, I own a business and I'd never want to advertise on that show simply because of his lack of respect for the listeners/callers, my potential customers. Nothing personal towards Schopp, just business. WGR has failed to sell me on their product, so their advertisers have one less person to buy their products and/or services, and WGR 55 has one less potential advertiser. I would think a lot of other business owners out there feel the same way.

From http://mikeschopp.com/ Mike Schopp.com SPORTS TALK FOR SMART PEOPLE The Lowdown: Mike Schopp - a Grand Island native - has quickly established himself as one of the nation's top sports talkshow hosts. In radio since 1995, Mike's successes along with with his immense sports knowledge and witty humor have earned him many local listeners.

I think we asked for the 21st pick and Philly said "not for what we saw on film!" I think they put it in nicer terms, but it may be close to their reaction. If the shoe was on the other foot and Philly was trading Peters to us, how many people would have said that the 28th overall, a 4th and a 6th is alot to give up for a guy who played like Peters did in '08. Plus what we'd have to pay a guy who right now can't be counted on as a true all-pro performer in the future.

Sad to say right now IMHO it appears to me at least that those in leadership roles in this franchise are living proof of its not what you know, its who you know.

I agree, calling opponents was very odd.

I found it interesting the 'Boys called opponents for advice regarding Owens. By RICK HERRINand CLARENCE E. HILL JR. rickherrin@star-telegram.comchill@star-telegram.com Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones says at the top of his list regarding Terrell Owens’ release was that it was good for Tony Romo. Jones calls it being "Romo-friendly." What Jones means is that he wants to allow his Pro Bowl quarterback the opportunity to use all his weapons, rather than maintain a heavy commitment to Owens. Removing Owens allows Romo to utilize his strengths of moving in the pocket and spreading the ball around. Jones is looking for the emergence of Roy Williams as the No. 1 receiver and a breakout season from Miles Austin. "I do believe where we are at Tony’s options, where to get the ball and where to go, I do think this is going in the direction of Romo-friendly," Jones said in an interview Tuesday on The Fan 105.3 FM. "Rest assured, that was one of the first things I had at the top of my list was this decision is good for Tony." Before Owens’ release, Jones not only consulted members of the organization but other teams who defended against him. Last season Owens struggled getting off the line of scrimmage against press coverage. http://www.star-telegram.com/332/story/1250748.html

If I remember correctly, Galloway was furious, along with Peter King and many others, when '2' called Werder, a very respected reporter, a liar over and over on national tv when Werder reported that 2 accused Romo and Whitten of conspiring together to keep the football away from him. Bottom line, for everyone sake including 2's, I hope he does great things on and off the field while he plays for this team.

No, Dallas is certainly not better off today without Parcells. In simple terms, The Big Tuna was defeated by a pasty white big mouth bass (JJ)!

His follow up column. He said JJ's son pushed for Owen's release... I like how JJ's kid handled Tuna! ________________________________________________________ Posted on Sun, Mar. 08, 2009 Stephen Jones waiting in wings to take over Dallas Cowboys RANDY GALLOWAY rgalloway@star-telegram.com Just when we think Jerry Jones is hopelessly lost in his own football world, listening only to the voices in his head, along comes a jolt that suggests that change is slowly, real slowly, coming to Valley Ranch. Last week’s "jolt" was the sudden departure of Eldorado Owens, something that shocked even Eldo. But Jerry was "listening." Listening to 44-year-old Stephen Jones, who within the Dallas Cowboys’ organization carries the titles of chief operating officer, executive vice president and director of player personnel. But don’t think nepotism. "I said it when he was 25-26 years old, and nothing has changed," noted former head coach Jimmy Johnson a couple of weeks ago. "Stephen is a good one. A real good one." Or as Larry Lacewell, the team’s former personnel director once told me, "Stephen Jones is brilliant." There will come a time when Stephen takes over the Cowboys. He will be the next Jerry. But for now, as Jerry seeks opinions from within the organization, and throughout the NFL (no matter what you think, Jerry does ample homework on all decisions), the common doubt is while he listens a lot, does he really hear what is being said? In the case of Stephen, the answer is yes. Jerry hears Stephen. That doesn’t mean, of course, he always agrees, or follows up on what he hears. All evidence suggests, however, that Stephen was the driving force in bringing his father around to the thought that it was time for the Cowboys to move on without the Owens’ locker room influence. Since Jerry hates "Valley Ranch sources," I will quote "someone who knows," as telling me Friday, "There is nothing Jerry hates worse than giving up on one of his projects. We saw that with Pacman [Jones] when he got into trouble and Jerry still brought him back. Terrell Owens, of course, was Jerry’s biggest project. "What made Jerry such a financial success in his oil business days was he wouldn’t give up on a project. He’d keep on drilling. I thought he would keep on drilling with Owens." What changed his mind? "Jerry listened to the opinion of Stephen," added Mr. Someone Who Knows. "Stephen never comes off as half-cocked or emotional. When Stephen feels strongly about something, you can bet it’s a well-presented case." There were media reports in February that No. 1 son was campaigning his father to dump Owens. Jerry would later deny there was a difference of opinions. But that could be word games. Jerry might have been on the fence about what to do, but two different voices have told me Stephen privately pushed his father to dump Owens. There is a tendency, at least for me, to sometimes think of Stephen as the outgoing youngster who is fiercely loyal to his father (I’ve heard the wrath more than once after an unfavorable column). But Stephen now has 19 years in nothing but the football business. This is no kid. "The joke is that Jerry was an outsider who wants to be a football guy," said another former Valley Ranch employee. "But Stephen IS a football guy. He grew up in the business of running the Cowboys. What he does within the organization, how many hats he wears, is incredible. He is the port in the storm for the front office. Just a real nice and smart young man who gets it. He really gets it." Asking around last week, I wanted to hear how Stephen differs from Jerry, personality-wise, on a day-to-day basis at Valley Ranch. A few comments follow: "Stephen knows Jerry really enjoys being the face of the team, and he’s happy for his father. Jerry has his ego, good and bad. But if Stephen has an ego, I’ve never seen it surface. He’s very well-grounded." "Stephen realizes his dad’s weak points, but he also understands his dad’s strengths. And more than anything, he worships Jerry." "Jerry can be hardheaded, to say the least. Stephen is much more open-minded." "Jerry can handle confrontation, but he’s more of a negotiator. Now, Stephen, you don’t push him. I remember one day when Big Bill [Parcells] was on one of his hell-on-wheels tears. He was telling some staff members to stay out of the training room. When Stephen walked in, Bill told him, 'I don’t want you in the training room, either.’ "Stephen looked hard at him, and said, 'As long as we own this team, I’ll come in here any damn time I please.’ It was the end of that discussion." The day will come when Jerry retires. That’s when Stephen will take over. Until then, the son’s influence is a growing positive at Valley Ranch. http://www.star-telegram.com/sports/column...ry/1245141.html