VIEW THE MOBILE ALPHA VERSION OF THIS SITE

News Nuggets, 06.10.06
 —  —  —  —  —
NOTES FROM ECU AND BEYOND...

Previous Day Nuggets...             Next Day Nuggets...

Compiled from staff reports and electronic dispatches

ECU network announces blowtorch flagships

East Carolina's sports radio network is poised to receive a jolt of new energy.

The university's athletic department and ISP Sports have reached a deal with one of Eastern North Carolina's most powerful radio stations to serve as the FM anchor for the Pirate ISP Radio Network's football broadcasts beginning this fall.

WSFL-FM, a 100,000-watt New Bern station which bills itself as Classic Rock 106.5, will be the FM flagship for Pirate football for the next five years, according to a Friday release from the ECU athletic media relations office.

WSFL is a property of the Florida-based Beasley Broadcasting Group, which also owns WNCT-AM Talk 1070, a Greenville station that ECU and ISP announced will serve as the AM flagship for the network and provide exclusive coverage of ECU men's basketball and baseball.

Talk 1070 is transitioning from a 10,000-watt analogue daytime broadcast to a 50,000-watt high-definition signal that is expected to enhance the station's reception, particularly within many of the communities towards Interstate 95 and the North Carolina coast.

WSFL's signal reaches Wake County to the west and nearly the entire coastline of the state to the south and east, noted ECU's news release.

In recent years — in the face of mergers, acquisitions and subsequent management turnover and strategy changes affecting many stations within ECU's target markets — the in-house-run Pirate Sports Radio Network has struggled annually to assemble an assortment of lower-power AM and FM stations. The dilemma has led to complaints of inadequate broadcast reception from fans in many areas of the state, including large swaths of the region east of I-95 the Pirates call home.

The network's boost comes less than five months after athletic director Terry Holland predicted "a new day in ECU athletics" in announcing in January a deal with ISP Sports to become the multimedia rights holder for Pirate sports.

The new arrangement appears to have validated Holland's expectation.

"We are delighted to join with ISP Sports and the Beasley Broadcast Group ... in providing this outstanding flagship partnership beginning with the upcoming football season," Holland said in a statement. "Interest in our athletics program has never been higher and our fans are deserving of the best possible radio coverage. WSFL's 100,000-watt FM signal adds significantly to our football coverage and the addition of 50,000-watt AM as our basketball and baseball flagship station is a very positive step in that direction as well."

Officials with the broadcasting conglomerate that owns WSFL and WNCT were equally enthusiastic with the announcement.

"We are very excited about the new affiliation between Beasley Broadcast Group, East Carolina Athletics and ISP Sports," Bruce Simel, Beasley's vice president and market manager, stated. "Beasley is dedicated to providing Eastern North Carolina the best in local programming and information and ECU athletics play an important role in that effort."

"Having always had a strong presence in the Eastern Carolina market, we are delighted that Classic Rock 106.5 WSFL-FM and Talk 1070 WNCT-AM will be the home to Pirates' football," stated George G. Beasley, the company's chairman and CEO. "Under the leadership of Terry Holland and his team, ECU is poised for a great future and we want to be a part of it."

The Beasley Group, headquartered in Naples, FL, owns 26 FM and 15 AM stations, according to the company's Web site.

A Winston-Salem-based company, ISP Sports is a collegiate sports marketing company with a nationwide presence, including partnerships with 27 major college sports programs, according to ISP's Web site.

'The Buzz' remains in Pirate broadcast lineup

Live game broadcasts of East Carolina football, as well as the popular weekly call-in show featuring Pirate head coach Skip Holtz, will continue to air on WRBZ-AM sports radio 850 during the 2006 and 2007 seasons.

The official announcement of a new two-year agreement with the station know as "The Buzz" was made by officials of ISP Sports and WRBZ, and released by the ECU athletic media relations department.

"We are thrilled to continue our long-standing relationship with ECU and the always enthusiastic Pirate fans," WRBZ general manager Brian Maloney stated.

In addition to the full football schedule, WRBZ will be the Triangle home for selected live broadcasts of Pirate men's basketball during the next two years.

"We are very pleased that 850 The Buzz will remain as the home for ECU Sports in the Raleigh-Durham area for two more years," ISP radio network affiliate manager Taylor Durham stated. "We know that Pirate fans in that region get their sports news from the station on a daily basis, so it's a natural fit for them to stay tuned to 850 for coverage of their favorite team as well."

ISP Sports is the exclusive multimedia rights-holder for East Carolina athletics.

Former LSU athlete turned pro wrestler dies

Former LSU wrestler John Tenta, known professionally as "Earthquake" as a competitor in the World Wrestling Federation, has died at the age of 42, according to an announcement on LSU's athletics web site.

Tenta, a massive man who lettered for the Tigers in the early 1980's when wrestling was a nationally-renowned varsity sport at LSU, died after a lengthy battle with bladder cancer. He is survived by his wife and three children.

“Big John,” as he was known at LSU, also participated in football for the Tigers. Born in Surrey, British Columbia, he weighed 11 pounds, 3 ounces at birth. Recently he measured 6-6 and weighed in at over 400 pounds.

After leaving LSU, Tenta took up sumo wrestling in Japan for a period of time before going into pro wrestling. He joined the World Wrestling Federation in 1989 and gained fame as “Earthquake” as he feuded with Hulk Hogan.

Tenta performed for both World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling throughout the 1990's. He made multiple appearances on wrestling’s grandest stage, participating in matches at WrestleManias VI, VII, VIII, X and X-Seven.

Tenta, who in recent years had lived in Florida, also performed under a number of other identities as a professional wrestler.

News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from other sources. Copyright 2006 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Page Updated: 02/23/2007 12:48 PM