FAN morning host choice is Krystal clear

Apparently Andrew Krystal has impressed The FAN 590 so much in his first month on the job, the station has given him a major promotion. Sources say Krystal will become the all-sports station's morning show host after Calgary's Mike Richards turned down the FAN's offer last week.

The move may be temporary, though, with Krystal moving back to the 9-to-noon spot once a permanent host is found for the crucial morning slot. But if Krystal can score solid ratings over the next 12 weeks, he may get the job full-time.

CFL leads the way, edging out Sportsnet One

While only one of the Canadian Football League's Labour Day weekend ``classics" came close to matching the title, it was a pretty successful weekend for three-down football.

The high-water mark came Sunday when TSN set a regular-season ratings record for CFL games when an average of 1.34 million viewers watched Saskatchewan defeat Winnipeg. The rest of the games did pretty well, too, with one topping 1 million and the other two coming close.

The Blue Jays did well, too, with Rogers Sportsnet attracting more than 600,000 for each of its two weekend games. Friday's outing, we'll assume, didn't do as well.

Assumptions are necessary because the game was on Rogers Sportsnet One and Sportsnet isn't giving out those ratings. That's because it's still available only to Rogers digital customers and 4,000 people in Fenelon Falls. 

Judging by the flood of emails I've received from readers, the channel is rapidly becoming known as Sportsnet None. And it's not just angry Blue Jays fans who are airing their displeasure. A lot of soccer fans who bought Setanta Sports are more than a little peeved that some of their games have been siphoned off to Sportsnet One. Some are threatening to cancel Setanta, as well as their Rogers cable.

The most compelling come from Jays fans, though. If Rogers had had any idea who it was harming with this badly handled move, it might have reconsidered and maybe launched after the baseball season. Some of these stories are enough to melt hearts, though apparently not those at the cable companies.

 In addition to the dozens of seniors whose lives revolved around watching the Jays was one man who spent three evenings a week watching the Jays while undergoing dialysis. Because the hospital doesn't get Sportsnet One, he can't. How's that for shafting your loyal fans? 

This is a major fan uprising, dwarfing the revolt that surrounded the TSN2-Rogers battle. And the Jays revolution will seem like a mosquito on an elephant's butt in comparison to what will happen if this isn't settled before the first hockey games are scheduled to air on Sportsnet One.

Here the most-watched sports events on English-language Canadian TV over the weekend, according to BBM Canada overnight ratings:

1. CFL, Blue Bombers at Roughriders, Sunday, TSN: 1,340,000

2. CFL, Eskimos at Stampeders, Monday, TSN: 1,083,000

3. CFL, Lions at Alouettes, Friday, TSN: 914,000

4. CFL, Argonauts at Tiger-Cats, Monday, TSN: 879,000

5. MLB, Blue Jays at Yankees, Sunday, Sportsnet: 703,000

6. MLB, Blue Jays at Yankees, Saturday, Sportsnet: 631,000

7. Auto racing, NASCAR Sprint Cup, Sunday, TSN: 426,000

8. Tennis, U.S. Open, Saturday, TSN: 268,000

9. Tennis, U.S. Open, Friday, TSN: 153,000

10. Tennis, U.S. Open, Monday, TSN: 128,000

OTHER STUFF : TSN anchor Dan O'Toole is part of a group planning a 650-kilometre bicycle ride to raise money for charity. Among the group leaving from Long Island on Saturday are former NHLers Steve Webb and Rob Zamuner. They're headed for Peterborough, Ont. and aim to be coming through Toronto on Sept. 18. Funds raised will go to Alzheimer's research and Webb's scholarship foundation. For details on how to donate, go to www.w20foundation.org. ... NFL junkies will have more to cheer about this season, as TSN2 is now airing games. It will air an early Sunday game, giving viewers an alternative if they don't like what's on CTV or the American channels. ... They'll also be able to get 42 live NFL games and the Super Bowl on their mobile phones, assuming they have the appropriate Bell Mobility phone. The Bell package also includes highlights and NFL Network programming.

CFL dominates weekend TV ratings

It's long been said that the Canadian Football League season doesn't really start until Labour Day in both intensity and fan interest. If that's the case, the CFL is in for a heck of a fall.

Its two games dominated the weekend ratings once again, with Saturday's Saskatchewan-Edmonton game topping 1 million viewers. The Calgary-B.C. game was next with 771,000 viewers.

What's impressive about those numbers is that both games involved the league's worst teams, with both B.C. and Edmonton entering them with 1-6 records. 

Here are the top weekend sports ratings in English Canada, according to BBM Canada overnight ratings:

1. CFL, Roughriders at Eskimos, Saturday, TSN: 1,050,000

2. CFL, Stampeders at Lions, Friday, TSN: 771,000

3. MLB, Tigers at Blue Jays, Sunday, Sportsnet, 501,000

4. MLB, Tigers at Blue Jays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 448,000

5. Auto racing, NASCAR NAPA 200, Sunday, TSN: 378,000

6. LPGA, Canadian Women's Open final round, Sunday, CBC: 252,000

7. Auto racing, F1 Belgian Grand Prix, Sunday, TSN: 239,000

8. PGA, The Barclays third round, Saturday, TSN: 157,000*

9. MLB, Diamondbacks at Giants, Sunday, Sportsnet: 153,000

11. LPGA, Canadian Women's Open third round, Saturday, CBC: 124,000

12. Track and field, Diamond League, Saturday, CBC: 106,000

13. PGA, The Barclays final round, Sunday, TSN: 101.000*

14. MLS, Salt Lake at Toronto FC, Saturday, Sportsnet: 57,000**

* CBS viewers not calculated

** Two channels only

OTHER STUFF: For the ninth straight year, all 82 Toronto Raptors games will be on TV, which should keep hoops fans happy. But there's a catch: 23 of them are on Rogers Sportsnet One. But don't expect the kind of revolt that broke out when the TSN2-Rogers battle kept viewers in the dark. That time, because Rogers is the dominant cable company in the Raptors home territory, a goodly number of Raptor fans were shut out. This time around, they'll be able to get the channel. Whether they'll be willing to pay is another matter. ... Hardcore Sports Radio (Sirius channel 98) has changed its name to theScore Satellite Radio (misuse of lower case their decision not mine.) It's all part of associating itself more with The Score and its numerous properties. There will be some new programming, too, including Tim and Sid: Uncut, The Basketball Jones and more Cabral Richards. Program director Mike Gentile says the station is going to de-emphasize its ``no-holds barred" approach to expletives. ``We're going to let the callers say what they want, but our hosts won't be using strong language," he says. ``We want that freedom, but we don't want it to define us."  ... Bill Hayes has replaced Greg Brady as host of The Bill Watters Show on Toronto 640. ... CBC sports reporter Tom Harrington is moving over to the news side to become co-host of Marketplace.