On the day of the first time I presented the Jim Nantz Award at the National Sports Media Association Awards Banquet, I went for a swim in the hotel pool. It was two hours before the banquet started. When I emerged from the water, my eyes were on fire. I looked in the mirror and they were bloodshot from the chlorine. “My goodness,” I thought. “I’m attending this banquet for the first time and everybody is going to think I’m on something.”

I needed instant results.
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There is a sports talk host in the South who is beside himself because his program director says he needs to improve his ratings but he’s not giving the host guidance for how to do it.

Here is a six-pack of ways to improve your sports talk show.
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When I was at the old XTRA Sports 690 in San Diego, it took four years to find my next sports talk opportunity. It was at ESPN Radio Network.

These 8 top tips will help you land your next sports talk radio gig.
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When I was hosting sports talk radio in San Diego, I sometimes struggled to choose topics for my show. This was especially true in mid-summer when the Padres were bad and the Chargers season hadn’t yet started.

What do you talk about?

Fortunately, there are 5 rules you can use to prep the topics your audience wants to you hear you discuss.
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During four years as a sports talk host at ESPN Radio Network, I never figured out what to do with actualities. I knew it was supposed to improve my show to include them so I played them, but I didn’t know how to use them to make my show better.

Here are two tips I wish I had known then . . .
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A broadcaster who’s been doing small market news and sports for several years wants to move into sports talk radio. He wonders, though, if he can get a sports talk job without prior experience.

The answer is yes. All sports talk hosts lack experience at some point. The transition, though, is going to take time.
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Thanksgiving Day 2003 was when I learned the difference between co-hosting a sports talk show and doing it solo. After co-hosting several shows on the old XTRA Sports 690 in San Diego, I was thrown on the air alone.

I had used everything I had prepared for a particular segment yet there were still several minutes left before break.

Now what? I was terrified.
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