Tony Caridi
Play-by-Play

Tony Caridi enters his 13th season as radio play-by-play announcer for Mountaineer football and basketball on MSN and his 24th overall with the network.

Tony has become a household name throughout the state for his work on MSN. Prior to 1997, Caridi served as play-by-play man for the network's football replay telecasts. Along with his play-by-play duties, Caridi continues to serve as a co-host and feature contributor for the popular television shows Mountaineer Magazine and Mountaineer Jammin'.

In addition to MSN, Caridi has done play-by-play for ESPN, PIA Radio, the BIG EAST, Prime, Atlantic 10, Creative Sports and Mutual broadcasts.

He currently is the sports director of the MetroNews Radio Network and hosts a nightly statewide sports talk show as well as working with coaches Bill Stewart and Bob Huggins on their statewide talk shows. Tony is also a frequent contributor on MSNsportsNET.com.

Caridi has been named the West Virginia Sportscaster of the Year on three occasions.

Jed Drenning
Sideline Reporter

Jed Drenning is in his first season with the Mountaineer Sports Network as its sideline reporter on West Virginia football broadcasts.

Drenning is no stranger to football in the Mountain State. He was a two-time all-State quarterback at Tucker County High School, where he led the Mountain Lions to two Class A state title game appearances, and was named the Kennedy Award recipient from the West Virginia Sportwriters Association as the state’s top prep player.

After starting his collegiate career on the roster of Terry Bowden’s Samford squad, Drenning transferred to WVU, where he spent two years (1990-91), playing for Hall of Fame coach Don Nehlen. He finished his career at Glenville State where he was a record-setting three-time All-America quarterback. He was the two-time WVIAC Player of the Year, and threw for 400 yards in the NAIA national championship game. He finished his career as the conference’s all-time career leader in passing, total offense, touchdown passes and touchdowns responsible for, despite only playing three seasons.

In his senior year at Glenville, Drenning won the Hardman Award from the West Virginia Sportswriters as the top amateur athlete in the state. To this day, Drenning is just one of four players in the state’s history (Randy Moss, J.R. House, Curt Warner and Drenning) to have won both the Kennedy and Hardman Awards.

Following his collegiate playing career, he turned in different stints as the quarterbacks coach and then offensive coordinator at Glenville from 1994-99, while also playing professional football in Germany and in the Arena Football League with the Albany Firebirds. Since 2001, Drenning has worked in sales and in broadcasting throughout West Virginia.

Jay Jacobs
Basketball Analyst

Former West Virginia cager Jay Jacobs enters his 32nd season with MSN and 11th as analyst on MSN radio.

Jacobs spent 18 seasons as basketball analyst on MSN-TV and worked through the years with play-by-play announcers Jack Fleming, Woody O'Hara and Tony Caridi.

On radio, Jacobs joins Caridi to form a talented two-man team that brings all of the Big East action to Mountaineer fans.

Through the years, Jacobs has also provided analysis for other regional television networks, and provides commentary each spring at the West Virginia state high school basketball tournament.

However, Mountaineer basketball is his first love having been part of the school's golden era as a teammate of Jerry West. Jay is also a contributing columnist on MSNsportsNET.com.

Jacobs retired in 1996 from his job as assistant principal of Ballenger Middle school in Frederick, Md. He now takes great pleasure in devoting all of his time to the Mountaineers.

Travis Jones
Women's Basketball Play-by-Play

Travis Jones joined the MSN team six years ago as the play-by-play announcer for women's basketball.

MSN will once again carry all regular season and postseason action on a network of stations throughout West Virginia and also on the Internet.

Jones has extensive experience in sports broadcasting, having co-hosted the Sunday Night Sports Talk since 1996.

Jones is also the radio play-by-play voice of Bridgeport Indians football, and has also done play-by-play work for Salem International.

Travis is currently working at WAJR in Morgantown after serving as the operations manager for WSSN, WFBY and WAJR-FM, a position he held since 1997. Prior to that, the Parkersburg, W.Va., native was program director at WKKW from 1993-97.

Hoppy Kercheval
Studio Host, Mountaineer Magazine

The radio “dean” of West Virginia broadcasters, Hoppy Kercheval is in his fourth decade with MSN. Through the years Hoppy’s assignments have spanned the gamut to include news, sports, and talk.

Kercheval has been a key member of the Mountaineers Sports Network family. His pregame, halftime, and post game scores and highlight features have become a staple of MSN broadcasts.

Kercheval also does television play-by-play for MSN women's basketball.

A native of Summit Point in Jefferson County, Hoppy began as a news anchor/reporter at WAJR in Morgantown while still attending West Virginia University. After graduating with honors from WVU, Kercheval took over as News Director at WAJR and began carving an identity as the state of West Virginia’s most professional and respected journalist.

A founding father of Metronews, Kercheval served as News Director until assuming the role of Vice President of Operations in 1991.

In 1993, he created Metronews Talkline, which has become a signature program of the network. Hoppy’s gift of interviewing has made Talkline a must-listen for lawmakers and anyone interested in state politics and the day’s top news events.

Mary Ravasio Minard
Mountaineer Magazine

Veteran television journalist Mary Ravasio Minard begins her fourth season with MSN.

Mary launched a career in broadcast journalism as a production assistant and news writer behind the scenes at KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh. From there she stepped in front of the camera as an anchor/reporter for WDTV-TV, Clarksburg, WV, and won two Associated Press Awards for "Best Spot News Coverage" and "Best Newscast." She then moved on to become the Wilkes-Barre Bureau Chief for WNEP-TV in Scranton, PA.

For more than a decade Mary worked as a general assignment reporter for WTAE-TV and FOX-53, Pittsburgh, covering politics, crime, education, and the Steelers. She also worked as a free-lance reporter for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for seven years.

In addition to co-hosting Mountaineer Magazine with Tony Caridi, Mary works as a media relations specialist and public relations writer.

Mary is a magna cum laude graduate of Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. She lives in Morgantown with her husband Mike, (a Clarksburg native and WVU graduate) and their three sons.

Dwight Wallace
Football Analyst

Former WVU assistant football coach Dwight Wallace is beginning his second decade with the Mountaineer Sports Network as its football analyst for radio.

Wallace joined Don Nehlen’s staff in 1985 as quarterbacks coach and added the responsibilities of the receivers and assistant head coach before he left in 1990. With Wallace on the staff, the Mountaineers went to three straight bowl games (Sun, Fiesta and Gator) and he tutored Heisman Trophy finalist Major Harris for three seasons.

Prior to his stint at West Virginia, Wallace served as head coach at Ball State where he coached the Cardinals to a 10-1 record and the Mid-American Conference championship in 1978. He was named MAC Coach of the Year in 1978. While at Ball State, he also served three years as athletic director.

Wallace also served stints as an assistant coach at Colorado, Ball State, Central Michigan, and Iowa Wesleyan. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Bowling Green.

While at Colorado, Wallace was not only the quarterback and receivers coach, but also the recruiting coordinator and coached in the 1975 Bluebonnett and 1976 Orange Bowls.

Wallace now works in private business and lives in Indiana.

Kyle Wiggs
Studio Host

Kyle Wiggs enters his seventh season as host of the men’s basketball broadcasts on MSN radio. He provides team and BIG EAST information as well as updates and scores during MSN’s exclusive coverage of Mountaineer basketball and gets the broadcasts started with the popular pregame show “The Mountaineers Today.”

Wiggs is a sports anchor for West Virginia Radio Corporation and the Mountaineer flagship stations WAJR-AM and WVAQ-FM in Morgantown. He also is the host of the statewide MetroNews broadcasts Coliseum Countdown and Point After radio shows.

In his duties with West Virginia Radio Corporation, Wiggs also is a part-time host of the nightly Statewide Sportsline and does play-by-play for high school football, basketball and baseball including state championship events. Wiggs also hosts the weekly radio show BIG EAST Today in the fall that airs statewide before every WVU football broadcast on MetroNews.

In addition to the men’s basketball broadcasts, Wiggs also works with MSN in the network’s coverage of West Virginia wrestling, women’s basketball and baseball.

Wiggs is a native of Belleville, Ill., and a graduate of Southern Illinois University. He has spent the past 15 years in West Virginia covering the Mountaineers.