Sports radio station hits airwaves today

The future of the Washington Redskins on radio begins today.

Red Zebra Broadcasting announced that Triple X ESPN Radio, the new home of the Redskins, will begin operations at 4 p.m. with a show hosted by John Riggins.

The long-awaited station will be available on FM-94.3 (WWXT), FM-92.7 (WWXX) and AM-730 (WXTR), and will be the second all-sports radio station in the D.C. area, along with AM-980 (WTEM).

“Everyone’s been working hard over the last month to create a business plan, a vision and an operation and put it into practice,” said Bennett Zier, the CEO of Red Zebra Broadcasting, which was created by Redskins owner Dan Snyder. “Now we’re ready to broadcast.”

Live broadcasts of Redskins games will be the clear focal point of Triple X, but Riggins’ show, which will air from 4 to 7 p.m., will be the anchor of the weekday broadcasts.

“I think it’s going to be fun,” said Riggins, the former Redskins running back who has a reputation for being unpredictable. “It’s not like we’ve been in Carlisle for six weeks and someone laid down a game plan. You don’t want to script me too much.”

The station will also offer ESPN programs, including “Mike & Mike in the Morning,” “The Herd With Colin Cowherd,” “The Dan Patrick Show,” “GameNight” and “AllNight With Jason Smith.”

In addition, long-time Redskins announcer Larry Michael will report live from Redskins Park every weekday between noon at 1 p.m.

The three frequencies, plus the Internet, will give the station good coverage throughout the region. But none are high-powered enough to reach everyone on their own, and Zier admitted the listeners may have to scan the dial at first to acquire the best signal. He said the station is actively looking for even more frequencies.

“We’re in the buying business,” Zier said. “We are constantly talking to owners who are looking to sell their stations. Every operator looks to improve their signal.”