Among the most popular sports radio shows ever in this market is WCCO’s Sports Huddle. The station celebrates 25 years of Sid Hartman and Dave Mona as hosts with a breakfast and live broadcast open to the public from 9 a.m. to noon on Sunday, September 10 at the University of Minnesota’s Sports Pavilion. The Sports Huddle had a previous co-host who worked with Hartman. Mona learned he had the Sports Huddle assignment on a Thursday and was ready to go on air the following Sunday when Hartman offered a pessimistic prediction.
“Sid came in the booth (and) literally the music for our introduction was playing and we’d had no (previous) conversation,” Mona remembered. “He looked at me and said, ‘No offense to you, David, but this isn’t going to work. I am going to have to ask them to cancel the show.’ Then the light went on and we went on the air. So that was fairly remarkable. I like to laugh (that) he (still) feels exactly the same way.”
All these years and they are still turning out the top rated show on Sunday morning radio in this market. One of the reasons is Hartman’s talent for lining up guests. “A lot of people laugh when he says it but he is capable of getting almost anybody in America on the phone,” Mona said.