BY DANE WINDISCH

Whenever the New England Patriots and New York Jets square off in a primetime game such as the one Sunday night, there are sure to be a lot of fireworks. The commentators for Sunday night were the usual tandem of the great Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth with Michelle Tafoya doing the on-field reporting. The entire broadcast from pre-game to halftime to the final whistle was an excellent broadcast, in my opinion, because of how positive Michaels and Collinsworth are for the duration of game.

Michaels is one of the most influential broadcasters of all time. He is also one of the most recognizable because of the most famous Olympic games ever, the 1980 USA Hockey team victory over the Soviet Union. For as long as Michaels has been broadcasting, he still shows the same type of enthusiasm and knowledge into every broadcast he does. While I was watching the game studying his language and timing after each play, what stands out to me is how well he does his commentary in a business-like fashion.

During the pre-game, Michaels gives great insight on the major story lines going into the game such as: Tom Brady and the Patriots last-ranked defense, the Jets being on a hot streak, and an array of facts and statistics involving the game. During pre-game commentary, Michaels and Collinsworth went through the years of the Jets and Patriots rivalry dating back to when Bill Parcells was with the Pats, the beginning of the Tom Brady era, the controversial ‘Spygate’ with Bill Belichick, and the recent Jets victory over the Patriots in last year’s playoffs. Even if you are not a fan of football and did not know any history about the Jets and Patriots, the broadcast at least showed you into the past and present for the simplest of football fans to gain knowledge.

Sunday Night Football’s halftime presentations are always watchable because the commentators go through the earlier action of the day, talk about some of the main story lines and Bob Costas has a special presentation. This night, the special presentation was on the Chicago Bears’ Devin Hester who added another punt return TD, his 12th, adding to his NFL record.

The game ended with a blowout in the Patriots favor and, in doing so, snapped the Jets three-game win streak. The Patriots won 37-16. Even though, at the very end, the game was getting out of hand and seemingly unwatchable, Michaels and Collinsworth did an excellent job keeping the audience glued to the television.

BY ADAM KUFFNER

Two commentators were in positions they are not used to being in for Friday night’s game between Belmont and Duke on ESPNU, the season opener for both teams. Mike Breen called the play-by-play for this game. Breen, an NBA commentator for ESPN, stepped into the college basketball world Friday with the NBA Lockout still looming over professional basketball. However, the change of scenery didn’t affect Breen as he called a great game.

Doris Burke also found herself in a different position. She has been seen on ESPN doing play-by-play and sideline reporting for college football and college basketball games. Friday, she served as color commentator alongside Breen. The analysis for Friday’s game was the best I have ever seen out of Burke. She was very thorough in every analysis, adding how certain players have improved from last year. Speaking with comfort and confidence, it seemed as if this was a natural position for Burke. I think the sport of college basketball and the position of color analyst is the right position for Doris Burke. Remembering games where she was play-by-play for college football, I felt as if she seemed out of position. She fits better in an analyst role whether it is in the booth or on the sidelines.

On the production side, ESPNU highlighted Duke Coach Mike Krzyzweski inching closer to Bob Knight’s record of career wins (902). During the telecast, flashbacks of monumental Krzyzweski wins were shown; moreover, a member of the United States military mentioned how Coach K has inspired his leadership techniques. This piece fit perfect with Coach K being a former point guard at Army along with Friday being Veterans’ Day. Also, to make the production better, I noticed ESPN has added a “Bonus” section to its scoreboard under each team’s score. This brand new feature will be used to notify viewers when each team is in the penalty to shoot free throws on non-shooting fouls.

Duke, ranked 6th in the nation on the AP poll to start the season, pulled off a close 77-76 victory over a scrappy Belmont team who will be one of the top mid-major teams in the nation this year. The Blue Devils victory gives Coach K win number 901 in his career; he is now one victory away from tying his former coach, Bob Knight, for the career win mark in Division I Men’s college basketball. The Coach K storyline along with two commentators who stepped into different roles excelled to make the broadcast a success.

BY MATTHEW OSTROW

The commentary for the Breeders Cup was spot-on and even exceeded my expectations for the telecast.  The team of Joe Tessitore, Randy Moss and Jerry Bailey did a great job setting the stage for the race as well as making you feel like you were at Church Hill Downs. The commentators made the event seem historical and classy like horse racing should be.

I am not a huge horse racing fan, but I tune in for the Triple Crown races. So, my knowledge for horse racing is very limited.  That makes the job for the commentator more difficult because the majority of the audience must be informed of the basics of horse racing compared to an NFL game were most of the audience is very familiar with the sport.  The commentators did a great job of informing you of how long the race is and what course conditions can do to affect the race. 

The broadcast also had great personal stories about the jockeys.  The biggest story was the jockey of Game on Dude, Chantal Sutherland.  She was trying to become the first female jockey to win the Breeder’s Cup and the commentators did a great job framing the story for the audience.

Then came the race. If you have ever seen a horse race, you know the horses change place constantly and it is very hard to tell what is going on. The telecast did a great job helping the audience know what is going on by having a helpful graphic at the bottom showing who was in first, second and third. Along with the graphic, Tessitore added to the excitement and said the horses’ names with what place they were in and said who was winning, in order, quickly. For example, he would say, “Game on Dude, Game on Dude,” followed by, “Drosselmeyer, Drosselmeyer making a move, Drosselmeyer!”. That style of commentary made me more excited and kept me informed about the race.

At the end of the race, Drosselmeyer barely beat out Game on Dude and the jockeys turned out to have dated, which was a interesting fact that they provided.  The post-game coverage was good, reporters on horse caught up to the winner and runners-up right after the race to get their reactions.

The broadcast for the Breeders Cup Classic did a great job at informing the audience about horse racing, making the race exciting and keeping its historical feel.

BY NATE DOOLIN

Any sports fan who thinks of ESPN sport analyst Skip Bayless immediately thinks of his “against the grain” stubborn persona he displays so well during his debates on ESPN’s First Take. Although some of his arguments are biased when he is asked to debate certain topics, Skip is one of the most entertaining sport analysts.

Say what you want about the man’s outlook on sports, but the way he prepares himself for his job every day is commendable. Skip does his research every night by studying games, contacting outside sources, outlining his debate points, and practicing his screen presence before each and every show he participates in. Not to mention his inherent skill to be able to keep the audience engaged. Skip’s screen presence during every show of First Take is always very entertaining to watch. Whether he is taking up the challenge of debating a famous athlete he has once criticized publicly face-to-face or trying his hardest to trump Stephen A. Smith, another very entertaining and credible ESPN sport analyst, Skip is always willing to put on a show and give his audience exactly what they are looking for.

As I have stated before, to add to Skip’s effective screen presence, he also takes his job very serious, which is something I respect. The preparation and research he puts into every topic he talks about always shows its shining face. For instance, Skip is a staunch supporter of Tim Tebow no matter how much flak he takes from other analysts for it. He stands behind Tebow through thick and thin just like any other Tebow fan would. But, the difference between he and others who love the rookie quarterback is that he deconstructs his performances (both good and bad) and bases his support from the evidence he has come up with. Skip makes great points about all of Tebow’s 4th quarter performances that have either brought his team wins or put them in great position to get the job done. I also can respect Skip’s loyalty to the statements he makes. If Skip makes a mistake, he will stand by that and stand corrected, which believe it or not is not easy to do in front of the masses of sports fans who tune in to his show on a regular basis.

Skip may not think like a typical sports analyst and he also may not approach most topics the same way, but isn’t that the reason why we are so intrigued to hear what he has to say? Without people like Skip, who bring entertainment and share a different perspective on a situation instead of the sugar-coated norm, sports talk would simply be plain and vanilla to listen to. In other words, as long as he knows how to put on a show, “Skip Tebow” is alright with me.

 BY NATE DOOLIN

BY DANE WINDISCH

 BY ADAM KUFFNER

In arguably the most exciting Monday Night Football game of the year, the Kansas City Chiefs were given new life thanks to a Philip Rivers botched snap in the closing minutes of regulation. Ryan Succop kicked a game-winning field goal in overtime to give Kansas City the victory at home 23-20.

Although I always enjoy ESPN’s production of Monday Night Football, there is a slight change I would like to see. That change deals with the pre-game show. The Monday Night Football “Launch” starts at 8:30 p.m. and is a preview for the game. However, Monday Night Countdown is on before the Launch, so there is no need to delay the game for more pre-game discussion. ESPN broadcasts the game to start at 8:30 p.m, but kickoff does not actually happen until 8:40 p.m. My suggestion is to start the “Launch” at around 8:20 p.m.; therefore, kickoff would be scheduled for 8:30 p.m. CBS has this type of pre-game. “First on the Field” happens roughly 10-15 minutes before kickoff. The announcers talk briefly about the teams, and kickoff is set for 1 p.m. This is a great method to use because people who just want to watch the game can turn on the television right when the game is advertised to begin to see the kickoff at 1 p.m.

On another note, it is disappointing to see Hank Williams Jr. not open up the broadcast. His voice has always been a huge part of the telecast, but I understand ESPN’s reason to cut ties with him. Nonetheless, a piece of the Monday Night Football puzzle is missing.

Other than that, I really enjoyed this Monday Night Football telecast. Mike Tirico is fantastic doing the play-by-play. You can tell the excitement in his voice when a big play happens. Analysts Ron “Jaws” Jaworski and ex-NFL head coach Jon Gruden are excellent for the broadcast. “Jaws”, a former player, usually provides analysis from a player’s perspective. On the other side, Gruden uses his past coaching experience to analyze everything going on throughout the game. Also, watching and listening to Gruden, one can tell the passion he has for the game of football. Whether he is praising a player or criticizing a player, Gruden’s passion can be heard in every analysis he makes. Gruden is not afraid to speak his mind, and he always backs up what he says when making critical statements.

Monday Night Football is the NFL’s biggest stage week after week throughout the regular season. This week’s exciting game combined with the excellent production work by ESPN proved the telecast to be an overall success. 

BY ANDREW WILTSIE