"Cooley and Kevin" will debut on May 2 as part of ESPN 980's new programming schedule.
Chris Cooley and Kevin Sheehan don't need their newest radio show to gain a rapport with each other. It's been there for a while.
"Kevin and I do a one-hour radio show on the phone every single day as friends talking sports," Cooley said.
Sheehan has been happy to be on the receiving end.
"My wife would say every night at 7:45 when the phone would ring, 'Is that Cooley again?'" Sheehan said. "But I love listening to him, I love talking to him about football because I'm a football nerd and he is, too. But that's the thing people don't realize is how much of a sports nerd he is."
The two of them will try their best to translate their relationship into a newly-announced four-hour morning show called "Cooley and Kevin," which takes the place of "Mike and Mike in the Morning."
The show is part of an entire lineup of new programming for ESPN 980/Redskins Radio announced by Red Zebra Broadcasting two weeks ago. Cooley will move from his usual 4-7 p.m. time slot on "The Drive" and co-host with Sheehan from 7-11 a.m.
Sheehan, a long-time member of the station, will move from his roost as co-host of "The Sports Fix," which currently airs from 12-2 p.m. They'll just have to wake up a little earlier now.
"I don't sleep a lot," Sheehan said. "I go to bed late and get up pretty early anyway."
Both of them have a good understanding of what their show, which starts on May 2, will sound like, and Cooley says they have a lot of ideas about how the "Cooley and Kevin" will unfold over the next six months.
"I think one of the things he and I have talked about is that we both really like sports," Sheehan said. "So it will be a sports show for sure and hopefully an excellent football show. During football season it should be the easiest show."
Cooley, who already provides unique insight and analysis on the Redskins during the season, while providing color commentary for Redskins game broadcasts, plans on continuing his film room breakdowns that earned a lot of listener affection last year.
"I think his film breakdowns on Tuesdays and Wednesdays of the game that was played on Sunday was must-listen to radio if you're a Redskins fan," Sheehan said. "It was something that was unique. He does it in a way that's not condescending for people that don't know as much as he does. That's one of the reasons he's been so successful."
And while Cooley can take credit for his analysis, he also is looking forward to Sheehan being able to steer the conversation where it needs to go.
"Sometime I need a path to be led down – 'as a fan let me ask you this question' -- so all the hosts including Kevin have been great for me." Cooley said.
"I've been a fan longer than he's been a fan so I'm sort of an expert in being a fan," Sheehan said.
It should be a perfect fit.
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