ESPN Would Like A “Mike & The Mad Dog” Reunion

Mike Francesa and Chris Russo

ESPN wants to revive previous talks with Mike Francesa to team him with Chris “Mad Dog” Russo on “First Take,” according to The NY Post citing sources. If it were to happen, it would be one show to start, but ESPN is open to expansion if it goes well.

While Stephen A. Smith remains the undisputed star of “First Take,” the show has received a boost by Russo’s energy during his appearances every Wednesday morning.

Russo started in February and has been a sensation, using his triple-threat position of opinions, long-ago historical references and mispronunciations to baffle his co-hosts. Russo has also shown deference to Smith being the leader of the program.

Stephen A Smith

ESPN and Francesa had talks about Francesa joining “First Take” right before baseball season in March, according to sources. The idea then was for producers to surprise both Smith and Russo with Francesa just showing up on set to embrace the debate.

It didn’t come to fruition for a variety of reasons, including the fact that Francesa was ill shortly after. There is expected to be a push to revive talks, if Francesa is willing.

Since retiring twice from WFAN, Francesa, 68, has gone into podcasting with BetRivers. While Russo and Francesa have done some appearances over the years, regular spots together have never materialized.

SiriusXM, where Mad Dog has a channel named after him, discussed pairing the duo together, but Francesa could not reach an agreement with the company with money being one of the issues.

For “First Take,” Russo, 63, said on the Howard Stern Show that he is paid $10,000 per program.

Smith, 55, is the leader of “First Take,” and his position has only gotten stronger as ratings have risen since Smith expelled Max Kellerman as his verbal sparring partner a year ago. With a variety of opposing debaters, “First Take” is up 16 percent year-over-year, averaging more than 431,840 viewers per show, according to Nielsen.