Howard Simon "Winding down" from WGR

[Joe Ferguson]

Simon is not leaving yet, is he? He will be only on the show 2-3 days a week?

[davefan66]

Hate to see him go. Listen rarely to WGR anymore, but like when I do that he’s on. His replacement? Gotta he Sal. Although. I hope he calms down a bit.  Anyone else from the station?? No.

 

I like Jeremy. Schopp and bulldog, not at all.  Although bulldog was really good in his WBEN days.
 

Not sure who did the after point show today. Sal was on for 15 minutes or so, and then left it to someone else. Maybe Joe D? Is that the same as “sneaky Joe”?  Was the worst 1.5 hours of Buffalo sports radio I’ve ever heard. Talked about a dedicated special teamer like Taiwan useless, and would get rid of Zach Moss for Duke Johnson.  I don’t mind suffering opinions, but man the dude was not intelligent with his take.  Just wanted to cause a ruckus. I don’t listen often, and today was the reason I don’t.

 

 

[davefan66]

7 hours ago, Malazan said:

If I had to guess, I'd bet a lot of people referencing the awful 'young' guys are talking about Schopp and Maddog. Like, me, personally, the guys I remember and enjoyed were like Larry Felser, Art Wander, Howard Simon, Brad Riter and I forget the name of the other guy that used to broadcast with Simon.. red headed guy with curly hair. 

Must be Jim Brinson.  Him and Simon were really good together.  The other red head was Brian Blessing, who did Sabres stuff.

Last I saw Brinson was in Little Rock?

 

Incidentally, Brian Blessing passed away earlier this year at 64 years of age.

Edited August 23, 2022 by davefan66

[Malazan]

1 minute ago, davefan66 said:

Must be Jim Brinson.  Him and Simon were really good together.  The other red head was Brian Blessing, who did Sabres stuff.

Last I saw Bronson was in Little Rock?

 

Incidentally, Brian Blessing passed away earlier this year at 64 years of age.

 

Yes! It was Jim Brinson. Loved him and Howard. Looks like Jim is in Arizona now. 

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

Ah dink ah go-wing do bee de nexd go-hozt wid Jeremy wen OW-ard reedire.

 

Urz droolee,

MarDEE BOOron.

Edited August 24, 2022 by Ridgewaycynic2013
Pronunciation. What?!

[bdomdbomb]

I mostly like Howard.  His jokes are a little tired but he conducts great interviews - you can tell he is not just winging it.  He is extremely prepared and has good chemistry with Jeremy.

[Blank Stare]

Man…blast from the past. I used to LOVE Empire Sports Network. Howard, Jim Brinson, Bob Trimble, Art Wander. Wall to wall Bills content on the “little engine that could” regional sports network. Must-see daily programming for me back in the day. On par with ESPN’s Sports center, Sunday Countdown, and NFL Live for me in those days. 

[Blank Stare]

5 hours ago, EersN'Bills said:

Just like when Paul talks about his "college hockey" days playing club hockey at Iowa St as reasons he "knows the game of hockey."

 

PHam definitely wants to give the impression he played against Minnesota/BU or something.

Paul seems like a nice enough guy, and I don’t typically like to disparage anyone for doing their job, but I absolutely cringe when they bring him on. I find that he says almost nothing. And when they give him an opportunity to be insightful/creative, he makes a basic/high-level point and then immediately says the same thing over again that he just previously said with a slightly different inflection as if it’s a new point and he didn’t just repeat himself. I always let out an audible “uuuggghhhh” ever time they say Paul is coming up next. I suppose he has his fans though, so to each their own. 

[gobilz]

Does Sals kid play travel baseball ?

[US Egg]

1 hour ago, Malazan said:

 

Yes! It was Jim Brinson. Loved him and Howard. Looks like Jim is in Arizona now. 

Didn’t Randy Savage mess with Brinson’s toupee during a live appearance?

[May Day 10]

It is a bit unrelated to the thread....

 

But one of the worst, and cringe-worthy things is when I am listening to a conventional sports radio show, and an adult caller calls in with a pre-written and rehearsed regurgitation of words, as if they are calling that stupid "smack talk" portion of the Jim Rome show.  All loud and trying to act tough-sounding.  

[Stokes84]

Sad to see Howard go.  You may disagree with the flagship host opinions, but at least Schopp, Bulldog, Jeremy, and Howard all present and sound like pro broadcasters.  
 

Sneaky Joe is young, but seems like he takes his craft seriously and is trying to improve.  I wish he wasn’t so onboard with the Mike Schopp track of thought, but that’s his mentor. Hopefully he grows his own thing.

 

Nate Geary… OMG. Is there anyone at the station that is offering him critiques?  Telling him to pump the breaks?  Loud, bombastic, interrupting, inserting himself when room to breathe is needed.  I actually frequently agree with his opinions, but the delivery is just soooooo grating.  I’m glad I’m not the only one. It needed to be said.

13 hours ago, TheProcess said:

Paul seems like a nice enough guy, and I don’t typically like to disparage anyone for doing their job, but I absolutely cringe when they bring him on. I find that he says almost nothing. And when they give him an opportunity to be insightful/creative, he makes a basic/high-level point and then immediately says the same thing over again that he just previously said with a slightly different inflection as if it’s a new point and he didn’t just repeat himself. I always let out an audible “uuuggghhhh” ever time they say Paul is coming up next. I suppose he has his fans though, so to each their own. 

Paul is the master of talking while saying nothing. And it seems like he doesn’t have any more access than the average fan, which is less than ideal for a beat reporter. 

Edited August 23, 2022 by Stokes84

[BRH]

23 hours ago, Einstein said:

Anyone remember when "The Coach" (Chuck Dickerson) was on WGR back in the mid-90's?

 

I know he wasn't everyone's cup of tea but I really enjoyed his football talk. He had a lot of bravado but also a lot of actual football knowledge to back it up. Unlike the 20-somethings that only know the drought.

 

Who loves ya, baby?

 

I spent some of the late '90s commuting between Rochester and UB for law school and would always try to time my classes so I could listen to The Coach on the way home.  He knew his stuff and was entertaining.... and the organization fed it by stupidly reacting to the things he would say.  Eventually they got their way and Dickerson was reassigned and later quit.  And we've been stuck with Schopp in the afternoons ever since.

 

I also liked when Mike Robitaille would come on during hockey season and talk about "Baffalo."

[TheFunPolice]

I have always enjoyed listening to Howard Simon in the mornings. He just seems friendly, which is a lost art that modern DJ's or talk hosts seem to lack.  I was thinking about this the other night listening to a local radio station... A really good DJ (or in this case talk host) makes such a difference for the experience of the listener and it's becoming such a lost art in the current age of louder, more shocking, more stupid. Your listeners don't want to feel attacked or put down, nor do they want their blood pressure to double. Some of these young guys are terrible to listen to, and are obviously being taught poorly. 

 

Nate Geary is the one (I think) who sometimes does mornings when Jeremy or Howard is out, and oh my god is it terrible... Talks over the other host, never stops for a second, and seems like he's just trying to get as much on tape as possible. It's hard to listen to. It's like he's paid by the word. 

 

A good DJ or good talk host is one who feels like listening to a friend, even if you disagree sometimes or get annoyed sometimes, and even if it's not for everyone. You have an audience, and you connect with that audience. I always loved Art Bell's show, for example. It felt like a community, like you were listening to the show with a bunch of other people (which of course you are literally) but it felt like a conversation. Anyone who is really into radio knows what I mean by that. 

 

Too many people on the radio today are about rants and monologues and trying to be over the top, which has its place from time to time, but as a default approach is not fun to listen to. Plus your audience is just sitting there, listening to an angry person or hyper person rant and rave. I know that works for some, but even then, it's really very very few who can pull that off AND have it work. 

 

You'd think being a DJ is easy: you just play music. But it's what you play, when, in what order, and how you slip stories about the musicians or concerts in between, and maybe a bit of a persona you have that differentiates you from others, but isn't overboard. I think it's the same for sports talk (or any talk). It's way more than just talking about sports on the radio, and it's a lot harder to be good at that many realize. 

 

IMO Howard is a true pro. 

Edited August 23, 2022 by TheFunPolice

[Bubba Gump]

The only thing that bothered me about Howard, was how he sounded like he was holding or sucking in a burp mid sentence. It was pretty annoying because he did it numerous times throughout the show. Other than that he wasn't bad. Always loved it when he flipped out.

[GunnerBill]

On 8/22/2022 at 3:55 PM, BTB said:

Bad for WGR.  Probably means a replacement by some young gun who wants to fill hours with yelling, screaming, hot takes, and talking over callers and co-hosts. 
 

I remember Howard starting out on WBEN.  Has always been a class act. 

 

Agree. When Jeremy is off and it is young guy plus Howard it is barebale. When Howard is off unlistenable.

[Estro]

On 8/22/2022 at 10:56 AM, Einstein said:

 

You just described Nate Geary.

 

I cringe and turn the radio station whenever he comes on.

100%. To each their own, but I can't listen to him. He oozes "know it all". I do like Sneaky Joe, think he does a good job.

[thunderingsquid]

Joe DiBiase or Nate Geary need to be next.   I like them both and will miss Howard a lot. 

[Johnnyp566]

If they lose Simon permanently an outside search would be most recommended. They have no upcoming talent on hand that can carry a show. 

[US Egg]

5 hours ago, Johnnyp566 said:

They have no upcoming talent on hand that can carry a show. 

There is, apparently, to Bills top brass, a below the radar local media talent they feel is destined for bigger and better things.

 

Don’t get mad should they become more prominent covering the Bills locally.