Feherty on interviewing Bob Knight: ‘He still scared the living crap out of me’

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Bob Knight isn’t one to volunteer for interviews. However, he requested a session with David Feherty. The former coach is featured on tonight’s edition of Feherty (The Golf Channel, 10 p.m. ET).

In the clip below, Knight, an avid golfer, talks about playing a round with his fellow Ohio State Buckeye, Jack Nicklaus.

From the Golf Channel:

“These days the polarizing bear of a coach is a lot more cuddly than he was in his growling, grizzly days on the bench … he’s actually now just one big, lovable teddy bear … usually. But he still scared the living crap out of me.” – Feherty introducing the show

As the college basketball world prepares for the Final Four, legendary coach – and often the game’s most notorious personality – Bobby Knight joins David Feherty for a candid conversation about his life, career and love of golf on the next episode of Feherty,Monday at 10 p.m. ET on Golf Channel.

Ohio native Robert Montgomery Knight coached college basketball for 45 years and tallied 902 NCAA Division I wins, the most in history at the time of his retirement in 2008. Those victories now stand third only behind his former player and current Duke head coach, Mike Kryzyewski, and Jim Boeheim of Syracuse. While one of the game’s most innovative coaches and greatest teachers – having graduated most of his student athletes – Knight also was one of its most controversial and abrasive, often known for his combative nature with referees and the media.

Short on basketball acumen, Feherty got up to speed quickly, using his trademark uncanny interview style to engage Knight and bring out answers in the coach both honest and revealing.

“There’s actually a depth and genuine realness to the man though that I suspect many people, even those that know him best don’t often see,” Feherty said during the show’s introduction.

He also got a quick lesson from Knight on the proper technique on how to throw a chair, spoofing Knight’s infamous incident during a 1985 game against Purdue when Knight, frustrated by an official’s call, flung a plastic chair across the court.

Their ensuing conversation covered Knight’s coaching philosophy – which often was compared to a military leader – his days as a player at The Ohio State University with the likes of future NBA superstars John Havlicek and Jerry Lucas, and his regret for never having coached at his alma mater; his fondness for fellow Buckeye Jack Nicklaus; his coaching records; his feelings about the NCAA; and the way he wishes to be remembered.

On coaching style/philosophy:

“I felt my job was to get the most out of you. No matter how difficult it was for me to bring that out of you, that was my job as a teacher.”

“I have a responsibility here to see that these 12 or 14 kids that I’ve got playing basketball go through the experience with a much better opportunity to life than they would had they not had this experience.”

“The dribble has overcome the game, like in golf in a way, the drive has overcome the game.”

On Jack Nicklaus:

“When Jack was playing, I always rooted for him. There was something about him that I felt that very, very few great athletes had, and that was a real humble approach to the sport and a great individual humility in what he accomplished.”

“I think that competitive drive in those two sports really helped him as a golfer. I always felt that he had an advantage over a guy that had never played any sport except golf. Any time I watched him I thought, you know, this isn’t a golfer playing golf, this is an athlete playing golf.”

On regret about never coaching at Ohio State:

“The two days we spent in Columbus, the way they reacted to me during the introduction going into the Hall of Fame at the halftime of the football game, I said, ‘You know, I am really sad that I never went there to coach.’ And I had opportunities to do so over the years. But at this point in my life, I wish that I would have gone there to coach when I had the opportunity to.”

On the NCAA:

“I’m probably number-one on the NCAA hit list.”

“The NCAA has allowed college basketball to become a minor league for the NBA.”

On his legacy:

“He was honest in what he did and he tried to make kids better. And if I could have people that felt that way, then I think I would die happy.”

As a surprise, Feherty uncovered some old video excerpts from a local golf show Knight hosted with longtime Indiana University golf coach Sam Carmichael, which features expletive outtakes of a frustrated Knight trying to hit out of a bunker. The antics live on as popular viral video for Internet surfers. “My hope always was that my mother never saw me in that sand trap,” Knight said.

Knight also complimented Feherty on his Season Two interview with basketball legend Bill Russell sharing his thoughts on Russell, “As long as I’ve been in coaching, Bill Russell was not the best basketball player, but Bill Russell was the most valuable player ever to play a sport. I don’t care what the sport is, Russell’s the most valuable,” said Knight. He expounded on Russell’s NCAA championships during his junior and senior years, his Olympic gold medal and 11 NBA championships with the Celtics. “That’s 15 years and 14 major championships and there’s nobody in the history of sport – King Kong wasn’t that good – nobody in the history of sport that has won like Bill Russell has,” he said.

 

McManus on cutting off injury replays: It was an easy call to make

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Nearly 24 hours later, CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus said he had no regrets about how his team covered Kevin Ware’s horrific injury Sunday.

During a conference call this afternoon, McManus said, “We’re proud of the decisions we made.”

“In retrospect, it really was an easy call to make because of the gruesome nature of the injury,” McManus said. “It was the right call. (Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg) didn’t say much. They let the pictures tell the story….We handled it as well as you could in a difficult situation.”

CBS initially aired two replays of Ware suffering the injury.

“It almost took the second replay for it to sink in what you were seeing,” McManus said.

The decision then was made: No more replays Sunday. The edict will carry over to CBS’ coverage of the Final Four in Atlanta.

McManus knows some people are questioning the decision. However, he said people can see video of the incident on various sites, if they so choose.

“I didn’t think we had the obligation to be the facilitator,” he said.

McManus said CBS never considered going to a commercial while Ware still was lying on the floor. He also was proud that the network allowed Tracy Wolfson to do a long postgame interview with Rick Pitino despite the late finish cutting into primetime.

For his part, Nantz said he still was dealing Monday with the aftermath of witnessing the injury and the subsequent reaction from the Louisville players.

“I had never seen anything like that before,” Nantz said. “It’s hard to get the image out of your mind. I keep replaying it.”

 

 

 

Gruesome: CBS, ESPN make right call about not running replays of injury

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I just happened to walk away from the television for a few minutes Sunday. So I missed seeing Kevin Ware suffer the most gruesome injury in sports since Lawrence Taylor did a number on Joe Theismann’s leg.

Now there’s a high probability that I never will see how the life of the young Louisville basketball player changed in Indianapolis. I have a low tolerance for gruesome.

I suspect many people feel the same way, which is why CBS and ESPN made the right call in not airing repeated replays of the injury.

From the Associated Press:

CBS showed the replay twice in slow motion, although not with a close-up of Ware landing. The network also never showed a close-up of the injury.

CBS then concentrated on reaction shots. Three of Ware’s teammates were on the ground near the basket. Wayne Blackshear cried, Chane Behanan knelt on his hands and knees and Peyton Silva sat, a hand covering his mouth.

The network aired a close-up of medical officials working on Ware, showing the player only from the face up.

CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus said that because of the graphic nature of the injury, the network decided not to show it after the original replays. People could quickly find replays on YouTube, anyway.

“We did not zoom in on the injury when he was taken off,” McManus said. “We did not try to highlight it. I think we did the right thing.”

Later in the evening, SportsCenter also declined to air replays of the injury. Stuart Scott and Scott Van Pelt didn’t offer an explanation. The reason, though, was fairly obvious.

Some images are just too difficult to watch.

It is interesting to note that the networks showed numerous replays of the puck shattering Sidney Crosby’s jaw. Guess we were able to stomach those pictures.

However, Ware’s injury crossed over the line. We can only digest so much.

I don’t have a problem with various websites showing replays of the injury. It is news and people will want to see what happened.

However, the strong disclaimers force people to make a conscious decision to click on the replay. It isn’t the same on TV. There’s a good chance you’re going to look, even if the anchors says turn your head. At best, it creates an uncomfortable dynamic for the viewer.

In the new media world, it’s all about choices. The replays are there if you want to see them.

I am going to pass.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Remembering Cooper Rollow: Former Chicago Tribune sports editor was great journalist, great guy

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Sad to hear the news about the passing of Cooper Rollow.

Here is the obit in the Chicago Tribune.

Rollow, who was 87, was the Tribune’s sports editor from 1969-76, a period of major change and innovation in the newspaper’s sports section. He turned a couple young reporters loose on their beats: Bob Verdi on the Blackhawks and Don Pierson on the Bears.

It seems hard to believe, but the Tribune didn’t have an African-American sportswriter until Rollow hired Fred Mitchell in 1974. Mitchell did a tribute to Rollow.

The late hulking sportswriter John Husar sauntered over to me in the newsroom during one of my first days at the Tribune, placed his meaty right hand on my shoulder and announced in his booming voice: “The Chicago Tribune has hired a black sportswriter! What has the world come to?”

I smiled uncomfortably at his proclamation, then realized the historic significance of my hire by Rollow, which came 27 years after major league baseball was integrated by Jackie Robinson. While this was never something we discussed, I suppose Rollow had become my Branch Rickey.

Pierson recalled Rollow’s finest hour as a journalist came during his coverage of the Munich Massacre.

His work turned deadly serious on Sept. 5, 1972, when he was covering the Olympic Games in Munich, along with his colleague, longtime Tribune sportswriter Robert Markus.  That day, they unexpectedly found themselves writing not about swimming, marathon runners and gymnastics but about terrorism, as 11 members of Israel’s Olympic team were killed by members of the Palestinian group Black September.

“Cooper was first and foremost a terrific reporter, and he had more fun in sports journalism than anybody I ever saw,” retired Tribune pro football reporter Don Pierson said.  “But he showed what a serious reporter he was at the Olympics in Munich.  I think his legacy as a reporter would start with the way he covered that massacre.”

By the time I arrived at the Tribune, Rollow had stepped aside from being an editor and wrote about pro football, his true love. I was 25 when I got assigned to be Pierson’s No. 2 man on the Bears in 1985. I get the all-time great timing award for that one.

Rollow, 60 at the time, didn’t pull any veteran stuff on me. He couldn’t have been any nicer. He treated me as an equal, going out of his way to show it was done. It was an important lesson that I now try to carry on when I work with younger reporters.

“Coop” was just a great guy. You’ll be hard-pressed to find anyone say a negative word about him. He was a beloved fixture in the Tribune Tower. The business would be in better shape with a few more journalists like “Coop.”

 

Baseball is back, and so am I

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I found spring (actually summer) in Palm Springs last week. However, I lost it again when I returned to Chicago. The temperature is supposed to be 38 degrees for the White Sox opener this afternoon.

Oh well, you can’t have everything. At least, we’ll have real baseball today.

I’m rested and ready to go, confident that warm breezes will be visiting my town at some point before June.

To put everyone in the mood for the start of the new season, here’s one of my all-time favorites: Oscar Gamble and his legendary hair.

 

Posted in MLB

In search of spring: Out until next Monday

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I can accept winter in Chicago. What I really hate is spring. It doesn’t come here until about June.

So I’m off in search of better weather. Will return for the start of the baseball season. Hopefully, they won’t have to use the Zamboni for the White Sox opener.

By the way, if you haven’t read it, Pat Jordan’s A False Spring is a classic.

Sunday books: My review of basketball version of ‘Friday Night Lights’

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This is the review I wrote for the Chicago Tribune’s Printers Row books section.

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The storyline seems the same, only change the sport from football to basketball, and the states from Texas to Kentucky.

Keith O’Brien’s new book, Outside Shot, is the basketball version of Buzz Bissinger’s highly-acclaimed, Friday Night Lights. Much like Bissinger’s book on football in Texas, O’Brien spent a year in a small town in Kentucky, documenting the obsession and  at times, the over-exaggerated importance of the local high school basketball team. However, it remains to be seen if Billy Bob Thornton also will play the coach in the movie version of Outside Shot like he did for Friday Night Lights. And let’s not talk about a potential TV series.

Indeed, the comparisons are inevitable between the two books. In O’Brien’s book, there is a sense of “haven’t we heard this story before?” Bissinger’s book, published in 1990, sets a fairly high standard for this category. He also had better material to mine, especially with the star running back who saw his college and pro dreams get shattered with a devastating knee injury. O’Brien’s Outside Shot doesn’t have that level of pathos and emotional pulls.

Yet it’s been 23 years since Lights hit the shelves, and a contemporary account of the high school sports tale definitely merits attention.

O’Brien, a former Boston Globe reporter, tracked the Scott County basketball team for  the 2009-10 season. Located in rural Kentucky outside of Lexington, the economically-challenged town doesn’t have much besides basketball and bluegrass. O’Brien weaves in details of industries that have come and gone in the area.

O’Brien writes, “Those living here today will say, simply, that they live in the Bluegrass, as if it is of them, which in a way it is.”

With the famed Kentucky Wildcats, winners of eight NCAA titles,  just down the road, basketball has a firm hold on Scott County. The expectations always are high, thanks to coach Billy Hicks, who has led the school to two state championships.

O’Brien portrays Hicks as earnest and dedicated in prodding his team through the long grind of the season. To his credit, he doesn’t go to the extremes in the yelling department, much like other high school coaches who emulate Bobby Knight.  Hicks, though, does face charges of “recruiting” players to Scott County to help feed the pipeline. It goes to the extent how important winning is to the program.

O’Brien writes of the pressure on Hicks to succeed: “He was sinking, inching ever deeper into a world where child athletes called the shots and their parents demanded athletic greatness at seemingly any cost, while these fans, this county, longed for the innocence of a not-so-distant past.”

The players also felt the pressure. For them, the ultimate prize wasn’t a state championship, but rather a college scholarship. Dakotah Euton, regarded as the state’s top young prospect as a freshman, had to deal with disappointment as a senior when his talent level failed to match the unrealistic expectations. Ge’Lawn Guyn’s aching knees complicated his ability to show his worth to college coaches. Chad Jackson, the starting power forward, had to deal with an uncertain future in the wake of his father’s death at age 39 from abuse of crack cocaine.

Then there were the players who simply wanted to get precious minutes on the floor. O’Brien writes poignantly of Will Schu, whose intensity backfired on him when he broke his hand in a fit of anger.

Writes O’Brien: “The boy, with no father in his life and few defined plans for the future, sometimes wondered why he had worked so hard, for so long, to end up here: on the bench, watching a bunch of transfers play.”

O’Brien writes a compelling narrative. He makes the reader care about the players and their coach. He also does a nice job with his game accounts of Scott County’s up-and-down season. He creates a vivid picture of what it is like to be in those Kentucky gyms on cold winter nights.

Ultimately, though, O’Brien wasn’t rewarded with the last-second three-pointer to secure victory in the big game. There isn’t the edge-of-seat drama in Outside Shot.

Rather, O’Brien provides an interesting look at a place where high school basketball is taken very seriously, much like football in Friday Night Lights.

Outside Shot isn’t at the level of Friday Night Lights, considered one of the best sports books of all time. However, that shouldn’t be considered a putdown.

O’Brien’s book is more than worthy of standing on its own merits.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday flashback: Bill Walton truly was great at UCLA; 21 of 22 in ’73 NCAA Final

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In the last few weeks, Bill Walton is being portrayed as this goof, eccentric uncle, prone to going over the line of ridiculous. So perhaps a little reminder is in order as to what he truly represented: Basketball at its finest.

Does it get any better than his performance in the 1973 NCAA Final? Walton went 21 of 22 from the field, scoring 44 points in UCLA’s win over Memphis. As a bonus, listen to the great Curt Gowdy on the call.

Here’s a profile of Walton and UCLA

Peter King’s ship comes in: Signs multi-million dollar deal to stay with Sports Illustrated

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Amid all the bad news about sports journalists losing their jobs, here’s the other side of the story: The big stars are making the big bucks.

Step up to the cash register, Peter King.

King agreed to a new deal to stay at Sports Illustrated. Even better, he will become editor of a his own NFL-centric site in the fall.

It helps to be in demand. According to Keith J. Kelly of the New York Post, King signed a three-year deal for in excess of $3 million.

Kelly reports:

SI would not confirm the dollar amount.

“I did consider five media options, including ESPN, but it came down to NBC or SI and loyalty to a place that has been so good to me since 1989 helped to make my decision to stay,” said King, reached on vacation in London.

He is expected to continue his commentary on Sunday Night Football for NBC.

“It’s safe to say Peter is very nicely paid,” said Fichtenbaum.

 

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Here is the official release from SI:

The Time Inc. Sports Group announced today that Sports Illustrated Senior Writer Peter King, who was named the 2012 National Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, has extended his contract.

King will continue to write several columns a week on SI.com, including his iconic Monday Morning Quarterback, as well as produce video and contribute significantly to the magazine. In addition, King will be expanding his role, becoming the editor of an NFL-centric spinoff website that Sports Illustrated will launch in late summer.

“Our readers will be thrilled to have Peter with us for a long time,” said Paul Fichtenbaum, Time Inc. Sports Group Editor. “He’s the most prominent reporter on the most important beat in sports, and his ability to excel across the changing media landscape is a model for our organization. We’re excited to continue working with Peter and increasing his role with our new digital initiative, which will take a deeper dive into all things NFL.”

Joining King on the SI masthead are new Senior Writer Greg Bedard, formerly the national NFL columnist at The Boston Globe; new Senior Editor at SI.com Neil Janowitz, who was an editor at Fast Company; New Director of Photography Bradley Smith, who comes from The New York TImes; and Staff Writer Jenny Vrentas, who was covering the New York Giants for the Newark Star-Ledger.

These additions represent the latest steps in the evolution of the Time Inc. Sports Group editorial team, which underwent a complete multiplatform integration just a few months ago. Fichtenbaum, who oversaw the staff integration, previously named Chris Stone the Managing Editor of Sports Illustrated magazine, Matt Bean the Managing Editor of SI.com and Chris Hercik the Group Creative Director.

“With Greg, Neil, Brad and Jenny we’ve added supremely talented journalists who understand how to create and package stories that live across the print, digital, video and mobile landscape,” said Fichtenbaum. “We are delighted to add their voices and expertise to the franchise.”

  • King joined Sports Illustrated in 1989 after spending nearly a decade as an award-winning newspaper journalist. He is America’s premier pro football writer and his “Monday Morning Quarterback” column has become a must-read for fans and league insiders alike. King’s over one million Twitter followers rely on him for timely news and notes on the NFL. King also serves as a reporter for NBC’s Football Night in America studio show and he has won several awards throughout his distinguished career, including the 2012 National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association National Sportswriter of the Year (he also won that honor in 2010) and four Associated Press Sports Editors Awards for excellence in sports journalism.
  • Bedard joins SPORTS ILLUSTRATED as an NFL writer from the Boston Globe, where he served as the lead NFL writer since 2009. He previously produced award-winning work covering the Green Bay Packers for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the Miami Dolphins for the Palm Beach Post. Bedard, who began on the NFL beat in 1999 and has worked six Super Bowls, has been honored by the Associated Press Sports Editors (three times in the past two years), Pro Football Writers Association and the Society of Professional Journalists.
  • Janowitz will serve as a senior editor at SI.com, and he will oversee the recently launched ExtraMustard.com, SwimDaily.com, and other new SI brand extensions. Janowitz joins SI from Fast Company, where he worked as a senior editor of the magazine’s “Next” section, which looks at original concepts in technology and business.  Prior to Fast Company, Janowitz spent six years as an editor and writer with ESPN the Magazine. He is also a co-founder of the sports-comedy production group 12 Angry Mascots, which staged a long-running live talk show and produced Web shorts for ESPN.com and Comedy Central’s Atom.com.  “Neil brings tremendous creative energy to the team in a number of important areas, and his experience in developing video franchises featuring sports figures and celebrities will help us translate the brand to the growing web video space,” said Bean.
  • Smith joins SPORTS ILLUSTRATED as the new Director of Photography after spending the past 12 years as the Senior Staff Photo Editor for The New York Times. There he helped create an innovative, cutting-edge workflow that integrated a direct feed between the print edition and all of the Times’s digital offshoots, including the website and iPad. Previously Smith served two stints at SI, first as associate photo editor of the magazine and then separately as the Director of Photography for SI for Kids and for SI for Women. In between, from 1993 through 1994, Smith worked as the Photo Editor for the White House under President Bill Clinton, becoming the youngest person at the time to serve in that capacity.
  • Vrentas joins SPORTS ILLUSTRATED as a staff writer after spending the last five years at
    The Star Ledger, where she served as the New York Giants beat reporter since September 2012. Previously, Vrentas spent two years as the New York Jets beat writer and was a freelance contributor to “Loudmouths” and “Jets Nation” on SportsNet New York. She has also made frequent appearances on the NFL Network and MSG Network. Vrentas started her career at
    The Star-Ledger in 2007 as an intern after earning her master’s from The Journalism School at Columbia University and winning the Association for Women in Sports Media Scholarship and Internship.

Big money coming for Big Ten: Basketball stands to hit TV jackpot with next deal

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Not that Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany wants to rush time, but I’m fairly certain that he can’t wait for the 2016-17 basketball season.

That’s when the Big Ten’s TV deals for basketball conclude with ESPN and CBS. Based on what the new Big East got from Fox Sports 1 this week, you know Delany is anxious for his turn at the bargaining table.

The new Big East (comprised of the Catholic 7 and additions like Butler) landed a 12-year, $500 million with Fox Sports 1. It could rise to $600 million if the conference goes to 12 schools.

That’s a huge haul for a conference whose best TV attraction probably is Georgetown. Marquette, St. Johns, Villanova, Seton Hall, and even DePaul (if the Blue Demons can regain old glory) also have decent brand identification.

However, as a whole the new Big East doesn’t compare to the new Big Ten, which will grow to include Maryland and Rutgers.

This year, the Big Ten produced the two most watched college basketball games on ESPN (Indiana-Michigan and Indiana-Michigan State), and four of the top five on CBS.

According to Kristi Dosh of ESPN.com, here is what the Big Ten’s current TV deals are worth:

First-tier rights: $1 billion, ESPN, 10 years through 2016-17.
Second-tier rights: $2.8 billion, Big Ten Network, 25 years through 2031-32.
Select basketball rights: (minimum of 24 games, men’s tournament semifinal and championship games): $72 million, CBS, six years through 2016-17.

The Big Ten stands to get a hefty increase, especially on the cable side.  And the commissioner will have some help from his good friends at Fox.

Fox, which owns 51 percent of the Big Ten Network, is going to be an aggressive player for college basketball rights, as demonstrated by the Big East deal. Executives know the quickest way for Fox Sports 1 to compete with ESPN is to acquire premium live programming. Big Ten basketball is premium.

NBC Sports Network could be in the mix to make a major move by then. It needs to increase its premium inventory beyond the NHL.

Delany also has the leverage to move more games to the Big Ten Network, which is coming off a big year.

Nothing works better than a competitive environment to boost TV rights. You can be sure Delany is counting the days until the bidding begins.