THE FLETCH: 790 preparing another casting call; Shockley attention is too much

A radio promotion that is exactly what it seems. Atlanta’s 790 The Zone recently began a promotion to find some of the next “young guns” in Atlanta radio in a reality-TV sort of competition that has drawn plenty of headlines from the AJC as well as local university radio station websites. The “open casting call” on The Zone’s website asked 21-29 year-olds if they had “an insane passion for sports and love to entertain?” Then the site ordered the applicant to “show (the Zone) you can entertain!” Now that the deadline for entry has passed, this past Wednesday was scheduled to be the first round of the competition. Program director Matt Edgar recently told the AJC, “This is not a cheap promotion. This is legitimate. We are looking for raw talent we can groom who speak to a different audience.”

I am sorry but a cheap promotion is exactly what it seems like. I remember back in 2006 when ESPN was still doing the show “Dream Job,” 790 did a similar competition one Saturday with the winner supposedly getting a coveted spot on the Saturday morning college football preview show. I remember watching the entire competition play out as I was helping the Zone that day run the promotion and yet I don’t remember ever hearing the “winner” appear along side The King Chuck Oliver or Brandon and Woolvey that football season.

I fear that this competition will play out with the station milking as much publicity from this as possible then letting the show slowly fade away. If the station is really finally deciding to push young talent forward, I also find it sad that the head honchos are going out of the office to find it. I have worked with multiple “young guns” at the station over my years who were loyal to The Zone (and quite talented to boot) who have earned a shot, but instead the station has decided to go try and win the headlines and turn its back on some in-house talent that needs the chance and support this promotion is presenting. Maybe I am wrong and the new young guns will really get a shot, but I would then say that the station is wrong for not giving guys that have worked their tails off a shot first.

One thing the young guns won’t have a chance to do at The Zone will be the Hawks pregame and postgame shows. 680 The Fan made another “major announcement” recently revealing that Atlanta’s NBA franchise will move from 790 to 99X on the FM dial with pregame and postgame analysis shifting to The Fan. Assistant Program Director Scott McFarlane told Score Atlanta that while The Fan is excited about its newest acquisition, baseball will still rule the airwaves. “Braves will take precedence on 680 The Fan over the Thrashers and Hawks. When we have conflict, Thrashers pre, pxp, and post and Hawks pre and post will be moved to either 1230 The Fan 2 or 1340 The Fan 3 with the Hawks play-by-play on 99X on 97.9 FM.” Part of the big announcement also included the news that The Fan had reupped with the Thrashers for a sixth season of coverage.

Speaking of The Fan, it is nice that a sports radio station finally has the Braves on its airwaves. With all due respect to The Bull and a few rock stations in the past, the AM station that the Braves used to be on didn’t know baseball and didn’t have the platform that The Fan currently has to promote the team. After the team traded away Yunel Escobar, it was nice to be able to hear Frank Wren come on and explain the reasoning behind the trade. The interview was conducted by people that follow sports and it was interesting to hear his response as well, in essence saying without actually saying that it was the young shortstop’s attitude that led to his being shipped north to Toronto.

I personally think that Escobar needed to go, not so much because of his attitude, but because a change needed to be made. Another shortstop needed to be put into this lineup because, while the roster is built with its pitching staff to make a run TO the postseason, the lineup needs a little punch to be successful IN the postseason. Shortstop is a position, since Cal Ripken, of power and the Braves couldn’t afford to have a hole there. Could Escobar have been kept? Yes, but when you factor in that he likely would have pouted (here comes that part about the attitude again), it is likely a good thing that he was told to go North, Young Man. Mark Bradley of the AJC said it best when he said “addition by subtraction.” In this case, the cliché applies.

Finally, I need to start off by saying that I am a UGA grad, so what I say may sound blasphemous but, ENOUGH WITH DJ SHOCKLEY NEWS ALREADY. Please. I remember watching Shockley come in against Clemson in 2002 and rally Georgia past the Tigers. I remember watching him light up Kentucky that same season. He played well against Florida State in the Sugar Bowl. He had flashes his first few seasons and of course he won the 2005 SEC Championship game with his arm and his legs, making me among many wonder what the Dawgs would have looked like in 2004 with him under center.

But then the Falcons drafted the Atlanta kid in the seventh round and he spent 2006 and 2008 as the third string QB. Last year John Parker Wilson beat him out for emergency QB and Shockley has still never played in a regular season game. Now the AJC is breaking down his move to the UFL and I say, “let’s stop this please.” David Greene, a back-up that went to the Super Bowl with Seattle his rookie year never got this much attention. Matt Stafford didn’t get this much pub from the Atlanta paper when he was a STARTER his rookie season. I realize it is because he went from North Clayton to Athens to Atlanta that he is followed but he’s never played in a game. Enough unless he gets into a game.