Ohio_State_Sports_Network

Ohio State Sports Network

Ohio State Sports Network

Regional play-by-play radio network

The Ohio State Sports Network from Learfield is an American radio network consisting of 62 radio stations which carry coverage of Ohio State Buckeyes football and men's basketball. Co-owned WBNS (1460 AM) and WBNS-FM (97.1 FM), both licensed to Columbus, Ohio, serve as the network's 2 flagship stations. The network also includes 60 affiliates in the U.S. states of Ohio and West Virginia: 33 AM stations, 22 of which extend their signals with low-power FM translators; 26 full-power FM stations; and one HD Radio digital subchannel which supplements its signal with a low-power FM translator.[1][2][3] Paul Keels has served as play-by-play announcer for both football and men's basketball since 1998; former Ohio State offensive guard Jim Lachey currently serves as color analyst for football; and former Ohio State point guard Ron Stokes currently serves as color analyst for men's basketball.[4][5][6]

Quick Facts Type, Country ...

History

In 2009, Ohio State announced it had sold its athletic program's media rights to IMG College and RadiOhio, Inc. (member of the Dispatch Broadcasting Group and then-owner of longtime network flagships WBNS and WBNS-FM); the "lucrative multiyear deal" was reportedly worth $110 million, and scheduled to last through 2019. At the time of the announcement, athletic director Gene Smith said Ohio State athletics would be in a better position to confront the then-ongoing economic downturn, referencing an unexpected $1.2 million deficit.[7][8]

On December 31, 2018, Learfield Communications, Inc., and IMG College merged and formed a new company, Learfield IMG College.

Programming

Besides gameday coverage, network programming includes:

  • Buckeye Roundtable, a two-hour weekly discussion on Buckeyes football, airs Monday evenings.[9]
  • The Ryan Day Call-In Show, a weekly season-long update with the football head coach, airs Thursdays at 12pm noon.[10]

Station list

More information Callsign, Frequency ...
  • Asterisk (*) indicates HD Radio broadcast.
  • Blue background indicates low-power FM translator.

Network map(s)

  • Network stations in Ohio and West Virginia.
  • Flagship stations
  • Affiliates (not including translators)

References

  1. [1]
    Ohio State Buckeyes football (September 13, 2014). "Gameday Program - Kent State: Ohio State Sports Radio Network" (PDF). OhioStateBuckeyes.com. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 22, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  2. [2]
    Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball (2014). "2014-15 Men's Basketball Team Guide: Media Information" (PDF). OhioStateBuckeyes.com. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 22, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  3. [3]
    Finnan, Bob (September 24, 2013). "Cleveland Indians announcer Tom Hamilton recovering from knee surgery, will return Friday". The Morning Journal. Lorain, Ohio. Archived from the original on October 25, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  4. [4]
    Kiesewetter, John (December 8, 2009). "Paul Keels Joins Reds TV Team". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Cincinnati, Ohio. Archived from the original on December 14, 2009. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  5. [5]
    Livingston, Bill (November 29, 2013). "Ohio State's Ryan Shazier displays the fierce qualities of college football's greatest rivalry, plus stunning speed". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland, Ohio. Archived from the original on December 2, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  6. [6]
    Blade staff (April 4, 2010). "10 questions with Ron Stokes". The Toledo Blade. Toledo, Ohio. Archived from the original on October 22, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  7. [7]
    Price, Rita (March 30, 2009). "College athletics: OSU getting richest multimedia contract". The Columbus Dispatch. Columbus, Ohio. Archived from the original on October 25, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  8. [8]
    Pramik, Mike (March 31, 2009). "OSU athletics deal is future-focused; Marketing pact won't fix this year's shortfall, officials say". The Columbus Dispatch. Columbus, Ohio. p. 10C - Business. Once money starts flowing from the university's $110 million deal with IMG College and RadiOhio, the athletic department will be better positioned to weather the economic downturn, OSU athletics director Gene Smith said. ... 'At the time we started the process five months ago, we were not in the position to know we'd have the $1.2 million (deficit),' Smith said.
  9. [9]
    "Readers say Price was player of the week". Chillicothe Gazette. Chillicothe, Ohio. September 19, 2014. Archived from the original on October 25, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  10. [10]
    Gerdeman, Tony (October 16, 2014). "Updates from the Oct. 16 Urban Meyer Call-In Show". TheOZone.net. O-Zone Communications, Inc. Archived from the original on October 25, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
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