Something is always going on at 790 The Zone.
They never worry about ruffling feathers (sometimes to their own detriment) and remind me of a good offensive coordinator, able to make adjustments at any time, like bringing in a popular Georgia football player to counter the voice of Buck Belue at rival 680 The Fan.
Now that can’t make those over at Georgia Tech too happy, considering 790 is the flagship radio station of the Yellow Jackets. But David Pollack certainly gives the station a huge asset during the afternoon drive, especially when you consider the strong following Belue has built sitting beside Atlanta’s on-the-radio version of Terence Moore, the good ol’ John Kincade.
I spent time listening to Pollack last week and he is well on his way to making an impact, maybe even giving the Zone a boost in the ratings book, which has been bouncing between 790 and 680 over the last year or so.
And Belue and Pollack could not be more different. Belue’s magic is that he played on Georgia’s national championship team in 1980, handing off to the great Herschel Walker and throwing the ball that inspired the great “Run Lindsey Run” call by Larry Munson. Belue’s southern drawl fits well here, his insight into football is quality and he does a good job of keeping the hyper Kincade in check.
Pollack, a great player on the field whose pro career was cut short because of a broken neck, is more straightforward, likely will be less forgiving and appears to be looking down the road at a network opportunity; he already is working on Saturday with CBS on their postgame show. It will be interesting to see how he works with the show’s host Mike Bell and the sports-educated Chuck Oliver. If all can keep their egos in check, they could become the best local show on the radio.
And if I were in charge at the Zone, I would do with Pollack what the Falcons are doing with Matt Ryan. He’d be the face of my franchise and I would try to lock him up for years to come. This town’s sports fans want to hear from former players like Pollack and Belue.
I’ll be listening, guys.
WHAT ABOUT THE DAWGS?
I can’t get a feel for the Bulldogs yet, especially after an unimpressive seven-point win over South Carolina. Obviously the voters can’t either, as the Dogs have won all three games they have played but dropped from No. 1 in the county to No. 3. And I don’t know whether Arizona State is going to be much of a test this Saturday, especially after the Sun Devils lost in overtime to UNLV. The game I’m pointing to is Sept. 27 in Athens against Alabama. Unless the Crimson Tide lose to Arkansas this weekend, they will come in ranked no lower than ninth in the country. Then we will see what the Bulldogs are made of.
Meanwhile, Georgia Tech had every chance to win in Blacksburg last Saturday but just couldn’t get over the hump. Still, if they can find a way to beat Mississippi State at home this weekend they should go into their Oct. 18 game at Clemson with a 5-1 record. But Tech may have to play a great game to win Saturday. The Bulldogs gave Auburn everything they could handle (losing 3-2) and appear ready to break out. Still, Tech is a 7.5-point favorite, while Georgia is giving 6.5 points.
STAY THE COURSE
If you looked at the final score, the statistics and listened to some of the local reports on the game, you would think the Falcons took a step backwards in the 24-9 loss at Tampa Bay on Sunday. But, in actuality, it was anything but a step backwards. First of all, Tampa won the NFC South last year and their defensive coordinator, Monte Kiffin, is one of the best in the game and had a strong gameplan to stop Atlanta’s running game. It worked, and the Falcons’ offense struggled in the first 21 minutes, as rookie quarterback Matt Ryan missed on his first nine passes, two of which fell into the hands of Tampa defenders and led to points. But here is the good news: The Falcons played hard in the second half and were able to make it a one-possession game, while Ryan hung in there despite getting sacked four times and led the team to two strong drives late. I watched the postgame press conference and I liked what Ryan said when he told the media, “As a competitor, as a football player, as a quarterback, no matter what happens you’ve got to go out there and continue to throw the ball and continue to make plays. Obviously you don’t want to start 0-9 and throw two interceptions, but you’ve got to keep battling and everybody on our team did that today, you have to love that. The offensive line was out there battling until the end, wideouts were making plays and working as hard as they could. The running backs were doing their best and the defense was busting their butts to try and get us the ball back. The effort we had today, obviously we don’t like the outcome, guys are continuing to battle.” The fact is, while the Falcons have improved, they still will face teams with better personnel on most Sundays. The loss to Tampa was not a step back, as they made the game competitive and played hard, down by 11 points late in the fourth quarter with a first-and-goal from the Tampa 4-yard line. Still, this Sunday, against a Kansas City team that comes in here struggling at 0-2, the Falcons have a chance to go to 2-1 before a trip to division-leading Carolina.
AND FINALLY
Score Atlanta has been getting dozens of telephone calls and emails about our new flash scoreboard on www.Scoreatl.com, which has real-time high-school football scores on it every Friday night. We are the only outlet in town that gives the scores statewide and have created a network of school representatives that are calling in and giving updates. If you want to call in scores, the number is 404-256-1572 or you can email them to highschoolscores@scoreatl.com. Score is also looking for more interns to handle the scoreboard on Fridays. If you are interested in getting some internet and journalism experience, email Alex Ewalt at aewalt@scoreatl.com. This is a great opportunity to get started in the field.
Rosenberg can be heard every Sunday on 790 The Zone on the Score Atlanta Sunday Scoreboard show. The three-hour show is always on during the Falcons games and is a great way to get in-depth updates on the Falcons game as well as NFL scores every 10 minutes. This week, the show will be on from 1-4 p.m. Rosenberg can be reached at ijrosenberg@scoreatl.com and 404-256-1572.
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