Wednesday we learned that there’s a new showing coming to Philadelphia, pairing a reunited Harry Mayes and Eytan Shander with NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Barrett Brooks.

The show is called The Middle, but it’s not a reference to the Jimmy Eat World song. It’s not Malcolm in the Middle or the Eagles’ lack of a middle linebacker.

We didn’t have the full show details but today got the OFFICIAL press release, which explains that it’s a joint radio/digital effort between JAKIB media and Philly Voice:

Philadelphia – October 15, 2020 – PhillyVoice.com and JAKIB Media Partners announced today that, The Middle w/ Brooks, Mayes, and Eytan will be carried live in Philadelphia on PhillyVoice.com starting Monday, October 19, 2020. The two media companies have entered a partnership that will drop the radio show right into the Philadelphia Market, Monday thru Friday, Live 11 am-1 pm at PhillyVoice.com/TheMiddle.

In addition, JAKIB Media has signed a contract with former NFL offensive lineman Barrett Brooks to be the co-host of the daily radio show while also extending the contract of Harry Mayes, who represents a tremendous amount of radio history in the Delaware Valley market.

The Middle w/ Brooks, Mayes & Eytan will also air live on AM1490 Sports Betting Radio in South Jersey and across the Sports Map Radio Network. Sports Map Radio is available to listeners nationwide reaching 125-plus Affiliates.

“This is right where I want to be,” said Eytan Shander.  “Daily, we will bring you sports talk & entertainment.”

“Mid-days in Philadelphia will be interesting,” said Brooks “Listening on PhillyVoice.com every day will become must-watch radio.”

“I remain connected with a great fan base” said Harry Mayes “this will be the original Mayes & Eytan Show, supersized by Barrett.” 

“Perfect together,” said Joe Krause, Managing Partner/JAKIB Media. “JAKIB Media & PhillyVoice will unleash an audience that will redefine how content is consumed.”

“This exciting partnership brings together two of the city’s top sources for Philly sports news, making it easier than ever for fans to consume the content they crave on the platform of their choice,” said Hal Donnelly, CEO of PhillyVoice.com. “We look forward to welcoming JAKIB Media’s audience to PhillyVoice.com.”

In addition to the weekly content being provided thru this partnership, JAKIB Media also confirmed additional programming.  Extending the Play with John McMullen, The Fix with Ryan Rothstein, Golf Nut Nation w/ Tour Junkies, Branded Sports Radio and the return of The Countdown “2” Kickoff Show, now in its 14th Season.

I’m intrigued by the effort. Philly Voice is a great outlet and this represents a foray into new territory, since the vast majority of their sports stuff is written content from Jimmy Kempski, Kyle Neubeck, Matt Mullin, Evan Macy, and a variety of freelance contributors (Shander and McMullen among them).

On the JAKIB side, it makes sense to pair Mayes and Shander together again. The duo both came from 97.5 the Fanatic, worked together on the Derailed podcast, and then found themselves co-hosting the midday show at 97.3 ESPN. Mayes left to rejoin Tony Bruno, and then ended up in content purgatory after Sirius and Sports Map cut ties following Tony’s comments about NBA player literacy, or lack thereof.

The result is a Mayes/Eytan reunion that brings in Barrett Brooks and Philly Voice, transforming a typical radio gig into a digital show with the backing of two companies.