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I wasn't ever going to plug myself, but what the hey.

I blogged on this and other topics here: http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/blog.php?b=648.

I read this blog and it is definitely an interesting view point, one which isn't too far off the mark. One thing I can argue (and you mention that you are not in Melbourne much) is that baseball caps are not the most common sporting item down here. You do see them but not as a dominant sporting fashion item. Obviously you see a lot of AFL gear being worn but also a lot of basketball and american football jerseys (more often than not pats or indy which is disappointing). Behind AFL gear it is an even spread of fashion items from different American sports. Which does of course support the point of your article.
 
I second the "hate Aikman" call.

Third... nothing more irritating than listening to Oinkman call a Cowboys game, particularly his constant attempts to portray Homo as the second coming of the messiah.

Got nothing against Joe Buck, but he is a tad robotic and relies on stats far too much... informative but dull.

NBC coverage easily best of all IMO, Big Al is as good as they come and Collinsworth is great to listen to. Cris has a gift of being able to offer insight and remain entertaining.

ESPN really need to get rid of Jaworski on Monday nights and leave Mike in the box with Gruden. Gruden is good but his overuse of "he is the best <skill or position> in the NFL" comment every bloody week shits me. Mike Tirico is very easy to listen to, has a very sunny disposition.

Monday night pre-game show has the depth of a toddlers pool... but I do like C'mon Man.
 
I dont like Gruden as a commentator. Like you said, and like STKO said in another thread about an interview he had recently, he just spends all his time kissing every player's and coach's ass. He's all gung-ho enthusiastic and loves football, that's great, but all the ass-kissing reduces his "constructive criticism" ability.

Repeating...I really love Darryl Johnson as commentator. Best in the business (in my humble opinion).
 
Gruden is good but his overuse of "he is the best <skill or position> in the NFL" comment every bloody week shits me. Mike Tirico is very easy to listen to, has a very sunny disposition.

Monday night pre-game show has the depth of a toddlers pool... but I do like C'mon Man.
:D... on the money there likka


That's a real 'blow me' line isn't it... best player blah blah blah.. what a load of dogshit. c'mon Gruden, give us something that knocks us over instead of splashing us with watered down fluff. I can imagine he consumes a bag of fairy floss before he comes on as his sugar levels are way too high!! :p which is great but CUT the 'best player BS'... pleeeease!
 
Third... nothing more irritating than listening to Aikman call a Cowboys game, particularly his constant attempts to portray Romo as the second coming of the messiah.
I've never really heard him get all up about Romo TBH. He supports QB's in his commentary though. He tends to defend them a lot even when they are playing badly. Don't mind him too much.

Whoever was calling the game on CBS in the 'Boys v Raiders game got a tad on the annoying side.
 
Oinkman was hilarious this morning... went completely silent at the end when NYG were reeling off big play after big play. When he finally opened his mouth he was very muted.

Was laughable how he was talking up the Dallas offense as nearly the best in the NFL. Absolute joke. Homo had a good game, but he is far from elite. Missed a couple of wide open deep shots late, which probably explains why their play calls made no attempt to take advantage of the very weak NYG corners.

Repeating...I really love Darryl Johnson as commentator. Best in the business (in my humble opinion).

Probably the best special comments caller, but not a huge gap between him and Collinsworth IMO.

That's a real 'blow me' line isn't it... best player blah blah blah.. what a load of dogshit. c'mon Gruden, give us something that knocks us over instead of splashing us with watered down fluff. I can imagine he consumes a bag of fairy floss before he comes on as his sugar levels are way too high!! :p which is great but CUT the 'best player BS'... pleeeease!

Mmmm... fairy floss.
 
Yep, Collinsworth is a good one.
Him, Johnson, Michaels, and there's some around that you hear on the actual streams, dunno their names, but some of them are really good too.
It's hard to explain, but you can just quickly tell who's a good one and who isn't.
I guess, kinda like you just know when a girl is attractive or not.
Example...

attractive-girl-with-ball.jpg
 

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I've never really heard him get all up about Romo TBH. He supports QB's in his commentary though. He tends to defend them a lot even when they are playing badly. Don't mind him too much.

Whoever was calling the game on CBS in the 'Boys v Raiders game got a tad on the annoying side.

I think only a Cowboys fan could not notice and be pissed off by his blatant barracking when he calls Cowboy games.

And on Gruden, yeah, his verbal blowjobbing of everyone in the league is tiresome. Today he was ranting on about how the packers were the BEST OF ALL TIME! THE BEST HED EVER SEEN! at converting third and short. Then they put the stat up... they're second in the league. lol. Hes just the hyperbole king.
 
Probably won't mean too much to those that haven't followed Philly before Cunningham/Reggie White, but for me this is on par with JJ's passing, mainly 'cause this was the key Iggles media booster when we were a truly carp team in seasons 74-78...

And he was almost the only one to back Vermeil when he first came in, and the only one to dare to suggest Vermiel could beat Landry...

Plus, he was just an outstanding human (in Aussie terms, a good bloke) away from the footy (we knew him more through some community things than through gridiron).

And, he was the pre-Madden Madden. (see the story for an explanation). If only they have arcade games in the 60s he might have been better known.

Anyway, might be of interest for some, if only to show how the careers of old were affected by national service requirements (actually just as much of an issue in VFL/Aussie Rules/cricket as in Gridiron). If we ever go back to a Nasho/draft system, can't wait to see the "excuses" the modern brigade brings out...

Brookshier, 78, went from football stardom to broadcast fame
Tom Brookshier, according to his friends, knew how to tackle.
Whether on the football field or as a television and radio personality, his impact was equally immense and intense.

Tom Brookshier (right) calls an Eagles game with Dick Vermeil in 1987. Brookshier played on the Eagles' 1960 championship team. (Staff File photo)

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He was an all-pro on the last Eagles team to win an NFL championship in 1960, part of CBS' top NFL broadcast team during the 1970s along with his close friend Pat Summerall and, in the late 1980s, he hired Angelo Cataldi, launching the 610 WIP sports-talk format that remains in place today.

A New Mexico native who played college football at the University of Colorado, Mr. Brookshier came to Philadelphia when the Eagles selected him in the 10th round of the 1953 NFL draft. In the years that followed, he fell in love with Philadelphia, according to his wife, Barbara.

"After he broke his leg in 1961 and his career was over, we were going to go back to Denver," Barbara said. "That was our dream place. But then when it was time to go, we looked at each other and said, 'We can't leave Philly.' "

As a rookie defensive back, Mr. Brookshier intercepted eight passes in 12 games. Then he didn't play in the NFL for the next two seasons.
"He had been in the ROTC at Colorado, and he went into active duty for two years in the Air Force," said Jim Gallagher, a former Eagles executive who spent 46 seasons with the organization.

Mr. Brookshier returned to the Eagles in 1956 at the age of 25, and the team won a total of nine games in his next three seasons. By 1959, with Shaw in his second season as the head coach, the Eagles were on the rise, and Mr. Brookshier was a major reason.

"If you had somebody you wanted on your team, it was old Tom Brookshier - number 40," said Tommy McDonald, a Hall of Fame split end who was a teammate of Brookshier's for five seasons. "He was a really good leader. He was right there with Chuck Bednarik. They were the two guys that really, really stood up for that defense big time."

McDonald said Brookshier's ferocity as a defensive back helped him become a Hall of Fame receiver.

"He helped me learn how to run pass patterns," McDonald said. "It was the best competition I could get. He taught me how to get into the end zone. Brookie was great at covering guys."

Gallagher said the 1960 Eagles did not always get a lot of respect from other teams in the NFL, and that bothered Brookshier. "I remember Alex Karras from Detroit was walking off the field after a game at Franklin field, and he looked over and said, 'I wish we could play you guys again,' " Gallagher said. "Brookie looked at him and said, 'We can't wait for you, we're on our way to the championship.' "The thing you remembered about him was how he tackled. He hit you around the thighs, and he went down to your ankles to make sure he took you down. He and Irv Cross were the best tacklers I ever saw."

According to Vermeil, Mr. Brookshier's passion for tackling never waned.
"He was a tough, intense and committed player," Vermeil said. "He wanted everybody else around him to be just as dedicated. He loved the Philadelphia Eagles and Andy Reid, but he hated when a guy in the secondary missed a tackle. It would really bother him. He'd say, 'They're getting paid all that money and not hitting anybody.' "

Mr. Brookshier's football career ended at the age of 30 in 1961 when he fractured his leg during a game against the Chicago Bears.

His television career started almost immediately after as he became part of the local CBS affiliate, WCAU television, where he worked with Hall of Fame broadcaster Jack Whitaker, a Philadelphia native. The former Eagles defensive back became a giant in the profession, thanks to his pairing with Pat Summerall, a former rival from the New York Giants whom Brookshier once hit so hard that he split his helmet.

"He became like a brother to me," said Summerall, who was at the Brookshier home in West Conshohocken for a gathering of family and friends yesterday. "He was the best man in my wedding. He was as close a friend as I ever had."

In the 1970s, Summerall and Brookshier were the No. 1 NFL broadcast team for CBS, working three Super Bowls together, including one when Dallas running back Duane Thomas stood silently as Brookshier questioned him. Thomas had not spoken during the week leading up to the game and after being named the MVP of the Super Bowl, he fielded this question from Brookshier: "Are you really that fast?"
"Evidently," Thomas responded.
Dead air followed.

"What I remember about that interview is that I was standing close by with Roger Staubach because we didn't know how things were going to go," Summerall said. "Jim Brown had become a mentor to Thomas, and he was standing close by the whole time. He was a very intimidating figure. We also had a public relations guy who couldn't remember who he was supposed to call after the game. He was supposed to call President Nixon. If he had made that call, the Thomas interview doesn't happen."

Somewhat more controversially, Brookshier was pulled from a game assignment following an ill-advised comment about the University of Louisville basketball team during a 1983 CBS football broadcast. During a promotion for the basketball game telecast, Brookshier made a derisive comment about the intelligence of the Louisville players. He expressed regret for the comment and made amends with Louisville officials.

Summerall said Brookshier was his first choice as a broadcast partner. "We had worked together at NFL Films, and I went to CBS and asked about doing play by play," Summerall said. "They asked me who I wanted for my color analyst, and I told them Tom. At that time, it was very unique because we were both ex-players. I don't think anybody had hired ex-players before."

Those two remained together until CBS paired John Madden with Summerall in 1981.
Rest of the obit:
http://www.philly.com/philly/sports...ball_stardom_to_broadcast_fame.html?viewAll=y

And I particularly liked this comment on the article:
"My father was the team physician for the Eagles in 1961. When Tom broke his leg, my father was called out on the field and when he arrived at Tom's side, Tom looked up and with his usual humor said, "I guess you don't have a needle big enough for this one."
BpG
 

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