Earlier this week, Fox Sports rolled out FS1’s new-look daily studio lineup, a significant shakeup for the network that presents an opportunity for reinvention. Leading off each day is Breakfast Ball, a new show featuring Craig Carton, Mark Schlereth and Danny Parkins, that will air 8 a.m.-10 a.m. ET. Carton, newly inducted into the New York State Broadcasters Hall of Fame and a veteran morning show voice, took some time to speak to Sports Illustrated about the project.
SI: We’re speaking right after the first rehearsal for Breakfast Ball wrapped a few hours ago. How did it go?
CC: We did it like it was live so if you make a mistake, you make a mistake, cameras are rolling. And it was awesome. The evolution of this show is really interesting. I’ve never quite been a part of anything like it, which is unique for me and been really great. I’ve got Mark Schlereth to my left whose career speaks for itself, he’s also had a great TV and radio run. Then Danny and all his success in Chicago and Kansas City before that, it’s just nice to have that dynamic where it’s not just one guy, it’s three guys who really have the ability to talk about any and all topics—sports or otherwise—in a really confident, entertaining manner. It’s going to be awesome, it’s going to be great. There’s going to be nothing else like it on TV, especially in our timeslot and I’m really excited about the direction this is going.
SI: Why won’t there be anything like it? What do you think the three of you have that is breaking new ground?
CC: Well, I’ve always done it in a unique manner that’s kind of different than the way most people have done it, which has been the bread and butter to my personal success in multiple major markets. And these guys have the same ability to do it. Danny’s got the sports part of this wrapped up. No matter what the sports topic is, he’s got an opinion on it and it’s based in fact and history and being a student of talk radio, which lends itself very well to what we’re doing now. Mark, having played, has the credibility that very few people have. What’s unique about it, you know, is a lot of shows want to regurgitate some kind of silly hot take on the story of the day and that’s not what this show is about. This is deprecating humor, having fun with a couple guys and guests that will come through the show from time to time. What will be unique about it is that it’ll be like hanging out with your buddies at a bar or someone’s basement watching and talking about sports in a real straightforward, no b.s. manner. There’s not a lot of that on TV.
SI: I agree with you that there aren’t a lot of sports shows like you describe on TV right now. And there’s increasingly few radio programs that have that vibe. Has that shift been a surprise to you?
CC: I’m not surprised by it because I think it’s hard to find people who are really good at it. I did it as a bit of a trailblazer where it’s okay to veer off sports every now and then because people do have interests outside of X’s and O’s and the specific outcome of a game. I hope that’s the direction sports talk goes in both radio and TV. In Danny and Mark, I know it’s only been one hour in one day, but these guys are more than capable of doing both. I just don’t think there are a lot of guys out there who are capable of doing both or even want to do both.
SI: Your show is part of a significant transformation for FS1. In addition being the first out of the gates in terms of timeslot, it will be the first to debut next week. Do you think at all about your role and the show’s role in setting the table for this lineup?
CC: Yes and no. We’re responsible for ultimately 8 to 10 in the morning and that’s obviously what we’re going to care the most about and do the best, most entertaining show that we can do for that timeslot. I think whatever success we have will be a building block for the network. I do take that responsibility seriously. We want to hand The Facility off with largest audience possible so they can do the same for Colin who can do the same thing for First Things First and Speak. My focus is 8 to 10 first and foremost, we have to do the best show we can do but it’s also not lost on me that we have a really good opportunity for the network at large to start the day off with can’t-miss TV. That will allow those guys to walk into their studios with an established audience that wants more. Hopefully we’ll be successful doing that.
SI: You’ve been extremely versatile and continue to be versatile in your career. What do you think is the key to that versatility?
CC: It’s like I said earlier, we’re all pretty well-rounded people. I have interests beyond the outcome of tonight’s Yankees game or Monday night’s Jets game. I think if you open up conversation to life experiences, to thoughts on other things, you’re able to adapt to talk about other things. To laugh at yourself. To enjoy a moment that may not be straight sports. I’ve been blessed to have a pretty interesting life and I’ve also done different types of radio. When I was in New Jersey and I was doing more political talk, I excelled at that and enjoyed it. When I was in Denver doing rock mornings at KBPI, I excelled at that enjoyed it. Having done this now for more than 30 years in different formats in different cities I’ve gotten these really cool life and professional experiences that allow me to do whatever specific type of show a network wants. In this case Fox, but you know, two weeks ago I was doing play-by-play for the New York Yankees. When I was in Jersey—shocking as this is—I was ninth-most powerful person in New Jersey politics. So I’ve been blessed to have a lot of cool, unique opportunities and that lends itself to be able to do this type of TV show well.
SI: You mentioned the Yankees experience. Did that feel like you thought it would feel?
CC: That’s a good question. First off, it was awesome. I mean, the New York Yankees. I’d say there’s probably, what, half a dozen guys who have been given the chance to do what I was given to do for three games. It lived up to every expectation I had. You know, just sitting there, the vantage point from those seats is awesome—you see the entire stadium. Getting a doubleheader my first time ever doing it was cool. [Laughs] In a very rare experience, for me at least, the majority of the reaction to it was positive so I obviously enjoyed that as well. It was just such a cool, unique thing. I’ve done a couple NBA games with Boomer [Esiason] when we did some Nets games. I did an NHL game and I know very little about hockey but this was like the creme de la creme being able to call multiple Yankees game is something I’ll never forget.
SI: That last one sounds really hard. Did you do the play-by-play?
CC: I did play-by-play. It was Islanders-Penguins, a real regular season NHL game when the Islanders played at Barclays Center for those couple seasons. Boomer and I did that game. I did play-by-play and he was the analyst. I know the tapes are out there somewhere but it was awesome. I shockingly did a really competent job.
SI: Football season is football season and the NFL is king. But kickoff is coming at the same time Breakfast Ball is kicking off. What does that do for your excitement level?
CC: Look, I’m uber-excited about this iteration of the show. This is our third football season since I joined Fox Sports 1 and my second without being on the radio at all. I’m really excited because I know what the guys to my left bring to the table. It makes my job easier and as you know, football is everything. That’s not unique to us, that’s what the animal is in sports talk. I think the fact that we can launch this show right on the eve of the 2024 football season is great. There’s tons of stuff to talk about, tons of stuff to have fun with. I think once people kind of get the ethos of the show, they’ll come back for more and more. We’ll make fun of ourselves as much as anyone else and the friendships that will be built will be something that the audience really likes.