Mike Golic Sr. says state of ESPN radio is 'very sad'
For 17 years, Mike Golic Sr. woke up before most everyone else and hosted Mike & Mike in the Morning alongside co-host Mike Greenberg on ESPN Radio. That impressive run ended in 2017 and, after two years as host of Golic & Wingo, the former Notre Dame star left ESPN in 2021.
Now, the show that replaced Golic & Wingo — Keyshawn, JWill & Max — is reportedly going off the air. It’s yet another major change for ESPN Radio, and Golic weighed in on that decision and the network at large on Twitter Wednesday night.
“Damn shame and very sad what has become of ESPN radio,” he tweeted.
Golic and Greenberg were stalwarts at ESPN Radio from 2000-17 when they set the table for the day. Mike & Mike aired on every ESPN-affiliated radio station and was simulcast on TV from 2004-17 — first on ESPNEWS, then ESPN2 — which helped them develop a national audience in markets of all size.
Their run came to an end in 2017 as Greenberg moved to the TV side to host Get Up, which is still on the air. Golic then partnered with Wingo and his son, Mike Golic Jr., for their short-lived show from 2018-21. After serving as a college football analyst, which is back where he started with ESPN in the 1990s, Golic left the network entirely and now works for DraftKings.
The New York Post first reported ESPN’s plans to pull the plug on KJM after just a couple years on the air. Zubin Mehenti originally served as the third co-host alongside Jay Williams and Keyshawn Johnson, but Max Kellerman replaced him as he moved over to SportsCenter full-time. It’s all part of ESPN’s plans to restructure, including layoffs across the network and company-wide by owner Disney.
Kellerman’s future was already up in the air before news of KJM’s cancellation came out. Marchand previously reported This Just In could be pulled from the daily programming schedule to make room for The Pat McAfee Show, which is set to go in that time slot later this year. Radio would’ve been another way to keep him on the network after his stint as First Take co-host went south. However, it appears the network is preparing to move on.
As for Johnson and Williams, their futures are “in flux,” according to Marchand. Johnson has been with ESPN since 2007 as part of the network’s NFL coverage, and Williams joined ESPN full-time in 2008 after his NBA career abruptly ended due to a motorcycle accident.