Two Cents: Sports with Tom Jones

African-American coaches still hard to find

2008-11-30T22:41:46-05:00

Shooting from the Lip
A look back at a weekend of televised sports ...

Worst news
Another coach is coming, another is going and the college football world just keeps spinning along with nothing really changing.

Sylvester Croom, the first African-American head football coach in SEC history, resigned from Mississippi State over the weekend. That leaves Miami's Randy Shannon, Buffalo's Turner Gill and Houston's Kevin Sumlin as the only African-American head coaches among the 119 Division I-A teams. (Kansas State's Ron Prince was recently fired at Kansas State, and Tyrone Willingham has been fired at Washington but will finish the season.)

Wasn't the Croom hiring supposed to change things, break down some walls, particularly in the SEC?
Nothing has changed. Since Croom was hired at Mississippi State, several SEC schools have made coaching hires. Florida hired Urban Meyer. Alabama hired Nick Saban. South Carolina hired Steve Spurrier. Arkansas hired Bobby Petrino. LSU hired Les Miles. Ole Miss has hired two coaches in the past four years, Ed Orgeron and Houston Nutt. All of them are white.

Tennessee recently pushed Phil Fulmer out the door, and instead of taking their time, doing a national search, maybe looking at a few African-American candidates, the Vols reportedly are going to give the job to Lane Kiffin, who is white. The same 33-year-old Lane Kiffin who has never been a head coach at the college level and only became the head coach of the Oakland Raiders because owner Al Davis is a kook and no one else wanted the job.

It's just hard to believe that there are 119 jobs out there and only three currently belong to African-Americans. And it's sad that when there are openings, most major colleges aren't even interested in considering African-Americans. Just look at Tennessee.

Best show
There were a ton of college and pro football games over the weekend, but do you know what was, hands down, the best thing on TV all weekend? A rerun of a documentary called Absolute Evel: The Evel Knievel Story on the History Channel. The two-hour definitive film of the greatest daredevil of all time had revealing interviews with Knievel and behind-the-scenes footage. You were reminded of just how big of an event his jumps used to be and that Knievel might have been the baddest, toughest dude who ever lived.

Second-best show
Another rerun. It was a 1970 heavyweight title fight between Joe Frazier and Jimmy Ellis. The best part was being reminded of just how good Howard Cosell, who called the fight all by himself, used to be. He was the announcer, the analyst and the reporter, all in one, and was absolutely brilliant.

Most disappointing conference
Just to rile up SEC fans some more, I can't help but point out that Georgia and LSU both lost over the long weekend -- further proof that the SEC has taken a big step back this season. After Alabama and Florida, the rest of the conference ranges from ordinary to really bad. Actually, when you think about it, the Gators' best opponent so far might have been Ole Miss, and the Gators lost that game.

Worst team
If you were looking for lots of commentary from the broadcast of Gators-Seminoles, sorry. ABC's announcing team of Brad Nessler, Bob Griese and Paul Maguire has just become too stale. The mystery is how that happened. At times in their careers, all were pretty good announcers. ABC should consider keeping all three but breaking them up. They've fallen far behind the teams of Verne Lundquist-Gary Danielson (CBS), Brent Musburger-Kirk Herbstreit (ABC) and Mike Patrick-Todd Blackledge (ESPN).

Biggest diss
CBS's Gary Danielson, in Auburn’s 36-0 loss to Alabama: "This Auburn offense is not built to come from behind. In fact, this offense is not built to come from ahead.''

Biggest story
The Plaxico Burress story dominated the headlines on all the Sunday NFL shows. CBS's Dan Marino called Burress reportedly shooting himself as "stupid and selfish.'' CBS's Boomer Esiason called it "one of the dumbest moves in the recent history of the NFL'' and predicted Burress would never again play for the Giants. Over at Fox, Terry Bradshaw also said he thought the Giants were through with Burress.

The liveliest conversation was on ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown. Former Bucs receiver Keyshawn Johnson estimated that half the players in the NFL carry guns. Cris Carter followed that estimation with a shocking revelation: "You need to realize, if you run into a professional athlete, you are more likely to find an athlete that's packing some heat.''

Funniest line
"Plaxico Burress has become the Barney Fife of hip-hop.''
— NFL Network's Adam Schefter, talking about the Giants receiver who reportedly shot himself in the leg over the weekend.

Strongest statement
Let the arguments begin. Who is the best football team in the country? Is it Alabama or Florida? Is it Texas or Oklahoma? How about none of the above? ESPN's Lou Holtz said, "I’d like to see (Southern Cal) play any team in the country. I think they’d win.''

Best show of support
The ESPN NFL Sunday Countdown crew broke down the NFC South, and all went with the Bucs.
Cris Carter: “We know they are going to play good defense … I trust (Jeff) Garcia, the quarterback. And (coach Jon) Gruden is proven in the playoffs.''
Tom Jackson: "When they lose a game, they've lost three -- they lose by three, they lose by four, they lose by three. Carolina: they lose by 17, they lose by 24, they lose by 10. So when they don't show up, they really don't show up.''
Mike Ditka: "I like the Bucs because of their balance. I do like the Falcons though. The Panthers, I don't trust.''

Three things that popped into my head this weekend
1. The Kansas-Missouri game (KU won 40-37 in the final minute in a snow storm) might have been the most entertaining college football game all season. Too bad Saturday’s Oklahoma-Missouri game won't be nearly as close. Or entertaining.
2. Why in the world did CBS think anybody around here (or anywhere outside of New York and Denver) would rather watch the Jets-Broncos game Sunday than the Steelers-Patriots ?
3. Aren't you surprised when the Lightning goes through a day without a roster move? And here's usually a good barometer: The more roster moves you make, the worse you are.

For BCS, eight contenders are enough

2008-11-26T14:17:11-05:00

Maybe we should just draw names out of a hat. Or throw darts at a wall. Anything would be easier than deciphering this BCS mess. But today we try to figure out the easiest (but maybe not the only) way each of the top eight teams in the ratings can make the big game. So grab a pencil (make it one with an eraser), lots of paper and maybe a handful of aspirin as we break it all down.

1. Alabama

Simple. All the Crimson Tide must do is defeat Auburn on Saturday, then Florida in the SEC Championship Game. If Alabama does that, it's in. But don't count Saturday as a victory just yet. The game is in Tuscaloosa, and Alabama has never beaten Auburn in six tries there. Plus, Auburn has won six in a row in the series.

2. Texas

Texas wouldn't get as much credit for beating Texas A&M on Thursday as Oklahoma would for beating Oklahoma State on Saturday. So Oklahoma could jump Texas, though Texas beat Oklahoma. For Texas to be safe, it needs to win and OU needs to lose. That puts Texas Tech (assuming Tech beats Baylor) into the Big 12 Championship, but they likely would remain ahead of Tech because the Red Raiders lost so badly last week and dropped so far in the BCS rankings. They also likely get in if they win out and OU still goes to the Big 12 Championship, but loses to Missouri.

3. Oklahoma

If Oklahoma wins Saturday, the guess is it will leapfrog Texas and get into the Big 12 Championship Game. But's just a guess. If the Sooners win that Big 12 title game, they'll play for the national title. If Oklahoma does not jump past Texas and the Longhorns or Texas Tech goes to the Big 12 Championship Game and lose to Missouri, that likely would put the Sooners into the national title game though they wouldn't have even won their conference.

4. Florida

The guess is the Gators are in as long they beat Florida State on Saturday, then Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. There is speculation that even if Florida does win out, it could end up behind Texas and Oklahoma in the BCS ratings and get shut out of the national title game. But that would be unlikely.

5. Southern Cal

Here comes the controversial question: Can a team play for the national title if it doesn't win its conference? If Oregon State beats Oregon this weekend, Oregon State earns a share of the Pac-10 title and the league's automatic BCS bowl bid. But USC still has a chance to play for the big trophy. The Trojans needs losses by Oklahoma and Texas. That probably would be enough because either Florida or Alabama is guaranteed to lose.

6. Utah

The Utes are 12-0 and saying, "Hey, what about us? Forget those one-loss teams. We're undefeated.'' What hurts them is playing in a mid-major conference and having victories over only three ranked teams: No. 14 TCU, No. 17 Oregon State and No. 20 Brigham Young. Utah needs four of these five teams to lose one more game: Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, Florida and Southern Cal. Even then, it could still get leapfrogged by Texas Tech.

7. Texas Tech

As ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit said last week after Oklahoma pasted the Red Raiders: "(Texas Tech) woke up Saturday morning dreaming of a national title. They go to bed thinking about the Cotton Bowl or the Holiday Bowl.'' Texas Tech needs Florida, Alabama, Oklahoma and, maybe, Texas to lose once more. And it needs either Notre Dame or UCLA to pull off a major upset of USC.

8. Penn State

Even the Nittany Lions have pretty much given up hope. When they won the Big 10's BCS bowl bid last week in their final game, they passed out roses, knowing they were going to the Rose Bowl, not the national title game. Frankly, Penn State needs a miracle. Everybody in front of it has to lose, and Utah is done playing. Go ahead, JoePa fans, and buy your tickets to the Rose Bowl.

Q&A with (former) Rays announcer Joe Magrane

2008-11-20T23:31:52-05:00

Major League Baseball's gain is Tampa Bay’s loss. Joe Magrane, the Rays' television analyst for all 11 seasons of the franchise's existence, has joined the MLB Network, which launches Jan. 1.

Magrane, 44, joins a list of other impressive names who have signed on with MLB, including former major-leaguers Al Leiter and Harold Reynolds, Fox announcer Matt Vasgersian, and Hazel Mae of the New England Sports Network. More big names are expected to climb aboard in the coming weeks, and one name rumored is Bob Costas.

The MLB Network will be seen in approximately 50-million cable and satellite homes, and have live games, original programming, highlights, classic games and coverage of other baseball events. That's what lies ahead for Magrane, the sharp, irreverent, humorous and sometimes sarcastic analyst. On Thursday, Magrane looked back at his time with the Rays and ahead to his new job.

What are you going to be doing at MLB Network?
It will be myriad of things, some studio analyst work to doing work with the World Baseball Classic to doing baseball games.

It seems as if the MLB Network is bringing in lots of big names. Did that make it more attractive to you?
They're bringing in people that have lots of experience in television. There are one or two names that I either have worked with or played with (he pitched in the majors for eight seasons), and it certainly makes it more attractive to know how much of a commitment is going into this.

Where are you going to be based, and will you move?
The studios are going to be in Secaucus, N.J., in the old MSNBC studios where (Don) Imus and (Keith) Olbermann and so forth did their shows. The studio is a huge, huge building. They're going to have a regulation infield inside the studio. My kids are 13 and 11, and we're very dug into the Tampa Bay area. For now, at least in the immediate, I'm going to commute. But we're definitely looking to relocate.

Was it a tough decision to leave the Rays after 11 years?
It was. I was completely happy with what I was doing. But this was a new challenge. I thought it was a … leap of faith worth taking. It has been 11 years here, and the team is just starting to get it right, so to speak. And working with Dewayne (Staats) just was an honor and a joy. We both had a great passion for what we were doing, and we like each other very much, and I think that showed on the air. We developed, I thought, into a very good team, even when our team on the field wasn't at its best. But working with Dewayne constantly made it enjoyable, and that is a tough part of leaving.

Was it hard to call games for all those seasons when the Rays were so bad?
Not if you have a short attention span like me. I'd forget what happened and then see it again an inning later. Seriously, last year was fun because the Rays aren't a laughingstock anymore.

What was it like calling games for the Rays this past season?
I think I was like everyone out there watching, and I just embraced the personalities, the uniqueness about them, the diversity of them. They weren't these faceless clones. They played great baseball every night, and you could see how close they were and how much they cared about one another and how they genuinely cared all the way through the last game.

Did you think when you left the game as a player that you would turn broadcasting into a career?
It's something I always wanted to do other than actually play the game. My interest was particularly piqued in St. Louis being around great broadcasters like Jack Buck, Dan Dierdorf, Bob Costas. … I have the same enjoyment around the game, although the execution is a bit different.

What do you mean?
Well, there's nothing to replace standing on that hill with 55,000 screaming fans, whether they are for or against you. The game is always going to be the thing.

Yet, you made a clean break. You don't seem like one of those broadcasters who is all chummy with the players and hangs around the clubhouse like you still play.
I don't socialize with players. I did make a clean break when I quit playing. You see a lot of broadcasters standing behind the batting cage, making sure they are seen. I think that's all window dressing. That's all for show. I like talking to players in a more informal setting. That's the style that has worked for me. When there's a certain air of formality about it, players tend to withdraw. But no, I've never been one to hang out (like I still play) and be all buddy-buddy with the guys.

And does that allow you to be critical when necessary?
Exactly. In my mind, I've never said anything dishonest or unfair about a player. I've always tried to be truthful, and I think players respect that, even if you say he made a mistake or isn't playing well. Sometimes, though, egos are fragile. But they should know that it's never personal. I never attack anyone personally.

What are you going to miss about calling Rays games?
The tomfoolery, the high jinks, the shenanigans behind the camera with Dewayne and the crew. The show within the show. That's what I missed most about playing, and that's what I’ll miss about broadcasting Rays games -- the comradeship, the teasing of one another, the silly giggles and laughs. I'll miss all of that.

What are you not going to miss?
I can't think of a thing I'm not going to miss. It really is a great gig. There's nothing I won't miss. It has been nothing but fun.

Melrose's accusations should include names

2008-11-19T14:26:12-05:00

Ever since Barry Melrose was fired as Lightning coach last week, he has made the rounds on national TV in Canada and the United States, talking about how the players revolted and got him fired. Certainly he has the right to say whatever he wants. And maybe what he is saying is true.

But if you are going to blame it on the players, then the upright thing to do is to actually name the players who did you in. By making broad accusations, every player comes under suspicion, especially high-profile ones such as Vinny Lecavalier and Marty St. Louis.

In his most damning interview so far, Melrose went on the highly-viewed Hockey Night in Canada and blasted away: "Yeah, I think the players didn't want to play for me. You don't have to be Kreskin to figure that out. … Obviously, a lot of guys didn't like to be held accountable with this team. And obviously they went to (management) and said they don't like this style of coaching and would you get rid of him? I don't think there's any secret about that.''

Actually, it is a secret if Melrose isn’t naming names.

The interview was conducted by Ron MacLean, one of the best in the business and one of hockey's most-respected voices. But in an ill-timed off moment, MacLean clearly let Melrose off the hook by not pressing him on these accusations and demanding that he name names -- first to make his accusations more believable and, second, point the finger solely at the players who deserved to have the finger pointed at them.

It's a question Times hockey writer Damian Cristodero asked Melrose on Tuesday. Would he name names?

"No, I don't think so,'' Melrose said. "I'm done with it now. It's water under the bridge. I'm going to move on.''

So you drop bombs, make accusations against players who cannot defend themselves, then walk away and say it’s over? That's neither fair nor honorable. Players like Lecavalier and St. Louis always have held themselves accountable and played for a coach (John Tortorella) who was one of the most demanding hockey has ever seen. And because of that, their names are on the Stanley Cup -- something Melrose can't say. Yet their names and reputations are now in question because of Melrose's sweeping generalization that the "players'' got him fired. That seems wrong.

ESPN finalizes BCS contract

2008-11-19T13:53:26-05:00

Don't you get the feeling that, someday, every single sporting event will be on ESPN?

As expected, the World Wide Leader made a major move Tuesday, locking up a four-year deal to broadcast all the BCS college football bowl games starting in January 2011. In a separate deal, ABC (ESPN's broadcast partner) agreed to show the Rose Bowl through 2014.

It's believed ESPN outbid Fox by offering $125-million a year.

"You’re talking about a situation where we’re seeing more and more sporting events go to cable,'' BCS coordinator John Swofford said. "And certainly I think that the college football community, people who truly follow college football, are extremely well tuned into ESPN and see ESPN as in essence for television the home of college football.''

Know what this deal means, other than the games being on ESPN? There is not going to be a college football playoff anytime soon. That's not official, but do you think ESPN would put up that kind of money for these games and then allow college football to go to a playoff? Not going to happen.

Ben Johnson interview

2008-11-19T13:49:23-05:00

Interesting interview on tonight’s Sports Connection (11 p.m. on BayNews 9 and Bright House Sports Network). Host Rock Riley sits down with Ben Johnson, the former sprinter who set the world record in the 100 meters at the 1988 Olympics but tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug and was stripped of his gold. Riley taped the interview Monday and word is Johnson goes into detail about his now-admitted doping and talks about how it has damaged his life.

College GameDay still on top of its game

2008-11-16T22:46:34-05:00

Shooting from the Lip
Looking back at a weekend of televised sports ...

Best show
Just when it seemed as if ESPN's College GameDay had become a tad stale, the show made a brilliant move on Saturday and reminded viewers why it remains one of the best sports show on television.

-- It aired from Florida A&M in Tallahassee, the first time College GameDay originated from a historically black college. Appropriately, the show did a feature on the "Marching 100'' of Florida A&M. "Perhaps the greatest marching band in the land,'' host Chris Fowler said.

-- Erin Andrews asked several tough questions of South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier, including why Spurrier hasn't turned the Gamecocks around as Nick Saban has turned around Alabama. ("Maybe he has done a better job recruiting players than I have,'' Spurrier said.) Andrews did get Spurrier to reveal that he plans to coach another ''four to five years'' and only at South Carolina.

-- The highlight of the show was a touching piece by Shelley Smith on Darryl Hill, the first African-American to play in the ACC when he joined Maryland in 1963. GameDay analyst Lee Corso was an assistant on the team and helped Hill through racial tension that included being accosted physically and verbally. (Nice touch as Fowler pointed out that President-elect Barack Obama was 2 at the time.)

"Mentoring Darryl through some very difficult times was the most gratifying thing that happened to me in my coaching career and probably my life,'' Corso said. "It was just an absolutely wonderful experience. It was difficult at times, but it was sure worth it.''

Corso also relayed a tremendous story of Maryland traveling to Wake Forest, where Corso claimed Hill received the worst treatment. Corso said then-Wake Forest running back Brian Piccolo -- whose death at 26 of lung cancer was the subject of the 1971 TV move Brian's Song -- took Hill after the game in front of the Wake Forest fans and put his arm around him in a show of support.

All in all, GameDay's best show of the season, quite an achievement considering Saturday probably had the worst slate of games. Maybe that was the key: There were no games to go crazy over, so GameDay went a little deeper into its playbook to come up with a good show.

Best use of water
While Maryland and North Carolina were playing in what looked like a monsoon Saturday, ABC's Bob Griese, who played for the Dolphins and knows a thing or two about throwing footballs in downpours, demonstrated the difference in how a quarterback throws the ball when it's dry as opposed to when it's wet. It would've been more interesting if announcer Brad Nessler hadn't stepped all over the demonstration by pouring a bottle of water on Griese's hand then carrying on about it for far too long.

What's his name?
Sun Sports did a good job introducing new Lightning coach Rick Tocchet to its audience during Sunday's broadcast of the Lightning-Hurricanes game. There were interviews and sound bites and clips of Tocchet as a player. But it was almost eerie how there was hardly any mention of Barry Melrose even though the coaching change was the theme of the broadcast. In fact, in the three-minute opening to the broadcast, announcer Rick Peckham and Bobby "Chief'' Taylor did not even mention Melrose's name.

Manny not always being Manny
This is in no way to defend baseball's Manny Ramirez, but he does enough flaky stuff that we don't have to misinterpret incidents to come up with more stuff. On ESPN's Outside the Lines, reporter Pedro Gomez said Ramirez's much-publicized dugout fight with teammate Kevin Youkilis in June was over some Red Sox being upset that Ramirez was too slow to take to the field in the Rays-Red Sox, James Shields-Coco Crisp brawl. But media outlets which cover the Red Sox, including the Boston Globe, reported the Manny-Youkilis fight was actually over Youkilis constantly whining in the dugout and throwing tantrums after making outs. Youkilis never revealed what exactly caused the fight but was adamant that it wasn't about the brawl.

Most disappointing event
St. Petersburg boxer Jeff Lacy simply was overmatched Saturday night in a unanimous decision loss to Jermain Taylor, and now there are questions about his career even though Saturday was just his second loss. HBO Boxing's Larry Merchant had the harshest criticism: "When he was an Olympian and a crowd-pleasing fighter and a tough guy, a good guy, he built an early record that suggested to many observers that he could be a serious fighter, but it never turned out that way.''

President playoff
President-elect Barack Obama appeared on 60 Minutes Sunday night, continuing to champion a college football playoff.

"Eight teams,'' Obama said. "That would be three rounds to determine a national champion. It would add three extra weeks to the season. You could trim back on the regular season. I don't know any serious fan of college football who has disagreed with me on this. So, I'm going to throw my weight around a little bit. I think it's the right thing to do.''

First off, I consider myself a "serious fan of college football'' and I do disagree with you, Mr. President-elect. I like the current system because it makes the regular season more important, although I'm positive I'm in the minority. Still, how about throwing your weight around on the economy and figure out what's going on in Iraq and Afghanistan before worrying about the BCS.

Funniest line of the weekend
"I've been recycling lines I used at ESPN.''
-- NBC Sunday Night Football's Dan Patrick on his contribution to the "green'' efforts.

Best point
ESPN's Sports Reporters found a star in Miami Herald columnist Israel Gutierrez, who fit right in with Sports Reporters veterans Mike Lupica and Howard Bryant. He made the best point of the show, talking about how a loss to Ole Miss might not have been the worst thing that could've happened to the Gators.
"The reason they are where they are might be because of that blocked extra point,'' Gutierrez said. "If you ask people in Florida … they'll tell you Urban Meyer tried to trick people too often. He didn't realize, it seemed, that he was just more talented than the competition. After that Ole Miss game, he realized, 'Look, we can run normal plays. We don't have to run trick plays and we're (still) going to beat everybody.'''

Three things that popped into my head
1. Right or wrong, this Barry Melrose firing has turned the Lightning into a bit of a joke in NHL circles. Time will tell if the Lightning made the mistake hiring Melrose in June or firing him last week, but somewhere, there was a mistake made. Right now, either Lightning owner Oren Koules or sidekick Len Barrie or GM Brian Lawton needs to come out and explain to fans exactly what the Lightning's plan is -- short term and long term -- just to prove that they even have a plan.
2. Georgia struggled to beat a mediocre Auburn team. LSU nearly lost to Troy. Two more examples of how the SEC is not nearly as good as some people would like to think and not nearly as good as the Big 12. That's why the winner of the SEC Championship Game should not be automatically placed in the BCS title game, especially if Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Texas all finish with one loss. I'm not saying there should be two Big 12 teams, I'm just saying that an SEC team in the national title game is not a no-brainer.
3. Did anybody think USF would be 1-4 in the Big East conference at this point?

Fox welcomes Rays-Phillies

2008-10-22T18:42:11-04:00

There's plenty of talk that this could be the least-watched World Series in years, maybe ever, mostly because the Rays are in it. Though Tampa Bay features young, exciting players who are the talk of Tampa Bay, those players aren't well-known outside of this market. And the Rays have no tradition, not like the Red Sox or Yankees or Cubs.

But Fox Sports president Ed Goren, whose network will televise the games, said it's not about which teams are playing, but how many games they play.

"I've said this year in and year out: It's not so much the matchups -- and I think this is a wonderful matchup -- as the number of games played in the series or volume,'' Goren said.

Goren pointed to the 1997 World Series between a small-market team (Cleveland) and one with no tradition (Florida). The TV ratings went through the roof as the series went to seven games. "That's what I mean by volume,'' Goren said. "These things build. It's watercooler talk. It becomes must-see TV.''

Meantime, maybe the rest of the country doesn't know the Rays, but it will be Fox's job to introduce them.

"These kids are the future of baseball,'' Goren said. "If we do our job and have exciting games, then we are going to do just fine. There are people who are Cubs fans, Red Sox fans, Yankees fans, Dodgers fans, but there are also a lot of people who are baseball fans. If you're a baseball fan, you have to watch the World Series. I don't care what the matchups are. If you call yourself a baseball fan, you have to be watching the World Series.''

More World Series stuff ...
Insurance of the day
TBS suffered an embarrassing gaffe when the first 19 minutes of Game 6 of the American League Championship Series were not seen because of a router problem. We were stuck watching what surely was the highest-rated Steve Harvey Show ever. In layman's terms, something broke at the station's headquarters in Atlanta, and there was no sufficient backup plan. It's virtually impossible for that to happen to Fox during the World Series, Fox Sports president Ed Goren said.

"We have a facility in Houston that, if anything happens in Los Angeles, which is our main transmission center, we can instantly switch to Houston and pick up the coverage within minutes,'' Goren said. "Yes, you worry about it. Yes, it is a nightmare. And five minutes can feel like a lifetime when you're down. It's happened to others before, and hopefully it doesn't happen to us.''

Fox's announcing team
Joe Buck (that's him on the left) and Tim McCarver will handle the World Series broadcast for Fox. Buck will call his 11th World Series; McCarver will call his 19th, more than any television announcer in the history of the World Series. Both are just fine with a new team such as the Rays playing in the World Series, especially if this is the beginning of several World Series appearances.

"From a national perspective, I can't think of a time when Tim and I had a chance to cover a team filled with as much young talent as what the Tampa Bay Rays have,'' Buck said. "This could be the beginning of a tremendous run by an organization that seems to have figured out how to compete through the draft, by adding key players and by not overpaying for free agents. We get a chance to put the spotlight on a group of kids that really enjoy playing this game.''

Best line
"A real Renaissance man ... one of the real innovative, contemporary managers of our time.''
— Fox's Tim McCarver on Rays manager Joe Maddon

Pregame and postgame shows
Once again, Bright House Sports Network and FSN Florida will have pre- and postgame World Series shows.

BHSN will air its pregame show from 6:30 to 7 p.m. each game night. Rock Riley and Tom Buehring will host live from the Trop with analysts Fred McGriff and Frank Viola. Immediately after the game, BHSN will air its postgame show with Buehring and Viola in the studio and Riley at the Trop.

FSN's pregame show will air each game night from 7-8 p.m. (with the exception of a possible Game 6, when it would move to 7:30 because of Barack Obama’s television appearance). Whit Watson will serve as host with the Rays announcing team of Dewayne Staats, Joe Magrane and Todd Kalas. Unlike the ALCS, FSN is making the smart move by sending Staats, Magrane and Kalas to Philadelphia for Games 3, 4 and, if needed, 5. FSN's postgame show will air immediately following the game.

Local connections
Both Fox announcers for the World Series have Tampa Bay connections. Joe Buck was born in St. Petersburg, but he was raised in St. Louis. He’s the son of legendary announcer Jack Buck, who used to call spring training games for the Cardinals at Al Lang Stadium. Color analyst Tim McCarver makes his home in Sarasota.

Other stuff ...
He wrote it
The New York Times' Richard Sandomir spent Sunday on ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown set, and the most interesting part of his piece about it was a paragraph on host Chris Berman.

Sandomir wrote, "Berman is the same on and off the air. He is big and boisterous, sensitive to criticism that he is too riotous and that his on-air approach needs updating. He is irked that he is not appreciated by critics the way he feels he is by fans. He says he has no plans to change.''

Whatever happened to …
Remember former NFL coach Dennis Green? He has begun teaching a strategic management course at San Diego State's College of Business Administration. Think if a kid gets a C on a test, Green will yell, "You had an A, and you let it off the hook!''?

Taking the high road
If you're keeping score at home, ESPN.com columnist Jemele Hill made an Adolf Hitler reference in a column and was suspended. ESPN college football analyst Lou Holtz made a Hitler reference and was not suspended. How did Hill feel about that? She answered the question -- well, addressed it is more accurate -- on her Web site's blog.

The last couple days I've been inundated with calls and e-mails because of the Lou Holtz controversy. He made an inappropriate Hitler reference. I made an inappropriate Hitler reference. We both apologized, but only I was suspended.

"A lot has been written about this. Many have said that ESPN treated me unfairly. The 64,000 (dollar) question: How do I really feel?

"My initial answer is a story, or rather, a moment. A couple years ago, I was visiting the Poynter Institute, one of the foremost journalism think tanks in the country (Two Cents' note: and it owns the St. Petersburg Times), and I sat in on a session taught by one of my favorite columnists and people, the Washington Post's Sally Jenkins.

"“A student asked her if she ever got upset when other writers (were) rewarded -- particularly if she knew they weren't as good. And Sally said -- and I'm paraphrasing here -- that she always prided herself on keeping her eyes on her own career. That's my answer. That's how I feel.''

Hill won't say it, so I will. Holtz should've been suspended, too, and that he wasn't makes you question the double standard.

John Madden's road show won't include Tampa Bay

2008-10-15T15:00:56-04:00

Wednesday's Shooting from the Lip ...

Raw deal of the day
You've probably heard by now that NBC's John Madden will not be calling Sunday night's game at Raymond James Stadium, marking the first time in 28 years (476 games) that Madden will take a day off from work. It would make two cross-country trips in as many weeks for the 72-year-old Madden and NBC Sports president Dick Ebersol suggested he take the week off.

"It's just a week to rest my best player,'' Ebersol told the Washington Post.

At first, it didn't seem to be a big deal, seeing as how the guy never has missed a game. But upon further review, it is a big deal. NBC's Sunday night broadcasts have become this generation's Monday Night Football. Madden is the reason why. He's a huge star and it's a rotten deal for Bucs fans that he is not coming to Tampa Bay and giving us all his take on the Bucs.

It's the reason that rubs me the wrong way. Madden told the Post, "I still enjoy the travel, but you'd like to be home once in a while. … It's a quality-of-life issue.''

If Madden were sick, it would be understandable. If he had a family function -- a special anniversary or a child's wedding or a grandchild's graduation from high school or something -- then you could give him a pass. But why isn't he coming? Essentially, the explanation is he just doesn't feel like it. Never mind that he isn't actually driving the bus from California that would bring him to the game, but the only reason he is taking the bus to begin with is because he won't get on a plane. Madden is afraid to fly.

No one is suggesting Madden's job is easy. He's good because he works hard. But still, the bulk of his job is calling a football game for three hours once a week for five months a year. And he needs a break from that? And the kicker: NBC isn't showing a game the Sunday after the Bucs game, so Madden will now have two weeks off. He won't call a game until Nov. 2.

Maybe there's more to the story. Maybe Madden is completely exhausted and his health is an issue. If that's the case, it's understandable that he takes care of himself. But if it's just because he doesn't want to make the trip, or doesn't feel like working, that's not good enough. Can you imagine Jon Gruden saying, "You know, I just don't feel like coaching this week. I'm going to take the week off?'' It really is no different.

Perhaps we're a bit sour because we love Madden's work so much and we're disappointed he's not coming here. Maybe if he were skipping some other team's game, we wouldn’t care. But Madden is not coming to Tampa Bay and, well, that stinks.

Best suggestion
NBC's Cris Collinsworth is replacing Madden as Al Michaels' partner in the booth Sunday night for the Bucs-Seahawks game. But Bright House Sports Network's Joe Girvan had a good line about who should replace Madden: "They should get (impersonator/comedian) Frank Caliendo.''’ Girvan is right. Caliendo sounds more like Madden than Madden.

Check it out:
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Madden's replacement
So with Cris Collinsworth set to fill in for John Madden on Sunday night, does that mean Collinsworth is Madden's heir apparent when the big guy steps down for good? Don't count on it. Collinsworth told the sports Web site, Deadspin, that he would prefer staying at home watching his children grow up as opposed to flying around the country calling games.

Station of the day
Tampa Bay's ESPN Radio made a major move Tuesday, switching from 1470-AM to 1040-AM. The new frequency more than triples the potential audience to more than 2-million people, according to its owners, Genesis Communications. The new ESPN 1040 will continue to simulcast on 1470-AM throughout the fall. Tampa Bay's ESPN Radio carries national shows such as Mike and Mike in the Morning and Colin Cowherd as well as local shows hosted by The Killer B’s and the afternoon drive-time show Brantley and the Babe, hosted by Scot Brantley and the Fabulous Sports Babe. While 620-AM continues to dominate the sports radio market with shows such as Ron and Ian, the Jim Rome Show and the afternoon drive show hosted by Steve “Big Dog’’ Duemig, ESPN’s move to 1040-AM is good one, if for nothing else than more people will be able to pick up the signal.

Hey, I like Brent Musberger

2008-10-12T23:16:59-04:00

Shooting from the Lip
Looking back at a weekend of televised sports ...

Best announcing team of the weekend
I know a lot of people out there don't like ABC's Brent Musberger, but I wonder if that's just more of a cliche for sports fans. "Oh, I hate Musberger,'' they say without really listening to the job he does. He's really not that bad, especially when you compare him to a lot of the dead weight out there calling football games. He and partner Kirk Herbstreit (a commentator who is always good) had an outstanding day calling the rip-roaring game between Texas and Oklahoma on Saturday.

The two were at their best when Oklahoma got a raw deal on a late hit when it appeared Texas quarterback Colt McCoy simply fell into his own bench, causing an uproar on the Longhorns sideline.
"The best officials?'' Musberger asked. "The Texas assistant coaches!''

Later, after another questionable roughing-the-kicker call, Herbstreit cracked, "We're going to have to get rid of yellow flags and get yellow cards out here with all the acting we've seen from some of these players.''

Best sarcasm
I think Mike Greenberg, half of ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike in the Morning, was taking a shot at Americans when he pointed out that more people in 24 out of 27 NFL markets were watching a football game instead of the vice presidential debate. "We understand where our priorities are,'' Greenberg said. "The election is important, but it ain't football.''

Best exchange
The Minnesota Golden Gophers are 6-1, setting up this fun exchange on ESPN's coverage from the studio.
Rece Davis: "Minnesota is now bowl-eligible.''
Lou Holtz: "I picked them to be the team to show the most improvement. I knew this was coming.''
Mark May: "They were 1-11 last year. How could you know this?''
Holtz: "That's why I'm here. I got my crystal ball and it tells me, 'Minnesota will be better.'''

Most interesting point
ESPN football announcer Mike Patrick made a point no one has brought up before while calling Penn State's 48-7 victory against Wisconsin on Saturday night. Talking about Penn State's plain, but oh-so-cool uniforms, Patrick said he "swears'' the Nittany Lions used to make the numbers on their jerseys smaller so players would appear bigger. By the way, this team is 7-0 and ranked No. 3 in the country. Anyone who thinks Penn State coach Joe Paterno should not be coaching anymore needs to sit down and shut up before embarrassing themselves any further.

Best national Rays reference
"They've won this kind of game in the second half time and time again and time after time and that muscle memory showed. … I think this baby goes the distance.''
-- Mike Lupica, New York Daily News columnist, on ESPN's Sports Reporters Sunday after the Rays' Game 2 victory in the ALCS.

Best reason to stay up
TBS's late-night, postgame baseball show -- Inside MLB -- has become must-see TV. All the highlights, live interviews, good analysis. The crew of host Ernie Johnson and analysts Harold Reynolds, Cal Ripken and Dennis Eckersley is getting stronger by the day and has settled into a comfortable repartee. The show is not quite as good as the original -- TNT's Inside the NBA -- but it's worth watching.
Of course, the show is a whole lot more fun to watch after your favorite team wins.

Strongest opinion
The Sunday NFL Countdown show on ESPN is good, but it suffers from having too many people at the desk. All do a good a job, it's just a numbers thing. Too many voices. But one voice stands out, and that's Tom Jackson, who requires you to listen to everything he says because he manages to be level-headed, opinionated and never overly emotional or outrageous just for the shock value. On Sunday, he delivered an absolutely riveting, cut-to-the-bone criticism of the troubled Adam "Pacman'' Jones of the Cowboys.

"I'm going to ask you a question,'' Jackson said to his partners. "We all grew up in a neighborhood. I don't care who you are, you grew up in a neighborhood. Guy gets arrested six times, has 12 altercations with the police over a period of a couple of years, is guarded 24 hours a day like … some guy in prison, what would you say that guy was? It's a rhetorical question. I don't want to get anybody in trouble. What would you say that guy was''

How many analysts out there would have the guts to say something like that? Compare that to CBS's Boomer Esiason, who seemed perfectly content to sweep Pacman's latest troubles under the carpet during the NFL Today pregame show.

Three things that popped into my head
1. Because of Fernando Perez's speed it probably wouldn't have mattered, but could J.D. Drew have made a worse throw from shallow rightfield on the Rays' winning run in Game 2? The thing bounced twice and wasn't even close to home even though Drew was only 140 feet or so away. Boston catcher Kevin Cash probably didn't know whether to catch it or shoot it to put it out of its misery.
2. The Lightning is just going to have to wait until the Rays are done before Tampa Bay fans really pay attention. Judging by how the Bolts are playing at the moment, that might be a good thing.
3. Anyone else getting sick of NASCAR drivers fighting each other?