Shaun Morash has become the most polarizing man at WFAN. But Gregg Giannotti has his back.
Giannotti and morning show co-host Boomer Esiason fielded another wave of Morash calls Thursday. Almost all involved commentary on how Morash has overpowered hosts Tiki Barber and Evan Roberts — who the station’s new afternoon drive program is named for — in the show’s first four days on air. And Giannotti stood up for Morash.
“Shaun is funny, they’re going to be able to find their roles, their footings, it’s going to be fine,” Giannotti said. It’s going to be good. He’s definitely going for it, which on one hand is admirable. But on the other hand, sometimes you’ve got to be like the old Le’Veon Bell, wait in the background, then pick your spot and you can get more yardage when you do that as opposed to running head-first into the line.”
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Giannotti later added: “I really, honestly think it’s just that it’s new. It’s really new. And Shaun is, even though he was around producing [Chris Carlin, Maggie Gray and Bart Scott] there for a little bit, people don’t know him that much. He did some Giants stuff, whatever. But the audience as a whole is just getting to know him.”
Giannotti said earlier this week he believes WFAN program director Spike Eskin intended for Morash to be a third host alongside Barber and Roberts. But he thinks Morash has started as a producer in the control room in part because of the bad taste the Mike Francesa-sparked crash-and-burn of CMB left.
Producer Eddie Scozzare joked Morash is “marking his territory … all over the studio.” And Esiason cracked he thought Barber had taken the day off Wednesday given how little he heard him while listening.
Esiason asked Giannotti how WFAN fixes the situation, arguing the slew of Morash calls suggests there is one. But Giannotti disagreed.
“I can make the case that’s exactly what everybody is looking for,” Giannotti said.
“I think Shaun is very funny, I think he’s very talented. … He’s just got to settle in, he’s just got to figure it out. It’s a chemistry — it’s one week in. This is the first week. They haven’t even completed a full five days, for God’s sake.”
We will recap what we wrote earlier this week: If WFAN is this high on Morash, it should have given him Craig Carton’s job. There is no reason to have Barber there if the goal is for Morash to run roughshod.
James Kratch can be reached at james.kratch@xlmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @jameskratch.
