Musburger to retire.

[EastexHawg]

Actually I looked it up and Dick Bumpas was the MVP of the Blue-Gray game that year, not Bruce James.  Memory loss is starting...I really am old.

[hogsanity]

Ditto.  I'm 43, dad's 73, and the grandparents are gone.  That was back when New Year's Day bowls were extended family viewing.  I miss those days.

I was just talking to my family about the old Blue/Gray Game on Christmas Day.  Everyone looked at me like I was crazy.

That is weird, I was thinking about the blue/gray game yesterday. Think the last time I watched it was 1997 ( it did not end until early 2000's ) which was the same day we told our families we were expecting our 1st child. I sat and watched it with my father-in-law. This last Christmas was our 1st without him.

Seems like alot of us are in our 40's and have a lot of the same memories.

[Jackrabbit Hog]

That is weird, I was thinking about the blue/gray game yesterday. Think the last time I watched it was 1997 ( it did not end until early 2000's ) which was the same day we told our families we were expecting our 1st child. I sat and watched it with my father-in-law. This last Christmas was our 1st without him.

Seems like alot of us are in our 40's and have a lot of the same memories.

I'm about a half a generation older than you guys.  The guys I started with were Chris Schenkel and Bud Wilkinson for CFB, Pat Summerall for NFL football, Curt Gowdy for AFL football and ML baseball.  I agree that Keith Jackson was an upgrade when Schenkel retired to concentrate on pro bowling (!).  Summerall, however, was the best NFL play-by-play guy ever. 

[EastexHawg]

I'm about a half a generation older than you guys.  The guys I started with were Chris Schenkel and Bud Wilkinson for CFB, Pat Summerall for NFL football, Curt Gowdy for AFL football and ML baseball.  I agree that Keith Jackson was an upgrade when Schenkel retired to concentrate on pro bowling (!).  Summerall, however, was the best NFL play-by-play guy ever. 

Those are the guys I remember when I think of sports broadcasting.  Chris Schenkel and Bud Wilkinson were usually joined by Bill Flemming for on-the-field commentary and pre-game player and coach introductions.  Flemming also did the college football highlights show that came on Monday night in our area.  There were usually only about a dozen schools (Oklahoma, Nebraska, Ohio State, Michigan, USC, Alabama, Texas, etc.) ever featured on the show...fight songs playing in the background as Flemming narrated...and Arkansas was one of them.

Gowdy did AFL games with Kyle Rote or Al DeRogatis.  Jim Simpson was a fixture, too.  It seems to me like they mostly did the "eastern" games that came on around noon...Jets, Bills, Patriots, and so forth...while the late afternoon game from Oakland, Kansas City, or Denver featured Charlie Jones doing PBP.  Gowdy did the Saturday baseball Game Of The Week with Tony Kubek and later Joe Garagiola. 

My favorite NFL team from those days was Summerall with Tom Brookshire.  Of course starting in 1970 there was Monday Night Football with Cosell, Keith Jackson, the Danderoo, and later the Giffer.

[LZH]

Always worth a replay:

I remember that. The best part is watching Fowler and Herb's reactions.

[lutherheggs]

Sadly, I strongly suspect that would be considered politically incorrect today so they wouldn't allow the game to go by that name.

If the Civil War (what an oxymoron) had been between the East and the West rather than the North and the South, you could have the Fuchsia-Yellow Ochre bowl. Fuchsia being the West obviously. It would be very politically correct today.

[snoblind]

Don't recall when they stopped doing it, but in the 60's my dad and I would watch the Prudential score board on late Saturday afternoons if we weren't at a Fayetteville game.  They would always give the Slippery Rock score which as a kid I thought was the coolest name for a school.

Began a decades long tradition of following them as our second team.  Dad's been gone 20 years, but I still check the score every week during the season.

[PonderinHog]

Actually I looked it up and Dick Bumpas was the MVP of the Blue-Gray game that year, not Bruce James.  Memory loss is starting...I really am old.

Admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery.  The second step is to give up because there ain't gonna be no recovery.

[DeltaBoy]

I'm about a half a generation older than you guys.  The guys I started with were Chris Schenkel and Bud Wilkinson for CFB, Pat Summerall for NFL football, Curt Gowdy for AFL football and ML baseball.  I agree that Keith Jackson was an upgrade when Schenkel retired to concentrate on pro bowling (!).  Summerall, however, was the best NFL play-by-play guy ever. 

Amen !

[Jackrabbit Hog]

Those are the guys I remember when I think of sports broadcasting.  Chris Schenkel and Bud Wilkinson were usually joined by Bill Flemming for on-the-field commentary and pre-game player and coach introductions.

This is how it was done, kiddos.  Take notes.

Gowdy did AFL games with Kyle Rote or Al DeRogatis.  Jim Simpson was a fixture, too.  It seems to me like they mostly did the "eastern" games that came on around noon...Jets, Bills, Patriots, and so forth...while the late afternoon game from Oakland, Kansas City, or Denver featured Charlie Jones doing PBP.

On the NLF side, Summerall almost always did the early game and one of my all-time favorites, Ray Scott, usually did the late afternoon game.  Loved the way Scott said very little.  "Rams to the line...........Gabriel..............Snow...........touchdown."

[factchecker]

This thread has turned into memory lane.

I agree with most of the nostalgia love but some of the new guys are good.

Joe Tessitore does a great job of setting up the play, describing the moment, and then letting the action happen:

[hogsanity]

I'm about a half a generation older than you guys.  The guys I started with were Chris Schenkel and Bud Wilkinson for CFB, Pat Summerall for NFL football, Curt Gowdy for AFL football and ML baseball.  I agree that Keith Jackson was an upgrade when Schenkel retired to concentrate on pro bowling (!).  Summerall, however, was the best NFL play-by-play guy ever. 

I remember Schenkle Summerall and Gowdy.  Also Charlie Jones ( Ft Smith native ).

[hogsanity]

Don't recall when they stopped doing it, but in the 60's my dad and I would watch the Prudential score board on late Saturday afternoons if we weren't at a Fayetteville game.  They would always give the Slippery Rock score which as a kid I thought was the coolest name for a school.

Began a decades long tradition of following them as our second team.  Dad's been gone 20 years, but I still check the score every week during the season.

Always used to tick me off if the game ran late and they had to cut the Prudential Scoreboard, as back then it was the only way to get scores.

[EastexHawg]

This is how it was done, kiddos.  Take notes.

On the NLF side, Summerall almost always did the early game and one of my all-time favorites, Ray Scott, usually did the late afternoon game.  Loved the way Scott said very little.  "Rams to the line...........Gabriel..............Snow...........touchdown."

I wish I could find some video of Flemming doing the highlights show.  I can almost hear Boomer Sooner or Hail To The Victors playing in the background with Bill narrating OU-Colorado or Michigan-Purdue footage.

Dave Diles and Merle Harmon did the Prudential scoreboard show.  Incredible as it seems, it you didn't see the score of a game on that show or hear it on the radio you had to wait for the newspaper to come out the next day to find out who won.  Night games out west were mysterious.  You might not know about them until Monday.

[hogsanity]

I wish I could find some video of Flemming doing the highlights show.  I can almost hear Boomer Sooner or Hail To The Victors playing in the background with Bill narrating OU-Colorado or Michigan-Purdue footage.

Dave Diles and Merle Harmon did the Prudential scoreboard show.  Incredible as it seems, it you didn't see the score of a game on that show or hear it on the radio you had to wait for the newspaper to come out the next day to find out who won.  Night games out west were mysterious.  You might not know about them until Monday.

Remember all the coaches shows being on Sundays? We used to get a station from Dallas that carried North Texas, Tcu, Smu, Baylor, Texas and OU. Started at 6 and ended at 10, of course TExas and Ou were an hour long. Then we had the Razorback show on 5 her in FS.

[EastexHawg]

Remember all the coaches shows being on Sundays? We used to get a station from Dallas that carried North Texas, Tcu, Smu, Baylor, Texas and OU. Started at 6 and ended at 10, of course TExas and Ou were an hour long. Then we had the Razorback show on 5 her in FS.

Broyles had the football field with little players he would move around to illustrate plays.  His show came on at 10:30 Sunday night on Channel 6 from Shreveport/Texarkana. 

The first time my dad and I heard Holtz on his show we thought he was either crazy like a fox...or just downright crazy.

[longtimeHogfan]

Musburger's continual, repeated reference to the Rose Bowl as; "The Granddaddy of 'em all"  was the worst.  Like chewing aluminum foil for me.  Good riddance and good-bye.

[Jackrabbit Hog]

Broyles had the football field with little players he would move around to illustrate plays.  His show came on at 10:30 Sunday night on Channel 6 from Shreveport/Texarkana. 

My favorite part was at the very beginning, Bud Campbell would welcome everyone to the Frank Broyles Show, and then would go over to a printed cardboard schedule that was posted on the wall and would write in the score of yesterday's game with a magic marker.  About as low tech as you could get, but it was always awesome when Bud got to write something like "31" by Arkansas and "7" by Texas.

Oh, and in central Arkansas, it was always brought to you by Browning's Mexican Restaurant and Jon Brittenum & Associates.

[ballz2thewall]

as a rule i'm pretty easy on commentators. they just don't bother me too often.

but i will say that brent fostered some cringe-worthy moments.

but i got over it:)

[EastexHawg]

Oh, and in central Arkansas, it was always brought to you by Browning's Mexican Restaurant and Jon Brittenum & Associates.

Ledwell & Sons Trucking in our area.

They loved to show the fans outside the stadium before the game and Frank would always comment on our great Razorback crowds.

[HognitiveDissonance]

"You are looking LIVE..."




Musberger signature line.

[goodguytex]

Summerall will always be about my favorite broadcaster of all time. He did a razorback bowl game before he died. I loved listening to it just to hear his voice.

Made me sad too hearing him faulted and hearing the ravages old age and diminished health in his voice. I knew that would be his last game.

[Tejano Jawg]

Musburger had a great career, no doubt. Looking back on his last decade or so—(not in order) I go back to his fake down-south accent, talking about how Colt McCoy's dad put a little Texas dirt under his crib. Then, talking about how Florida State's Peter Warrick was "denied" the Heisman, going goo-goo over Bama quarterback AJ McCarron's girl (pictured earlier in this thread), and finally, sounding like Joe Mixon's agent.

Am I foggy here...did he ever call a Razorback game? I don't remember one, because surely he would have said something that would have stuck.

[hamsam]

Ditto.  I'm 43, dad's 73, and the grandparents are gone.  That was back when New Year's Day bowls were extended family viewing.  I miss those days.

I was just talking to my family about the old Blue/Gray Game on Christmas Day.  Everyone looked at me like I was crazy.

Holy Smokes...The Blue/Gray Game. I was trying to explain to my kids at school last week about simpler times. When commercials didn't rule the airwaves. Should have pulled that one out for an example. Well done, sir!

[davglo35]

I know most of us think he needs to go but the man nailed it on this one.  Got to give him credit where credit is due. Olbermann  is an idiot!

[davglo35]

http://www.breitbart.com/video/2017/01/26/brent-musburger-olbermann-stick-sports/

[lutherheggs]

This is how it was done, kiddos.  Take notes.

On the NLF side, Summerall almost always did the early game and one of my all-time favorites, Ray Scott, usually did the late afternoon game.  Loved the way Scott said very little.  "Rams to the line...........Gabriel..............Snow...........touchdown."

I was at that game. Lived in Michigan from summer of '73 to summer of '75. Great time to be either a Michigan or a ND fan. I noticed at the end he said, "back to our ABC studio with Chris Schenkel and Duffy Daugherty." Duffy was ex-long time Michigan State head coach. I didn't think he had already retired by '73 but guess he had just retired a year or two before.

[snoblind]

Remember all the coaches shows being on Sundays? We used to get a station from Dallas that carried North Texas, Tcu, Smu, Baylor, Texas and OU. Started at 6 and ended at 10, of course TExas and Ou were an hour long. Then we had the Razorback show on 5 her in FS.

You could get a Dallas station in the Fort?  Was that early cable?

 

[snoblind]

Since we are tripping down memory lane, anybody else's dad head to the newsstand on Sunday to get all the regional papers to read the game write ups?  Democrat, Gazette, Tulsa World, and Dallas Morning News were the automatics, and sometimes the KC and Austin papers if they had arrived.

[EastexHawg]

Since we are tripping down memory lane, anybody else's dad head to the newsstand on Sunday to get all the regional papers to read the game write ups?  Democrat, Gazette, Tulsa World, and Dallas Morning News were the automatics, and sometimes the KC and Austin papers if they had arrived.

We took the local paper along with the Shreveport Times...and the Southwest Times Record, which was mailed to us and arrived a couple of days later.

[panhandlepig]

We took the local paper along with the Shreveport Times...and the Southwest Times Record, which was mailed to us and arrived a couple of days later.

We had the Ark Democrat and Gazette and the Shreveport Times delivered every day. My dad and grandpa were regular visitors to the newspaper stand to get all the rest. I was too. The guy who ran it was a midget and I was fascinated every time I went in. A grown man my size selling me penny candy and Archie and Veronica comic books.

  My papaw taught me to read reading me the newspaper and doing the crossword puzzle. I still love the smell of a newspaper even if  it's not quite the same for some reason.

[hogsanity]

You could get a Dallas station in the Fort?  Was that early cable?

 

Actually got 2. Channel 11 & 39 both were independent at the time and were sort of super stations like wor wgn & tbs. 11 became what is now 12 in dallas and no idea about 39.

[Pigdiana Jones]

I can't stand Verne and Gary. It was like being in a torture chamber with those two clowns.

[NaturalStateReb]

Since we are tripping down memory lane, anybody else's dad head to the newsstand on Sunday to get all the regional papers to read the game write ups?  Democrat, Gazette, Tulsa World, and Dallas Morning News were the automatics, and sometimes the KC and Austin papers if they had arrived.

Like all good country people, we took the Gazette.  We picked up the Democrat--which was for Little Rock people--on Sundays. 

Wish we still had two statewide newspapers in Arkansas.  I know it was probably inevitable, but the quality of the paper has went down enormously from those days.

[jswineberiaskirk]

I agree.  I saw him today on a College Football Live interview and was asked about the Katherine Webb comment.  Brent said he could  not believe all the fuss about it. He said she was a beautiful woman.  I agree with him.  Why were people all upset about it?  So ridiculous how folks get all up in arms about a really insignificant comment that actually was very flattering.  Sure he was old but who cares as long as he did the job and I thought he was fine.

People were all upset because the greatest affliction this country suffers is certain people feeling they must show others how outraged they are over anything AND they must be more outraged than the other afflicted individuals like them. I loved BM shoving it in their little PC faces.

I remember Saturday nights in the eighties - it seemed like every time the U and ND got together he did the broadcast. Nice.

[DeltaBoy]

Summerall will always be about my favorite broadcaster of all time. He did a razorback bowl game before he died. I loved listening to it just to hear his voice.

Made me sad too hearing him faulted and hearing the ravages old age and diminished health in his voice. I knew that would be his last game.

Great memory and I turned 51 in Dec 16.

[PolishPigPower]

My childhood memories of Sunday afternoons start with Mom pulling the roast out of the crockpot after church on Sunday, sitting to eat off of a TV tray with Dad in the den, and watching the NFL Today crew.  Brent Musberger would set it up, Irv Cross would break it down and have a recorded interview with someone, Phyllis George or Jayne Kennedy would have their spot, and then Jimmy the Greek would tell you who was gonna win.  Then, Brent would end it with his "You are looking LIVE..." at wherever and it was time to watch Coach Landry and the Cowboys (most often in LR).

https://youtu.be/Jxxk2skfAB8

[DeltaBoy]

I remember going to a news stand in Grad school in Fort worth in the early -mid 1990's to grab the Demorcate.  In college we got both at the Baptist Student Union at UALR .

[HogFanOSU]

I don't really understand why people hate so many commentators.  Maybe you're right and they just don't like them because they are old.  They should probably throw in that receivers have "hops" or that a play is "sick" every once in a while.  As in every other sentence...

It's not because he is old.  I coudn't stand him back in the 70's when he was young.  I give him credit for consistantcy though, he has been very consistantly bad his entire career.  He always appeared to be rooting for the team that was winning and would flip flop as the leading teams changed, then afterwords, act like he knew all along what the outcome would be.

[pignparadise]

My two childhood favorites were Arkansan Charlie Jones(AFL) and Ray Scott voice of the Packers. Google these two and just listen.

[bennyl08]

I watch a lot of football, but the announcers all sound the same to me. I mean, you can almost unanimously tell what decade an announcer is from. However, Paul Eels is the only person I'd have a chance to recognize.

[hogsanity]

My two childhood favorites were Arkansan Charlie Jones(AFL) and Ray Scott voice of the Packers. Google these two and just listen.

I got to work a charity golf tournament where Jones and Lee Trevino were the hosts. It was a blast to get to sit in the caddy room and talk to those guys. Jones could talk, in detail, about any sport you wanted, and Trevino treated us like we were life long friends.

[DeltaBoy]

I miss the Blue Gray game it was always pretty good.