College Football: 22 Minutes of Pain.

University of Houston Head Football Coach Tom Herman is better than this.

Not that I blame him for going off on AM 610 Bro Radio host John Lopez for this article which stated (incorrectly and irresponsibly in Herman's view) that former aTm Quarterback Kyle Allen was in Houston meeting with Herman and UH Boosters "according to sources".  If aTm recent history is any indicator, then those sources were probably either Brent Zwerenemen or Billy Lucci.

Regardless of where the report came from the confrontation between Herman and the 610 Bro Radio duet did little to enhance the reputation of either party.  Who you think is right relies more on your attachment (or lack of) to UH or aTm than it does to any fealty to the facts.

(Side note: The 22 minutes in that clip above and a few minutes today are my entire catalogue of experience with what the hosts refer to as "The Loop".  I don't find that type of radio particularly entertaining and I wasn't a fan of Lopez when he penned a (bad) sports column for the Chronicle so I'm not sure why I should listen to him on AM radio.)


If you are a fan of UH, then you side with Herman. If you're somehow anti-UH or (more likely) pro aTm then you think Lopez and Wright were correct. As a Michigan fan I've got no horse in the game and I think both were wrong, but their reactions to being wrong will speak a lot about their character.


Tom Herman: In short, Herman let himself get baited by a group whose sole job is to try and create controversy and generate ratings. I'm sure, if he had it to do all over again, he wouldn't have given the hosts of "The Loop" the time of day. Young coaches need to learn lessons. This was a lesson for Herman regarding the media. (A lesson that he learned while winning it should be noted)

John Lopez: People forget that Lopez is an aTm alum. I'm not sure why this hasn't been more prominently mentioned but it makes this non-apology ring hollow. Not that Lopez is sharp enough to figure out a way to trap Herman like this, but he probably didn't write this article with "Houston sports fans" firmly in the front of his mind. He's not a reporter, he's a shock jock, and should be treated as such.

Nick Wright: I have only listened to him for a few minutes and I can only say that he's the one player in this act with no redeeming qualities. Any more time spent on Wright is time wasted.

Sports Radio 610: This is the flagship station of the Texans yet, this is not the first time this station has had controversial "news" stories printed on their website. The first time resulted in a "content manager" of little-to-no-talent being dismissed. I'm sure that Lopez won't be dismissed however because this is sure to be a brief ratings bonanza for them.  Hell, he might get a raise.

Overall this speaks to the diminishing impact on the sports world that AM Bro Radio possesses. The Texans themselves buy time from 610 and staff their shows with Texans employees. The Rockets do much the same on AM 790. 

The player shows that you hear on other stations?  The Texans charge for that, and getting the show involves following a contracted set of restrictions on questioning. Increasingly the pro teams understand that subjecting your team to shock-jocks who are hoping to create controversy for rating is of zero benefit.  Eventually Colleges are going to understand that as well, and will start buying their own time for their own radio shows (some of the bigger ones already are) and will squeeze out these relics of the past decade.

The death of Bro Radio is going to upset a few, those types who still think that "Cougar High" or "T-Sip" is a witty and clever put-down, or those who are hung up on past glory days that were way better in their minds then in reality. But, for most of us, we'll not notice it's passing nor will we care.

Houston is a bad sports media town. The coverage of sports here is lacking in almost every area. It's also a pro-sports town so this kerfuffle won't matter much to an overwhelming majority of people. It's just another tempest in a teapot on AM talk radio that will be used by the station to try and prop up a dying business model.

Meanwhile, Kyle Allen is transferring to Houston so, in the end, Herman won and he, once again, stood up for the University, a kid and his team which makes players and fans all the more loyal to him.  Correct that, he REALLY won.


And SportsRadio 610 just lost all access to the Cougar football team.  That might not be a big deal right now but it could be next year around this time.