Sean Baligian is grateful he wasn't forced out of the Detroit area in search of work after losing his job at the station in January, when WDFN went to a nearly all-national, syndicated format and cut local staff.

Kowalski and Baligian -- key players on WDFN's new team of local on-air talent -- are excited about tackling the other sports guys in town, WXYT's The Ticket (97.1-FM, 1270-AM), the flagship of the Lions, Red Wings, Tigers and, along with WWJ, the Pistons.

"Competition is good," said Kowalski, who has covered the Lions for Booth Newspapers for nearly 30 years, as well as the Tigers and Pistons. "There's plenty of room for two stations -- two opinions -- in the sports market in this town. We're out to attract the hardcore fan and casual fan."

WDFN re-entered the local sports-talk scene in April, testing the waters with Matt Shepard in the mornings. On Sept. 8, the station loaded up with Baligian from 7 to 10 a.m., Ryan Ermanni from 10 a.m. to noon, and Shepard and Free Press columnist Drew Sharp from 3 to 6 p.m.

"We're getting back to our roots," said Baligian, a mainstay in sports-talk radio in Detroit. "I never wanted to leave Detroit because I love it here. I'm very excited to be back on air at WDFN, and my goal is to keep it simple and fun."

WDFN marketing manager Til Levesque believes her station's return to a local sports-talk format is smart.

"This radio station was built on passion and sports fans, and we probably let it slip" Levesque said of WDFN's brief departure from the format. "Now we're back to tell the story behind the story -- get the story in the locker room on every team sport."

Kowalski thinks the WDFN sports team can dig deeper than others when it comes to breaking news, analyzing and sharing it with listeners.

"We've got guys who are well-connected," Kowalski said. The Ticket "might have the (FM) signal, but we have the more powerful message."

While WDFN is back in business on the local sports front, WXYT has a formidable team of on-air talent itself, as well as major play-by-play rights. The station also mixes sports and nonsporting topics in its daily content.

Doug Karsch and Scott Anderson (middays), Mike Valenti and Terry Foster (afternoons), and Pat Caputo and Dennis Fithian (evenings) represent years of radio, TV and newspaper experience, and have a dedicated following.

"We've evolved into something more than sports radio," said Foster, a Detroit News columnist. "We look at WRIF and WWJ as our competition. Yes, we talk a lot of sports, but we discuss news outside sports, like Detroit politics. Mike and I try and pretend we're at a bar or in a man cave -- we hit on a lot of subjects."

WDFN operations manager Todd Thomas says his station's goal is to "create a clubhouse on air" and build relationships with Detroit's teams "that sets us apart."

While WXYT maintains a large lead overall, Thomas points to ratings that have shown a steady increase since the return to a local format.

Foster wishes WDFN the best, however. "We like to see as many sports voices as possible in town," he said. "I hope they succeed.