 | |
| Type | Sports-focused broadcast television network |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Broadcast area | StatewideOhio |
| Network | Gray Broadcast Sports Networks |
| Stations | See§ Stations |
| Headquarters | Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Gray Media |
| Key people | Michael Conley, President |
| History | |
| Launched | May 7, 1990 (35 years ago) (1990-05-07), with the launch of W50BE (now WOHZ-CD) in Mansfield, Ohio |
| Links | |
| Website | RESN website |
TheRock Entertainment Sports Network (RESN) is a broadcast television network inOhio, United States. Based inCleveland, it is owned byGray Media as part of theirGray Broadcast Sports Networks division and co-managed by Rock Entertainment Group, headed byDan Gilbert, and its programming consists primarily of local sporting events. RESN operates alongsideCBS affiliateWOIO (channel 19),MyNetworkTV affiliateWUAB (channel 43) andTelemundo affiliateWTCL-LD (channel 6). It is broadcast byCanton, Ohio–licensedlow-power stationWOHZ-CD (channel 22) from a transmitter located northeast of Canton; in Cleveland on a subchannel of WTCL-LD, with transmitter located inParma; inAkron on W28FG-D, a translator for both WOHZ and WTCL; inColumbus on low-power stationWDEM-CD (channel 17), owned byInnovate Corp.; inDayton on low-power station WZCD-LD (channel 32); and inCincinnati on a subchannel ofFox affiliateWXIX-TV.
WOHZ-CD, the low-power station Gray purchased to launch RESN, was on the air in 1990 inMansfield, Ohio, originally on channel 50. Initially offering local community programming and newscasts, this programming largely migrated to co-owned full-powerWMFD-TV when that station signed on. By the 2010s, the station aired programming from varied sources, including weather information and audio simulcasts ofWVNO-FM. Gray purchased the station in late 2020 and operated it as a relay for the combined multiplex of WOIO and WUAB, then fully relaying WTCL's multiplex. RESN launched on August 23, 2024, with plans to carryCleveland Charge basketball,Cleveland Monsters hockey,Lake Erie Crushers baseball andSt. Edward High School football.
Originally licensed toMansfield, Ohio, this station took to the air on May 7, 1990, as W50BE.[1][2] An extension of locally ownedWVNO-FM andWRGM, W50BE was anindependent station boasting a lineup of local newscasts and community programming for the Mansfield–Ashland–Bucyrus region,[1][3] nearly equidistant from both the Cleveland and Columbus markets.[4] After W50BE owner Mid-State Television, Inc., headed by Robert Meisse, acquired the license to WCOM-TV, that station was relaunched asWMFD-TV "TV68/50"[5] on June 1, 1992, simulcasting W50BE's programming.[6]
By the beginning of 1996, W50BE changed call signs to WOHZ-LP and was relaunched as "Z-50", offering additional local programming as a WMFD-TV extension alongsideAmerica One fare.[7] Later upgraded to aClass A station as WOHZ-CA, it also began to offer weather information and an audio simulcast of WVNO-FM[8] from a combined studio facility inOntario, Ohio.[6] The station was licensed for digital operation on February 26, 2015, assuming the call sign WOHZ-CD.
On October 8, 2020, Mid-State Television sold WOHZ-CD toAtlanta–basedGray Television, owner ofWOIO andWUAB, for $450,000.[9][10] The sale was completed on December 8, 2020.[11] Upon taking over WOHZ-CD, Gray Television changed the station's city of license to Canton, and began using it as aUHF repeater for WOIO and WUAB, increasing coverage for those stations in the southern part of the Cleveland television market.[8]
In partnership withDan Gilbert's Rock Entertainment Group, Gray Television announced the launch of the Rock Entertainment Sports Network (RESN), an over-the-air regional sports network, on July 25, 2024.[12] RESN announced it will carryCleveland Monsters hockey,Cleveland Charge basketball,Lake Erie Crushers minor league baseball (MILB), andSt. Edward Eagles high school football, along with additional high school sports and college sports coverage.[13] (Both the Monsters and Charge are owned by Gilbert, while the Crushers are owned by former Gilbert associateLen Komoroski.[14]) In addition to originating over both WOHZ-CD andWTCL-LD (channel 6), RESN was also included over a subchannel of co-ownedWXIX-TV in Cincinnati, and promised additional play-by-play of local college and professional sports teams in the future.[15]
Despite also being owned by Gilbert, the Cavaliers were not included in the initial plans for RESN due to that team's existing contract withFanDuel Sports Network Ohio, whose parent companyDiamond Sports (now Main Street Sports Group) was undergoing a prolongedChapter 11 Bankruptcy reorganization;[13] the contract runs through the 2024–25 season.[16] FanDuel, then known as Bally Sports Ohio, previously offered five Cavaliers games to Gray Television owned WUAB during the second half of the2023–24 season[17] and the team expressed disappointment over the cable channel's lack of audience reach and financial issues.[12] Gray previously launched similar regional sports channels elsewhere includingArizona's Family Sports,[18] theGulf Coast Sports & Entertainment Network[19] andPeachtree Sports Network,[20] but RESN represented the first such channel created as a joint venture with team ownership.[15] While the Cavaliers have not ruled out re-signing with FanDuel after the season, team officials have expressed a desire to reach viewers on multiple platforms, from linear television toover-the-top andmobile streaming tovirtual reality headsets.[16]
RESN officially launched on August 23, 2024, with the inaugural broadcast being St. Edward's season opener againstPickerington North.[12][21] On October 9, 2024, RESN agreed to carryJohn Carroll Blue Streaks men's basketball andfootball games.[22]Columbus Fury volleyball matches were also added on January 2, 2025.[23]
Following the announcement of WUAB's disaffiliation fromThe CW on September 1, 2025,[24] Gray concurrently announced WUAB's future relaunch as a sports-oriented independent heavily featuring RESN play-by-play; WUAB has since added over-the-air simulcasts of Monsters and Charge games, along with ancillary team-produced programming.[25]WDEM-CD, a low-power station inColumbus, Ohio, began carrying RESN on their primary feed on December 4, 2024.[26] The Cincinnati feed over WXIX-DT3 was set up to substitute programming for local sports coverage[15] and was included with WXIX's addition of tenCincinnati Reds 2025 regular season games, all simulcast with FanDuel.[27] By March 2025, RESN added WZCD-LD, a low-power station inDayton, Ohio.[28]
On January 21, 2025, WUAB and RESN jointly announced the addition of five regular-season Cavaliers games in the second half of the 2024–25 season; WUAB and RESN will simulcast game coverage provided by FanDuel.[29] In May 2025, RESN announced an agreement to air fifteenAkron RubberDucks MILB games.[30] Michael Conley, a Rock Entertainment Group executive who oversaw RESN's launch, was named as the network's first president on August 12, 2025.[31]
RESN is currently broadcast in the Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati media markets. Since November 2024, it has also been available onSpectrum Cable throughoutGreater Cleveland.[32] For further information onWDEM-CD andWXIX-TV, consult those pages.
| Station | City of license | Channel | FID | ERP | HAAT | Transmitter coordinates | First air date | Former call signs | Public license information |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WOHZ-CD | Canton | 34 | 41892 | 15 kW | 252.9 m (830 ft) | 40°53′24″N81°16′11″W / 40.89000°N 81.26972°W /40.89000; -81.26972 (WOHZ-CD) | May 7, 1990 (1990-05-07) |
| |
| WTCL-LD | Cleveland | 20 | 6699 | 15 kW | 306.8 m (1,007 ft) | 41°22′45″N81°43′11″W / 41.37917°N 81.71972°W /41.37917; -81.71972 (WTCL-LD) | November 30, 1989 (1989-11-30) |
| LMS |
| W28FG-D | Akron | 28 | 184642 | 15 kW | 564.2 m (1,851 ft) | 41°3′52.7″N81°34′58.3″W / 41.064639°N 81.582861°W /41.064639; -81.582861 (W28FG-D) | c. 2011 (2011) | — | LMS |
| WZCD-LD | Dayton | 32 | 187440 | 14.3 kW | 272.8 m (895 ft) | 39°43′28.6″N84°15′17.6″W / 39.724611°N 84.254889°W /39.724611; -84.254889 (WZCD-LD) | c. 2012 (2012) | W42EP-D (2012–2021) | LMS |
WOHZ-CD transmits from a tower in northeasternCanton, Ohio,[33] WTCL-LD transmits from a tower inParma, Ohio,[34] and W28FG-D transmits from a tower inCopley Township, Ohio.[35] All three stations carry the same subchannel lineup and operate as translators of each other:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6.1 | 1080i | 16:9 | TLMD | Telemundo |
| 19.10 | 1080i | WOIOHD | CBS (WOIO simulcast) | |
| 22.1 | 720p | RESN | Rock Entertainment Sports Network |
WZCD-LD transmits from a tower in southwesternDayton, Ohio.[37] This station's signal ismultiplexed:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30.1 | 720p | 16:9 | WZCD-LD | Rock Entertainment Sports Network |
| 30.2 | 480i | JTV | Jewelry TV | |
| 30.3 | QVC | QVC | ||
| 30.4 | QVC2 | QVC2 | ||
| 30.5 | BUSTED | Busted |
To get RESN for free, you will need to rescan your television for over-the-air channels for channel [...] 32.2 in Dayton