OT: Michael “Stoney” Stone Retiring from 97.1
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:13 AM ^
Stoney and Wojo was a great show on WDFN back when i was early in my career. Was my go to for evening commute
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:17 AM ^
Same here. I never really got into any of his shows post Stoney and Wojo. Never seemed to have the same chemistry. As a fellow philly native, I always enjoyed his constant philly references.
August 23rd, 2023 at 11:52 AM ^
I remember the very first day DFN was on the air. Stoney, Wojo, Bellegian, Van Earl Wright in the afternoon…
Back when that station didn’t go complete Sparty bruh hot garbage.
August 23rd, 2023 at 1:27 PM ^
Totally forgot about Bellegian, he was an MSU grad like Vallenti but without the trolling.
August 23rd, 2023 at 2:59 PM ^
Your memory deceives you. It was Stoney and Rob Parker, Beligian was later. Larry Sorensen in the morning, I think you are right about VEW, and Mega Man in the evenings. Henson and Regner had the Saturday afternoon sit-in.
August 23rd, 2023 at 4:33 PM ^
Van Earl was midday with Jennifer Hammond. Mega Man was evenings. Stoney was with Rob Parker afternoons. Mega Man at night. Can someone remind me of the Boston guy who teamed with Larry Sorensen in the mornings?
August 23rd, 2023 at 6:59 PM ^
Butch Stearns or maybe Bruce Stearns, or I could be completely wrong. He was a college running back at a small school in the eastern US.
google tells me Butch Stearns
August 23rd, 2023 at 12:00 PM ^
same, just posted similar below. 1998 until 2001 they were my guys on my drives home, good stuff.
August 23rd, 2023 at 12:24 PM ^
Agreed. Their tournaments always made the drive a little better. I can still hear Wojo going crazy about the Pringles man in their snack tournament.
August 23rd, 2023 at 12:42 PM ^
Yes. Congrats to Stoney, the lovely and talented Cindy, and twins Jasmine and Miranda.
August 24th, 2023 at 1:46 AM ^
Stoney and Wojo know more about sports than most other folks know…
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:15 AM ^
Will continue with show until the Super Bowl, then will serve as a fill-in for other shows, so not a total departure. No word on who will replace him as co-host on the morning show.
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:30 AM ^
I really like Jim Costa when he fills in
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:57 AM ^
Same. I’m betting he is Stoney’s replacement.
August 23rd, 2023 at 1:17 PM ^
Jim Costa would be an excellent fit. He has no affiliation to U-M or MSU, and is neutral all around. He is very intelligent with all sports, and is a great talker on the radio.
August 23rd, 2023 at 1:24 PM ^
Maybe he has matured on the radio but his twitter says otherwise. When he was on the west side, Costa was a bit of a Spartan slappy to my ears. He was usually glazed in his own logic for his positions but always felt slanted and negative against Michigan.
August 23rd, 2023 at 1:39 PM ^
I think he went to CMU? Haven't picked up on any Sparty fandom in him. He just is a bit hot takey. Very contrarian and everything is the end of the world. But he does come across as very knowledgeable and can keep up, which makes it pretty obvious it's all an act. I actually wish they'd dump Rico and bring Costa on as his replacement. Rico adds absolutely nothing, just repeats what Valenti says, and is always talking about "the FANS are going to say (insert doom and gloom hot take)." Sometimes I can't stand Valenti, usually when it has to do with comparing off the field issues between MSU players and Michigan players, but he generally is on point with his assessments. Rico is the least knowledgeable and least entertaining person on the network.
August 23rd, 2023 at 3:56 PM ^
He is a CMU grad for sure. I wouldn't ever say he was misinformed but tended to emphasize one layer while at times minimizing another layer. While on the radio here before he was fired he was co-host with a Spartan slappy so maybe he was playing to that guy. The west side has a lot of Spartan fans so it might be better for the audience to be so. Huge balances things by slobbering all over Izzo while generally showing an affection for Michigan football. Keeps himself balanced in his own way.
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:32 AM ^
The Ticket is way heavy with Sparty influence. Too bad Braylon flamed out when we needed a counterbalance to Valenti.
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:41 AM ^
Valenti has kind of turned into a "variety show" that I think is actually better than when it used to be brass-tacks sports. He has kind of grown out of the RCMB type fan also. I don't really hate it anymore.
August 23rd, 2023 at 10:15 AM ^
i really enjoy Valenti talking about anything besides Michigan. His bias is so deeply enrooted he doesn't even believe he has one. Rico is 100% clown regardless of what the topic is.
August 23rd, 2023 at 10:21 AM ^
I mean, it annoys me too, but shouldn’t shit talking your rival be part of the fun? Rico just is out of his element, but Mike really knows sports and is very funny.
August 23rd, 2023 at 2:30 PM ^
it's not fun when every conversation inevitably boils down to the "blue wall"
August 23rd, 2023 at 11:52 AM ^
I never listen to him but once in a while I turn on the radio in my car and he's on. It seems like when that happens he's always negative. Always bad mouthing something with an arrogant/superior tone. I immediately turn him off.
August 23rd, 2023 at 2:14 PM ^
Many of our sports teams are shit? Why shouldn’t he be negative when they lose and do stupid things?
August 24th, 2023 at 10:19 AM ^
Because I don.t enjoy listening to negativity ranting. There's there's enough of that in the world that we get naturally. One reason I like sports is to get a break from it. I don't seek more of it for fun.
August 23rd, 2023 at 1:13 PM ^
Valenti pushes that phony NYC accent because, I don't know, I guess he thinks it makes him sound tough to talk like a palooka from Queens. The guy's from Buffalo.
August 23rd, 2023 at 1:27 PM ^
Hey, I'm from Queens and a semi- palooka and I don't talk nuttin' like Valenti.
August 23rd, 2023 at 2:49 PM ^
I agree, I really enjoy Valenti too, for the most part. When he talks about the UofM sports teams themselves (ie. actual sports analysis), he is actually fine and provides fair points. When he talks about the fans, the program etc., that is when his hatred/bias comes out and I usually turn it off. Outside of those moments, I think he is incredibly entertaining, knowledgeable and well prepared, and I enjoy his show. I too wish they'd send Rico to Bolivia.
August 24th, 2023 at 2:39 PM ^
His segment today at 2pm re: MSU football is a good example of how he is pretty fair. He completely tore Mel Tucker a new one..
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:49 AM ^
Uh, Stoney is a Michigan fan, Jansen played here and does color and Karsch is the main play by play guy...how is it "heavy with Sparty influence"?
August 23rd, 2023 at 10:20 AM ^
Agreed. Like, there is a heavy balance of UM and MSU on 97.1. Can Valenti go a little far? Sure, but he graduated from MSU, what’s wrong with some trash talk? He’s very critical of MSU.
August 23rd, 2023 at 10:46 AM ^
Agreed. I remember people on this blog were convinced Baumgartner was some crazy biased Spartan homer when he was just a very good & balanced reporter who knew football really well (who happened to go to MSU).
August 23rd, 2023 at 1:21 PM ^
Stoney is a U-M football fan, but an MSU basketball fan. Jansen is 100% U-M, but Doug I believe graduated from MSU and works for U-M. Jansen is the only one that hits MSU with shots, but they are even mild. Valenti and Rico, and to a smaller degree Gator, throw grenades at U-M every time they talk about the school, sports, players and coaches.
August 23rd, 2023 at 2:06 PM ^
Doug went to MSU but grew up in a diehard U-M family and said he remained a fan of U-M while he was at MSU and afterwards.
August 23rd, 2023 at 2:51 PM ^
His dad was a professor at U of M
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:34 AM ^
Stoney actually has a very good understanding of sports and a surprising ability to recall facts from long ago. But the 97.1 morning show is pretty bad. It's about 70% silliness and 30% actual sports talk. Disappointing because it could be so much better than it is. There's a lot more sports talk and far less buffoonery when Jim Costa stands in.
August 23rd, 2023 at 9:39 AM ^
In terms of just memory and pulling facts from the scrapheap, he is very "knowledgeable." I disagree that he has a good understanding of sports though. There is a chance that a great many of his takes were contrarian or devil's advocate on purpose, but if not, I actually cannot recall a radio personality from "this generation" who I found to be more consistently wrong about sports topics and nuances. He is a nice guy, he has a really good dry sense of humor, and he actually calls a pretty decent football game at West Bloomfield. However, regarding #taeks, I think he is about the worst around.
August 23rd, 2023 at 1:28 PM ^
So, why don't you just listen to Sam and Ira in the morning? Totally fair and balanced.
/s
August 23rd, 2023 at 10:39 AM ^
Mid-90's. My parents had only one car and it was a wood-paneling '86 caravan with no FM radio. WDFN was all I listened to as a kid.
August 23rd, 2023 at 11:06 AM ^
This makes me sad, one of the few left who doesn’t let politics and personal views affect his work. He’s always been fair to everyone, and I respect him and Wojo more than just about anyone non our state when it comes to sports. Sad to see him go, miss the old 1130 the fan 😔
August 23rd, 2023 at 11:37 AM ^
Sad to see him go. The Stoney and Wojo show was what got me hooked on Detroit sports radio, and no show has measured up since.
August 23rd, 2023 at 11:59 AM ^
After graduating in 1998 I grinded in Detroit area traffic for a few years before heading off to grad school. Stoney and Wojo were my drive home staple every day during those years. I really enjoyed them as a team. Such a short window of my life but they were definitely memorable.
August 23rd, 2023 at 12:40 PM ^
Ok with me if Gator follows him into retirement.
August 23rd, 2023 at 12:43 PM ^
Dick Vitale was on the air with Stoney and Wojo in the early 2000s, and he referred to Stoney as Tony!
August 23rd, 2023 at 2:50 PM ^
This was the lineup when WDFN launched on July 11, 1994. Some memories here.
August 23rd, 2023 at 7:47 PM ^
Rob Parker....how did someone this bad keep a job in the industry for so long? Worst one ever. At least Drew Sharp was fairly intelligent. Parker....not so much.
August 23rd, 2023 at 4:53 PM ^
Headline is misleading. He is NOT retiring.
He will work the morning show until after the Super Bowl and then act as a fill in guy for all shows as needed.
More of a reduced work load than a retirement.
August 23rd, 2023 at 5:02 PM ^
You are right. I clarified in a previous comment.