Mike Francesa the Gawd

Tommy Fits

Tommy Fits

Superstar
Supporter
Joined
May 1, 2012
Messages
13,003
Reputation
2,375
Daps
44,883
Reppin
QUEENS NY
wtfyomom said:
i thought so too, yeah the other poster pointed out, his background would make you think republican but on the overnight he never seemed that way, he seemed more like into 60s music and drugs type of culture, i always thought he was way less racist than mike and dog. like mike didnt surprise me at all going for trump
Click to expand...
Plenty of open-minded hippies became stone cold Trump loving conservatives
 
blues_funk_reggae

blues_funk_reggae

Veteran
Joined
Nov 18, 2016
Messages
17,269
Reputation
7,252
Daps
100,013
Reppin
NYC


10 year anniversary of this rant. So many gems I can't even quote them all.

09WPANK.png
 
Rev

Rev

Bong
Joined
Apr 30, 2012
Messages
21,711
Reputation
3,139
Daps
69,769
Reppin
Uptown

:merchant:
ESPN would like a “Mike & the Mad Dog” reunion on its air.

ESPN wants to revive previous talks with Mike Francesa to team him with Chris “Mad Dog” Russo on “First Take,” according to sources. If it were to happen, it would be one show to start, but ESPN is open to expansion if it goes well.

While Stephen A. Smith remains the undisputed star of “First Take,” the show has received a boost by Russo’s energy during his appearances every Wednesday morning.

Russo started in February and has been a sensation, using his triple-threat position of opinions, long-ago historical references and mispronunciations to baffle his co-hosts. Russo has also shown deference to Smith being the leader of the program.

ESPN and Francesa had talks about Francesa joining “First Take” right before baseball season in March, according to sources. The idea then was for producers to surprise both Smith and Russo with Francesa just showing up on set to embrace the debate.

It didn’t come to fruition for a variety of reasons, including the fact that Francesa was ill shortly after. There is expected to be a push to revive talks, if Francesa is willing.

ESPN declined comment, while Francesa did not immediately return messages.

Since retiring twice from WFAN, Francesa, 68, has gone into podcasting with BetRivers. While Russo and Francesa have done some appearances over the years, regular spots together have never materialized.

SiriusXM, where Mad Dog has a channel named after him, discussed pairing the duo together, but Francesa could not reach an agreement with the company with money being one of the issues.

For “First Take,” Russo, 63, said on the Howard Stern Show that he is paid $10,000 per program.

Smith, 55, is the leader of “First Take,” and his position has only gotten stronger as ratings have risen since Smith expelled Max Kellerman as his verbal sparring partner a year ago. With a variety of opposing debaters, “First Take” is up 16 percent year-over-year, averaging more than 431,840 viewers per show, according to Nielsen.

During an August episode of the show, Smith said to Russo it would be his honor to have Francesa join the “First Take” cast. In the past, Francesa and Russo have failed to make any reunions last because, despite their public denials, they haven’t always been on the best of terms, according to sources. Financial aspects have also gotten in the way.

When Russo left in 2008, Francesa was able to maintain their WFAN ratings advantage over ESPN New York’s “The Michael Kay Show” for a long while. However, the Kay show eventually beat Francesa, who had famously once said that ESPN needed to bring more than “pea shooters” to dethrone him. The team of Kay, Don La Greca and Peter Rosenberg took Francesa down. Francesa stepped away from FAN for a second time in June 2020.

If Francesa wants one more encore in the spotlight, this could be it. ESPN wants to make it happen. The final decision will likely be up to Francesa.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top