There's still plenty of time
It's been a month of tired sports clichés pouring relentlessly out of our TV set. When the Blazers lost one player after another to injury, the team's dreadful color commentators inundated us with the oft-repeated observation that "now other guys are gonna have to step up." Yesterday during pro football, when the discussion turned to playoff scenarios, we were reminded again and again who "controls their own destiny," or who would do so if this or that happened.
Some newcomers ought to take over the sports airwaves and inject some new life into the language. It could use it. I mean, come on -- on Sundays we're still having our brains turned to mush by the voice of Dick Enberg, who used to call the gladiators in the Roman Coliseum. There was one fresh new revelation yesterday, though: If you're hoping to lose some weight after the holidays, you need to eat at Taco Bell. I am not making this up.
| Posted at 11:41 AM | Permalink |
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Comments (9)
You mean new life like Lamar Thomas in this game?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrDWBW2S3Kg&feature=related
(Thomas chimes in around 2:00).
Yeah, baby!
Posted by dg | December 28, 2009 12:13 PM
A reader writes:
On the bright side of sports broadcasting, I'm looking forward to the New Year's Day hockey game on NBC. I'm not a hockey fan at all, but I just happened to tune in at the beginning of last year's broadcast, and ended up watching the entire game.
What I found so interesting was the way in which NBC completely broke out its ordinary mold, and covered the game like it was a big party, which is exactly what it was.
I hope this year's coverage is just as good. And I hope the networks pay attention, and start applying that same approach to the Super Bowl and the Olympics.
Posted by Jack Bog | December 28, 2009 12:47 PM
Speaking of sports commentators to replace, I still have a hard time listening to Bret Mushberger (sp?) for the way he dissed the Trailblazers when they won the NBA championship. Anyone else remember?
Posted by John Kauffman | December 28, 2009 2:16 PM
I realize horribly biased commentary is something of a constitutional right for most sports broadcasters. Still, Mike Rice, the Blazer's guy, is something special. Why on God's green earth do they let that man call games? Muting the TV doesn't really do the trick, because they will occasionally flash his uninformed, smirking mug on the screen, which is just as aggravating as listening to him.
Posted by Mike H | December 28, 2009 3:07 PM
While I generally agree with the remarks here vis-a-vis Dick Enberg, he had the handicap yesterday of working the Baltimore-Pittsburgh game, the officiating of which would have done Tim Donaghy proud. (Late flags thrown to call back two consecutive Ravens' touchdowns.)
Some of the stammering was, I figure, due to a little self-censorship going on there.
Posted by Roger | December 28, 2009 3:26 PM
We watch the US Sports channel sometimes; the other night we watched some sort of skiing (don't remember which event), and the sportscasters were Europeans, doing their commentary in English. It was much less polished and professional than the usual sports broadcast, and it was awfully refreshing!
Posted by Michelle in Orygun | December 28, 2009 5:39 PM
Yes, I remember Mushberger dissing the Blazers. But what is more irritating is that he's still on, commentating games like he's commentating a funeral. Very exciting.
Posted by lw | December 28, 2009 6:31 PM
Sports broadcasting is a gerontocracy that rivals China's government. Enberg, Mussberger, Bob Costas,Tim McCarver amd, sheesh, Dick Vitale, whose career never should have happened.
Posted by Gil Johnson | December 28, 2009 7:29 PM
I was in Denver the first Monday night a local sports bar auctioned the privilege of throwing a brick into a TV set the moment Howard Cosell showed on the screen.
Posted by David E Gilmore | December 29, 2009 6:41 AM