Good news: ESPN’s McDonough will return for the bowls following brain surgery

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ESPN released its announcer lineup for the 8,478 games it will air during the bowl season. OK, it’s only 34.

I looked to see if one name was on the list: Sean McDonough.

Sure enough, McDonough is set to do two games: The Alamo Bowl on Dec. 29 and Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2.

Those will be McDonough’s first broadcasts since undergoing surgery last Friday for superior canal dehiscence syndrome, a condition he was diagnosed with in spring of 2012.

From ESPN:

Superior canal dehiscence syndrome (SCDS) is a thinning or hole in the bone that separates the inner ear from the brain. McDonough, who discussed his condition with USA Today in June, experienced several of the symptoms associated with SCDS: a loud bang with each step he took, hearing his eyeballs move, hearing his heartbeat in his left ear and more.

“I want to thank my family, friends and colleagues who were so supportive and caring through this process,” McDonough said Monday morning. “I was blown away by the phone calls, emails and texts. This has been a very emotional experience and that means more to me than I can possibly explain. It has been a rough nine months and the surgery was tough but it is great to not hear my footsteps as I walk anymore. It’s a rare condition and surgery, I was fortunate to have Dr. Lee and his amazing staff of doctors and nurses.”

Something to be thankful for during the holiday season.

Here is ESPN’s complete announcer lineup:

Bowl Championship Series

Tue, Jan 1 5 p.m. Rose Bowl Game Presented by Vizio: Wisconsin vs. No. 6 Stanford ESPN: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit, Heather Cox & Tom Rinaldi Radio: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Jenn Brown Deportes: Georgina Ruiz Sandoval & Robert Abramowitz ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN Radio
8:30 p.m. Discover Orange Bowl: No. 15 Northern Illinois vs. No. 12 Florida State ESPN: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad Deportes: Eduardo Varela & Pablo Viruega ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN Radio
Wed, Jan 2 8:30 p.m. Allstate Sugar Bowl: No. 21 Louisville vs. No. 3 Florida ESPN: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Quint Kessenich Radio: Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams Deportes: Eduardo Varela & Pablo Viruega ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D
Thu, Jan 3 8:30 p.m. Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: No. 4 Oregon vs. No. 5 Kansas State ESPN: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad Deportes: Eduardo Varela & Pablo Viruega ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN Radio
Mon, Jan 7 8:30 p.m. Discover BCS National Championship: No. 1 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Alabama ESPN: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit, Heather Cox & Tom Rinaldi Radio: Mike Tirico, Todd Blackledge, Holly Rowe & Joe Schad Deportes: Eduardo Varela & Pablo Viruega ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D

Additional Postseason Games

Date Time (ET) Game Network
Sat, Dec 15 1 p.m. Gildan New Mexico Bowl: Nevada vs. Arizona ESPN: Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Kaylee Hartung Radio: Mark Neely, Ray Bentley & Marty Cesario ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D
4:30 p.m. Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Toledo vs. No. 22 Utah State ESPN: Tom Hart, Mike Bellotti & Quint Kessenich Radio: Rich Cellini, Tom Ramsey & Shelley Smith ESPN & ESPN Radio
Thu, Dec 20 8 p.m. San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl: BYU vs. San Diego State ESPN: Carter Blackburn, Rod Gilmore & Jemele Hill Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D
Fri, Dec 21 7:30 p.m. Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl St. Petersburg: Central Florida vs. Ball State ESPN: Dave Neal, Andre Ware, Desmond Howard & Cara Capuano Radio: Dave Lamont, Matt Stinchcomb & Allison Williams ESPN & ESPN Radio
Sat, Dec 22 Noon R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl: East Carolina vs. Louisiana-Lafayette ESPN: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Quint Kessenich Radio: Marc Kestecher, Dan Hawkins & Ian Fitzsimmons ESPN & ESPN Radio
3:30 p.m. MAACO Bowl Las Vegas: Washington vs. No. 19 Boise State Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Tom Rinaldi ESPN
Mon, Dec 24 8 p.m. Sheraton Hawaii Bowl: Fresno State vs. SMU ESPN: Carter Blackburn, Kelly Stouffer & Kaylee Hartung Radio: Marc Kestecher & Pete Najarian ESPN & ESPN Radio
Wed, Dec 26 7:30 p.m. Little Caesars Bowl: Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan Mark Neely, Ray Bentley & Jemele Hill ESPN
Thu, Dec 27 3 p.m. Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman: No. 24 San Jose State vs. Bowling Green Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Quint Kessenich ESPN
6:30 p.m. Belk Bowl: Cincinnati vs. Duke Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards ESPN
9:45 p.m. Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl: Baylor vs. No. 17 UCLA ESPN: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Jenn Brown Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D
Fri, Dec 28 2 p.m. AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl: Ohio vs. Louisiana-Monroe Dave Lamont, Kelly Stouffer & Cara Capuano ESPN
5:30 p.m. Russell Athletic Bowl: Rutgers vs. Virginia Tech ESPN: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor Radio: Adam Amin, Tom Luginbill & Brett McMurphy ESPN & ESPN Radio
9 p.m. Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas: Minnesota vs. Texas Tech ESPN: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza Radio: Tom Hart, John Congemi & Niki Noto ESPN & ESPN Radio
Sat, Dec 29 11:45 a.m. Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl: Rice vs. Air Force ESPN: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Lewis Johnson Radio: Eamon McAnaney, David Diaz-Infante & Paul Carcaterra ESPN & ESPN Radio
3:15 p.m. New Era Pinstripe Bowl: West Virginia vs. Syracuse ESPN: Chris Fowler, Jesse Palmer & Tom Rinaldi Radio: Marc Kestecher, Jack Ford & C.J. Papa ESPN & ESPN Radio
4 p.m. Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl: Navy vs. Arizona State Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Jenn Brown ESPN2
6:45 p.m. Valero Alamo Bowl: No. 23 Texas vs. No. 13 Oregon State ESPN: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Quint Kessenich Radio: Mark Neely, Ray Bentley & Kaylee Hartung ESPN & ESPN Radio
10:15 p.m. Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl: TCU vs. Michigan State ESPN: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad ESPN & ESPN Radio
Mon, Dec 31 Noon Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl: NC State vs. Vanderbilt Carter Blackburn, Rod Gilmore & Jemele Hill ESPN
3:30 p.m. AutoZone Liberty Bowl: Iowa State vs. Tulsa ESPN: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza Radio: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Lewis Johnson ESPN & ESPN Radio
7:30 p.m. Chick-fil-A Bowl: No. 8 LSU vs. No. 14 Clemson ESPN: Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards Radio: Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Cara Capuano ESPN & ESPN Radio
Tue, Jan 1 Noon TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl: Mississippi State vs. No. 20 Northwestern Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams ESPN2
Heart of Dallas Bowl: Purdue vs. Oklahoma State Clay Matvick, Matt Stinchcomb & Kaylee Hartung ESPNU
1 p.m. Capital One Bowl: No. 7 Georgia vs. No. 16 Nebraska ABC: Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack & Samantha Steele Radio: Dave Lamont, Kelly Stouffer & Brett McMurphy ABC & ESPN Radio
Outback Bowl: No. 10 South Carolina vs. No. 18 Michigan ESPN: Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden & Shannon Spake Radio: Carter Blackburn, John Congemi & Jemele Hill ESPN & ESPN Radio
Fri, Jan 4 7 p.m. AT&T Cotton Bowl: No. 9 Texas A&M vs. No. 11 Oklahoma Brad Sham, Ed Cunningham & Ian Fitzsimmons ESPN Radio
Sat, Jan 5 1 p.m. BBVA Compass Bowl: Pittsburgh vs. Ole Miss ESPN: Eamon McAnaney, David Diaz-Infante & Paul Carcaterra Radio: Dave Lamont, Kelly Stouffer & Allison Williams ESPN & ESPN Radio
Sun, Jan 6 9 p.m. GoDaddy.com Bowl: No. 25 Kent State vs. Arkansas State Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza

 

Paul Hagen: Philadelphia Daily News baseball writer receives Hall of Fame nod

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Congratulations to Paul Hagen, one of the good guys. He is this year’s winner of the J.G. Taylor Spink Award, an honor handed out “for meritorious contributions to baseball writing.”

I knew Paul back when he was working in Dallas covering the Texas Rangers. The bulk of his career has been in Philadelphia, where he joined the Daily News in 1987.

From Philly.com:

“I don’t think you ever really know how you’re being perceived,” Hagen said. “So when something like this happens, that your peers thought enough of you to vote you an award like this, it’s overwhelming, it really is.”

Hagen, who has been writing about baseball for 40 years, including more than a quarter century in Philadelphia, received 269 votes from eligible BBWAA voters. The next closest candidate received 87 votes.

Hagen got a standing ovation when he was announced as this year’s recipient before the BBWAA’s Tuesday morning meeting in Nashville, where Major League Baseball’s winter meetings are being held this week.

“A consummate pro,” said St. Louis Post-Dispatch baseball writer Rick Hummel, who received the Spink Award in 2006. “He always seems to have a smile on his face . . . And he has the neatest notes – you can actually read them. I don’t think many of us can say that.”

Hummel laughed.

“I’ve never gone to a Hall of Fame induction when I wasn’t covering one,” Hummel said. “But I’ll be going this year [to see Hagen].”

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Barkley on Costas show: I feel safer with a gun

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Bob Costas’ NBC Sports Network vehicle has been struggling to get a foothold in the market. However, he might have found a ratings-grabber for tonight’s show: Charles Barkley and guns.

Fresh off his controversial commentary last Sunday, Costas tackles the gun issue on the latest version of Costas Tonight (Thursday, NBC Sports Network, 9 p.m. ET )

Barkley and John McEnroe join Costas for a roundtable discussion. Now, there’s a roundtable.

Barkley, a massive man who is more than capable of protecting himself physically, says he feels safer with a gun. Question: Do you feel safer with Barkley carrying a gun?

Here are excerpts from their conversation:

Barkley: “I think, especially in the black culture, it’s a crime culture. We, as black people, and I always say we, we don’t have respect for each other. We got more black men in prison than we do in college, and crime in our neighborhoods is running rampant. I know everybody reacts when something like the (Jovan) Belcher thing happens (in Kansas City) but being black, this is something you deal with all the time, and it’s just sad. I’m a guy and I carry a gun. I carry a gun.

“I carried a gun in my car, every year of my life since I was 20 – never had to use it… I just feel safer with it because we have jocks who get robbed all the time, road rage and things like that. I feel a sense of peace when I have it with me, but it would take extreme circumstances for me to even touch it.”

McEnroe: “I feel safer without it. I’ve got to say I think that there are just so many bad things that could happen. That’s why someone like Mayor Bloomberg in New York City, where I live, has advocated, I think rightly so, that we get as many guns as possible off the streets. There are too many scenarios…that would make it that much easier to pick up a gun and do something.”

Costas: “Some people misunderstood when I pointed to what Jason Whitlock had said about a gun culture (in Sunday Night Football halftime essay). They thought I was laying everything at the feet of that. Domestic violence is part of it; the possible effect that football itself has on many of its participants is part of it. Drugs and alcohol could be part of it. And I didn’t say anything specifically about gun control legislation or the second amendment. I don’t want to repeal the second amendment. I think we should have responsible gun control but that wouldn’t prohibit somebody from carrying a gun.”

Sorry Northern Illinois: ESPN gets stuck with lemons with Orange, Sugar and Rose Bowls

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If I’m ESPN and I just paid billions of dollars to secure the rights to the Rose, Sugar, Orange and Fiesta Bowls, I can’t be pleased with what I got this year.

With the exception of the title game, the biggies lineup has to be the worst in recent memory. And I’m not just talking about Northern Illinois here:

Orange Bowl: NIU vs. Florida State.

Sugar Bowl: Florida vs. Louisville.

Rose Bowl: Wisconsin vs. Stanford.

Fiesta Bowl: Kansas State vs. Oregon.

It’s almost as if the Notre Dame-Alabama title game is so good, the BCS said we have to balance things off with some uninspiring games. Only K-State-Oregon rates as a truly marquee match up. The others? Forget about it.

Wisconsin has five losses, and just saw its coach bolt. But the Badgers are playing in Pasadena thanks to Ohio State being ineligible for a bowl. Louisville? Somebody has to put an end to this idea that the Big East champion deserves a BCS bid.

And Northern Illinois? Listen, the Huskies are a great story and had a great season. But they barely register in my backyard in Chicago. And the Huskies coach also departed to take over North Carolina State, hardly a football hotbed. Let’s just say it will be the first and only time the Wolfpack job will be considered a step up for a BCS coach.

Will the country really tune in to watch the Huskies play in the Orange Bowl? ESPN definitely will push the Goliath angle. But after a full helping of games on Jan. 1, by the time the Orange Bowl rolls around in the evening, America might take a pass on watching a MAC team.

It isn’t just me. ESPN’s very own Mark Schlabach ranked all the bowl games. While he had the Fiesta Bowl second, he had the other big money BCS bowl games lower on the list; Sugar was sixth; Rose seventh; and Orange eighth. And you can make the argument that the Capital One Bowl, featuring Georgia-Nebraska, should be slotted higher than ninth.

Meanwhile, Schlabach ranked the Oklahoma-Texas A&M match-up in the Cotton Bowl third. Cotton Bowl officials have to be doing handsprings with likely Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel. Fox also is thrilled with the prospect of a primetime game on Jan. 4.

And Fox gets that game at a fraction of the price ESPN shelled out for the BCS bowls.

Don’t think that is going unnoticed by ESPN. While ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit got roasted for expressing his outrage over NIU’s bid over the air, privately the executives were grumbling just as loud in the suites in Bristol. Two of your BCS teams, NIU and Louisville, never appeared on national television on a Saturday this year.

Given its considerable investment, you could be sure ESPN will push college football officials for a system that guarantees the big-money bowl games also are the best games. It also would be a nice thing to do for fans.

That’s not asking too much, is it?

 

 

 

Tom Cheek: Late Blue Jays announcer wins top Hall of Fame honor

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Tom Cheek is this year’s winner of the Ford Frick Award. The annual award is recognition for excellence in broadcasting by the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Unfortunately, the long-time Toronto Blue Jays announcer passed away in 2005. However, he had a long and distinguished career and still is remembered fondly in Toronto and throughout baseball.

His biggest call: Joe Carter’s World Series winning homer in 1993: “Touch ’em all Joe! You’ll never hit a bigger home run in your life.”

Here’s the release from the Hall:

Cheek becomes the second Frick Award winner whose career came primarily with a Canadian team, following Dave Van Horne’s selection as the Frick Award winner in 2011. Van Horne spent parts of four decades broadcasting Montreal Expos games.

“Tom Cheek was the voice of summer for generations of baseball fans in Canada and beyond,” said Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson. “He helped a nation understand the elements of the game and swoon for the summer excitement that the expansion franchise brought a hockey-crazed nation starting in the late 1970s. He then authored the vocal narrative of a team that evolved into one of the most consistent clubs of the 1980s and 1990s. We are thrilled to celebrate Tom’s legacy with baseball broadcasting’s highest honor.”

Born June 13, 1939 – one day after the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum opened its doors in Cooperstown – in Pensacola, Fla., Cheek was raised in a Navy family and joined the armed forces himself in 1957, serving in the Air Force until discharged in 1960. Cheek’s father, also named Tom, was a World War II hero who served as a fighter pilot in the Battle of Midway in 1942.

After continuing his education at SUNY Plattsburgh and the Cambridge School of Broadcasting in Boston, Cheek worked as a disc jockey in Plattsburgh, N.Y., and as sports director for a group of three stations in Burlington, Vt., calling University of Vermont sports for several years.

In 1974, Cheek began work as a backup announcer to Van Horne on Expos broadcasts. Then in 1976 at the age of 37, he landed the job as the radio voice of the expansion Blue Jays. Paired first with Hall of Fame pitcher Early Wynn and later with Jerry Howarth starting in 1981, Cheek’s rich baritone voice and his passionate-yet-lighthearted approach to his job dazzled fans eager to embrace Toronto’s new role as an American League outpost.

His call of Joe Carter’s World Series-winning home run in Game 6 of the 1993 Fall Classic – “Touch ’em all Joe! You’ll never hit a bigger home run in your life.” – quickly became embedded in the sports conscious of Blue Jays fans around the globe.

Cheek called every regular season and postseason Blue Jays game from the franchise’s birth on April 7, 1977 through June 2, 2004. The next day, Cheek took the first of two days off to attend the funeral of his father. But upon his return, Cheek sensed he was not right physically when he was unable to retain information he had read only minutes earlier. On June 13, 2004 – his 65th birthday – Cheek underwent surgery to remove a brain tumor, but some of the tumor was unreachable.

A little more than a year later, Cheek passed away on Oct. 9, 2005.

Cheek was inducted into the Blue Jays Level of Excellence in 2005. That same year, the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame established the Tom Cheek Media Leadership Award, with Cheek being honored with the first award.

Cheek will be honored at the Hall of Fame’s Awards Presentation on Saturday, July 27 in Cooperstown, along with 2013 J.G. Taylor Spink Award winner Paul Hagen.

Cheek was chosen from a list of 10 finalists selected in October, featuring three fan selections from an online vote and seven broadcasters chosen by a research committee from the Cooperstown-based museum. The final ballot contained a mix of pioneers and current-day broadcasters: Ken Coleman, Jacques Doucet, John Gordon, Bill King, Graham McNamee, Eric Nadel, Eduardo Ortega, Mike Shannon, Dewayne Staats and Cheek. Doucet, Gordon, Nadel, Ortega, Shannon and Staats were the living candidates. In September and October, a total of 34,283 votes were cast in the Museum’s online fan poll for inclusion on the final 10-name ballot, with Cheek, King and Doucet as the top three fan poll selections.

The 21-member electorate, comprised of the 16 living Frick Award recipients and five broadcast historians/columnists, includes Frick honorees Marty Brennaman, Jerry Coleman, Gene Elston, Joe Garagiola, Jaime Jarrin, Milo Hamilton, Tony Kubek, Denny Matthews, 2012 Frick Award winner Tim McCarver, Jon Miller, Felo Ramirez, Vin Scully, Lon Simmons, Bob Uecker, Dave Van Horne and Bob Wolff, and historians/columnists Bob Costas (NBC), Barry Horn (Dallas Morning News), Stan Isaacs (formerly of NY Newsday), Ted Patterson (historian) and Curt Smith (historian).

 

FORD C. FRICK AWARD RECIPIENTS

1978 Mel Allen 1990 By Saam 2003 Bob Uecker
Red Barber 1991 Joe Garagiola 2004 Lon Simmons
1979 Bob Elson 1992 Milo Hamilton 2005 Jerry Coleman
1980 Russ Hodges 1993 Chuck Thompson 2006 Gene Elston
1981 Ernie Harwell 1994 Bob Murphy 2007 Denny Matthews
1982 Vin Scully 1995 Bob Wolff 2008 Dave Niehaus
1983 Jack Brickhouse 1996 Herb Carneal 2009 Tony Kubek
1984 Curt Gowdy 1997 Jimmy Dudley 2010 Jon Miller
1985 Buck Canel 1998 Jaime Jarrin 2011 Dave Van Horne
1986 Bob Prince 1999 Arch McDonald 2012 Tim McCarver
1987 Jack Buck 2000 Marty Brennaman 2013 Tom Cheek
1988 Lindsey Nelson 2001 Felo Ramirez
1989 Harry Caray 2002 Harry Kalas

 

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Lipsyte weighs in on Costas: ‘Shill becomes a journalist’

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I was set to let the furor over Bob Costas’ anti-gun commentary runs it course. However, I have to make note of a Robert Lipsyte column on the subject.

Writing for Slate, the former New York Times columnist discusses their relationship and the impact of Costas’ actions on Sunday night.

First about the part of labeling Costas “a shill”:

Since 1993, Costas and I have been in an uneasy relationship of mutual regard and disagreement, each waiting for the other to fulfill unreasonable expectations. He wants me to be more open to the joy of sports. I want him to take advantage of his pulpit and be more of a journalist.

And to the point:

In our almost 20 years of dialogue, Costas has been most bothered by my use of the word shill to describe how he promotes sporting events. As I’ve written before, be believes that he drops in “enough commentary and insights in games” to be thought of as a journalist, and that he does it “not to throw fire bombs but to help hold the mainstream to account,” separating him from commentators on the Internet.

Calling Costas a shill is a bit extreme. Yes, there is a promotional element for the sports he covers. It comes with the territory. However, Costas has used to platform for frank critiques on many important issues. If only there were more like him.

Which brings us to Sunday’s commentary. Lipsyte writes:

Yet as more evidence piles up that repeated head traumas, however slight, can lead to disorientation and aggressive behavior, not to mention dementia and early death, the possible connection to Belcher becomes one worth exploring. I hope Costas will follow up his quick, bold stroke with such explorations. He has the intelligence and the platform.

Costas is gingerly stretching his reach. Last July, on the 40th anniversary of the Munich Massacre, as the Israeli team marched into the Olympic Stadium, he pointed out that the International Olympic Committee had refused requests for a moment of silence during the parade. He then fell quiet for 12 seconds, a rebuke to an NBC financial partner.

And he concludes:

While by the standards of contemporary journalism, it was distanced and measured, by the ground-floor bar of sports broadcasting, it was Murrow during the blitz.

Ed Goren: Q/A on remarkable career of TV sports producer; talks of Musburger, NFL on Fox, and future of sports TV

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Ed Goren greets me on the phone.

“I haven’t been this relaxed in 46 years,” he says. “What can I do for you?”

I tell him I want to talk about his career. The production guru has been in the frontline of several revolutions in sports television.

His ride started at CBS Sports in the early ’70s, back when an NFL pregame show was a novel idea. It took him through the dramatic launch of Fox Sports in 1994, which completely and forever changed the sports landscape.

Goren stepped aside from his role as vice-chairman of the Fox Sports Group earlier this year. However, he hardly is retiring. He remains at Fox as a consultant and is working on numerous other projects. He is even going to do some consulting for a new football league in India.

“If I had more time I’d try to do what you’re doing,” said Goren, apparently unaware of the pay scale for doing what I’m doing.

Goren definitely has plenty to say. In my interview, I asked him to look back and look ahead on sports television.

Note: Goren has a long and terrific story about his relationship with Jimmy “The Greek” that I am going to save for a future post.

On his start: In 1966, I went to work at CBS News. To be a kid on the copy desk during the hey day of CBS News, with Walter Cronkite and Eric Sevareid. It was something else to be around those legends as a 21-year-old kid. I look back and feel fortunate that I was there and making $90 per week.

On move to sports: My first assignment for CBS Sports was to be part of the production team for the Pan American Games in Mexico City (in 1975). The first guy I worked with was Jack Whitaker. It was really the first time the Cuban athletes really resonated in an international sporting event. Somebody at CBS thought it would be a good idea if Jack and I could get on the Cuban charter back to Havana.

CBS literally sent an accountant to Mexico City. He came to my hotel room and spread $10,000 cash on the bed to be used if we had any problems getting out.

We wound up spending 48 hours in Havana. It probably was a rather average produced piece with one memorable moment. We came across a blind piano player playing in the street. Whitaker took that and turned the whole piece into complete poetry.

On Brent Musburger: The original hosts of NFL Today were Jack Whitaker and Lee Leonard. At some point, one of the two couldn’t make it and (then CBS Sports chief Bob Wussler) called on Brent, who was doing local sports in Chicago. He was pure Brent. His opening was, ‘Folks, I’m like a kid in the candy store with all these monitors here.’

Brent just lit it up. He was the kind of guy who really didn’t need a teleprompter. Howard Cosell also was like that. Brent always had the ability to hit his mark. He blew everyone away.

On Phyllis George: There were people who said she was fluff. She was brilliant. She fought for stories. If it weren’t for Phyllis George making her mark on CBS, who knows how long it would have taken for somebody else to say, ‘Let’s put a woman on network sports television.’ She really was a pioneer. Wussler and Phyllis never got the proper credit for what they accomplished.

On John Madden: When he was first hired, nobody at CBS thought he would be as big as he was. This was a mid-round draft choice who went on to be the best ever in any sport. There will never be another John Madden. He was brilliant.

If I show five guys a painting, four of them will tell me what is in the painting. John would point out something in the background like somebody wearing two different sneakers. He saw beyond the obvious.

Those Lite beer commercials contributed to him being a character. He created a personna. It was John. It was honest.

John would always say, ‘I’m just a football guy.’ I would say, ‘You’re more than that. There are a lot of football guys doing football. Nobody is like you.’ He hated that, but the reality is he was an entertainer.

On NFL moving to Fox: When it happened in the early 90s, it was in a soft ad market. The networks were cutting back on their production costs. At CBS and NBC, there were games with only four cameras and two tape machines. When we started Fox Sports, one of the conversations I had was, ‘Even if the game was only going to 10 percent of the country, those people in that market could care less. They deserve a quality broadcast.’ The fewest we ever went with were six cameras and four tape machines, which is a lot more than four and two.

At a time, when people were cutting back, we elevated the production. We threw more money into everything. We were the first to have an hour pregame show. It forced others to step up.

The deal was a game-changer on the production side. And it was a game-changer on the economics side of the sport, for all sports.

On Fox Sports chairman David Hill: If you cut him open, he’s really a producer. If Hill and I had a quarter-penny for every time the Fox box is used, we’d own an island somewhere.

I can’t say enough about our relationship. We were at a press conference in New York to introduce (Terry Bradshaw and Howie Long for Fox NFL Sunday). At the end of the press conference, I see Jimmy Johnson just quit at Dallas. I said to David, ‘I’ll see you in a couple of days.’ I didn’t even say I’m going to Dallas. He said, ‘Fine, just check in.’ That would never happen at CBS. It would be, ‘What are we doing? He’s not in the budget.’ With David, it was, ‘Just check in.’ That’s pretty cool.

We always felt the danger is not trying something and failing. The danger is sitting back and not trying at all. If it didn’t work out, we’d go to the bar and say, ‘We screwed up. What are we going to do next?’

On his announcers and analysts: Looking back, to have Terry, Howie and Jimmy all these years. Finding a young Jim Nantz in Salt Lake City. Running into Joe Buck’s mother at the 1994 Super Bowl and having her tell me that she has a son who is an announcer. Getting someone like Michael Strahan. I’ve been very fortunate in that regard.

On biggest concern for future of sports TV: If there’s a concern, and I’d hate to see it, but if there is a real estate bubble and a tech bubble, at some point do we have a sports rights bubble? There’s nothing healthier now than sports on TV. Look at how much sports is available. How much is in prime time.

Looking back, the $400 millon and change Fox paid for the NFL (in 1994)…What a bargain. There are two things you learn: Whatever you think is expensive today, you’ll look back and say it was a bargain. And in today’s world, if you don’t get the rights to something, you’re out of the game for 10 years or more. There aren’t any four-year deals anymore.

But when is enough enough? I mean, how does ESPN do it paying $55 million for one Monday night game? The business is becoming more difficult because of the elevated rights fees. It’s challenging. Maybe I’m not quite smart enough to figure it out. Hopefully, the people at the various networks are smarter than me.

On where sports TV is going: Everyone still is looking at the magic pill on how we’re going to monetize that second screen. How are we going to make the broadcast more interactive? Nobody has been able to figure it out. I don’t know. Maybe that’s a good reason for me to realize that it is time to move on.

There are a lot of bright young minds who are more in tune with what is happening today and with what the younger demo wants. If I had the answer to what the next great thing is, I’d still be working.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whitlock podcasts: Costas wishes he had more time for commentary; Whitley says should have handled tattoo column differently

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Jason Whitlock is using his podcast on Fox Sports to focus on the media. He’s been busy this week with shows featuring Bob Costas and David Whitley.

If you follow the media, both podcasts are worth the listen.

*******

Costas definitely owed Whitlock after he quoted extensively from one of his columns during his anti-gun commentary at halftime Sunday night.

“I don’t think there is anything wrong with a sports announcer occasionally addressing some of the issues that go beyond the field,” Costas said. “I guarantee you that if I had said, ‘Well, it was a tragedy, but let’s understand that only people commit murder, not gun,’ then (the pro-gun faction) would have stood up and applauded me.”

Costas did say he wished he had more time to discuss other issues related to the tragedy such as domestic violence.

“The time limited my focus,” Costas said. “It left me open to some misunderstandings.”

********

Whitley appeared on Whitlock’s podcast Monday to address his SportingNews.com column about Colin Kaepernick and his tattoos. Whitley sent me a response Friday morning, but he wasn’t fully aware of the extreme backlash at the time. He definitely was by the time he talked to Whitlock.

“This isn’t one of my prouder moments,” Whitley said. “If I had to do it over again, I’d do it differently…My intent was to be thought provoking. I wasn’t trying to start a race war. I regret that it came to that.”

Whitlock chastised Whitley for mentioning in his response to me that he has adopted two African-American children.

“Your defense of the column was so flippant,” Whitlock said. “I was disappointed that you brought up your two adopted daughters….It was like, ‘I’ve adopted two black people, therefore you can’t accuse me or being racially unfair and insensitive.’ We’re all capable of being unfair and having blind spots.”

Whitley responded: “It’s not the first time I’ve been accused of racism. I never mentioned them before. But here, suddenly I was the face of the KKK in America. Then I was asked for a comment. I thought, ‘What does a guy have to do?’ I threw that in there to try to calm the fire.”

 

 

 

Tale of two legends: new documentaries examine careers and lives of Barry Sanders, Earl Campbell

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They had two different styles carrying the ball. Barry Sanders ran around people; Earl Campbell ran through them.

They also had two different lives after football. Sanders retired early long before his body burned out; Campbell wasn’t as fortunate. It is stunning to see the one-time beast in a football uniform struggle to walk.

The careers and lives of both legends are examined in two new documentaries. Still Standing: The Earl Campbell Story, produced by Ross Greenburg, airs tonight at 11 p.m. (ET) on NBC Network. Wednesday, Sanders is the latest subject of A Football Life on NFL Network at 8 p.m. ET.

Here’s the rundown on both films. Highly recommended.

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NBC Sports Network presents Still Standing: The Earl Campbell Story, a riveting documentary about one of the greatest running backs in the history of the NFL, and the touching life story that followed his retirement. Still Standing: The Earl Campbell Story, debuts Tuesday, December 4 at 11 p.m. ET/10 p.m. CT/9 p.m. MT/8 p.m. PT on NBC Sports Network.

Born in Tyler, Texas, to a family with 12 children, Earl Campbell began his life working the rose fields and living in a shack, where his brothers joked, ‘you could see the big dipper from your bed at night.’ His father, B.C. Campbell, died of a heart attack at the age of 50, when Earl was 11, leaving his mother, Ann, to raise all 12 Campbell kids.

After winning the Texas State Football Championship in his senior year at John Tyler High School, Campbell went on to the University of Texas, where in his senior year he won the coveted Heisman Trophy (1977). He became the No. 1 pick in the 1978 NFL Draft when the Houston Oilers traded with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the top pick in the draft, and the Oilers immediately chose Campbell.

Campbell’s Hall-of-Fame career was a highlight reel of running over those who would attempt to tackle him. Campbell’s 199-yard, four touchdown performance in a 35-30 win over the Miami Dolphins before a national audience on Monday Night Football in Week 12 of his rookie season is the signature individual performance of his career.

Halfway through the 1984 season, Campbell was traded by the Oilers to the Saints where he rejoined his mentor and coach Bum Phillips. He finished his career in New Orleans, retiring during the 1986 preseason, but he will always be remembered as the best of Bum’s Bunch in Houston.

After his retirement, Campbell battled five spinal surgeries, two knee replacements and an addiction to pain pills and alcohol. He was confined to a wheelchair for six years, but due to a successful spinal surgery performed by Dr. Stan Jones in Houston, and his sons Christian and Tyler convincing him to check into a rehabilitation center for his addictions, Campbell is still standing today. He is walking again, and tossed the coin at a University of Texas game in Austin earlier this season.

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For 10 seasons, Detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders electrified the NFL with unbelievable runs while putting up prolific rushing numbers. Yet just before the start of the 1999 NFL season, as one of the league’s biggest stars, he quietly walked away from the game.

 NFL Network’s Emmy-nominated series A Football Life continues Wednesday, December 5 at 8:00 PM ET with a profile of one of the NFL’s greatest players who retired during the prime of his career. Barry Sanders: A Football Life examines Sanders’ incredible Hall of Fame career, his unexpected retirement and the reaction it garnered throughout both the NFL and the city of Detroit, and his relationship with his late father, William.

The one-hour documentary features a sitdown interview with Sanders in which he discusses his fascinating football life. The NFL’s third all-time leading rusher talks about how he was overlooked in high school, his decision to attend Oklahoma State, the unwanted media attention that came as a result of winning the Heisman Trophy award in 1988 and being an NFL superstar, and the lessons he imparts to his children, including his son BJ Sanders, a redshirt freshman running back at Stanford University.

Additional interviews include fellow Hall of Fame running backs Emmitt Smith and Curtis Martin, former teammates Thurman Thomas, Herman Moore, Kevin Glover and Lomas Brown, former Lions head coaches Wayne Fontes and Bobby Ross, and Hall of Fame guard for the Detroit Pistons, Joe Dumars, among others.

Barry Sanders: A Football Life also includes past interviews with his father and Barry reading the statement he released to the Wichita Eagle announcing his retirement for the first time publically.

Costas fallout: He defends anti-gun commentary; columnist wonders if he could have addressed touchy NFL issue

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Bob Costas caught plenty of flak for his halftime commentary during Sunday night’s game. However, he wasn’t about to back down Monday.

In an interview with Bill Carter of the New York Times, Costas addressed the reaction:

After a flight overnight Sunday back from Dallas, where the Cowboys hosted the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night, Mr. Costas said he woke to “a zillion text messages and phone messages” about his commentary. Most of them were supportive, he said, but there was also a torrent of harshly critical comments from defenders of gun ownership, whether online or on TV shows like “Fox and Friends” on the Fox News Network. Some of those critics called for NBC to fire him.

In the Monday interview, Mr. Costas said, “I am emphatically not backing off from anything I said.” But he noted that in the commentary he had quoted from a column posted on the Web site of Fox Sports by the writer Jason Whitlock. Since he was not able to reach Mr. Whitlock before going on the air on Sunday, Mr. Costas said he did not feel it proper to edit or add extensively to those comments.

What he sought to do in his comments the day after, Mr. Costas said, was not to clarify his remarks but to expand on them. Chiefly, he said, he wanted to emphasize that “I do not think the Second Amendment should be repealed and I do not think, under reasonable circumstances, that people should be prohibited from having guns.”

But he said, “I think most reasonable people think we do not have sufficient controls on the availability of guns and ammunition.”

Later, there was this passage:

The issue of guns has come up far too often in sports already, he said, with athletes seeming to be among the groups with the most gun owners. “Do you think the place guns have in sports is appropriate?” Mr. Costas asked. “That it’s healthy?”

He added: “I defy anyone to give me one example when an athlete having a gun averted trouble, defused a situation, protected someone from harm. But we can think of countless situations where an athlete having a gun led to tragedy.”

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Eric Deggans, writing for the National Sports Journalism Center, took note of Costas quoting extensively from an anti-gun passage in Jason Whitlock’s column. Deggans, though, says the main point of Whitlock’s piece wasn’t about guns; rather he felt the Chiefs shouldn’t have played the game.

Deggans questions whether Costas could have addressed that issue on a NFL telecast.

Deggans:

He didn’t note, for example, that a larger share of Whitlock’s column was about a slightly different subject: The NFL’s decision to tell the Carolina Panthers to travel to Kansas City as planned Sunday, setting up the situation where they would play a game just one day after a starting linebacker there killed two people.

Whitlock’s column began with the line “Football is embarrassingly tone deaf.” Seven paragraphs in, he really got going, writing “Football is our God. Its exaggerated value in our society has never been more evident than Saturday morning in my adopted hometown. There’s just no way this game should be played.”

If Costas really wanted to make a statement, he could have talked about that part of Whitlock’s column, which consumed about three quarters of a 20 paragraph column. In an odd way, the sports anchor’s focus on the tail end of the column confirmed Whitlock’s words: Can anyone expect an NBC Sports anchor to note criticism of the NFL during a game currently underway?

Costas didn’t discuss that particular question with Carter. However, he did say this about commentaries related to the NFL:

Mr. Costas added that he had routinely used his time during halftime coverage to make personal observations and comments on a number of football-related subjects, including the level of violence displayed on the field.

 

 

 

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