Airwaves: Berman the catalyst that makes ESPN go

A broadcasting fixture: For ESPN personality Chris Berman, 2009 will mark the 30th year he has worked for the company. (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO — He is clearly the cornerstone and the face of ESPN. He is the most imitated living broadcaster in America. Little did Chris Berman know in 1979, when a new cable TV project hired him, that he would develop into a national icon. As we enter 2009, this will be the 30th year of the great Chris Berman being on ESPN. After starting a career as one of the “SportsCenter” program hosts, he made his mark when ESPN started televising the NFL draft, which then led to Berman hosting the ESPN NFL pregame show, which he still hosts today.

Some people think he is over the top in his delivery and at times more of an entertainer than a serious journalist. They are wrong. He is a very hard-working guy, who has found his niche in the way he delivers the news and hosts a show. I think he is great, because in this bizarre world we live in, he keeps sports in the proper perspective. I love it when he throws nicknames to players or references them with a song.

Chris Berman is good for sports broadcasting. He is part entertainer, but a bigger part sports journalist. Although only 53, here’s wishing him the very best for the next 30 years. ESPN, has obviously come a long, long way in the sports broadcasting world. A lot of that has to do with the talents of Chris Berman. Incidentally, Berman was the host recently for a wonderful ESPN special program on the 50th anniversary of the “Greatest Game Ever Played,” the 1958 NFL championship game between the Baltimore Colts and the N.Y. Giants. The true marvel of modern technology was on display during this program. The original tape was in black and white, but lo and behold, it is now completely colorized. It was great watching the game that has been talked about for the last 50 years.

On Wednesday, ESPN’s NBA and college basketball commentators will switch roles. During a special hoops doubleheader, NBA broadcaster Mike Tirico and analysts Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy will call the college game of Davidson at Duke (4 p.m.), which is followed by college broadcasters Dan Shulman and high-energy Dick Vitale calling the Denver Nuggets hosting the Miami Heat. This is a unique concept that should be an enjoyable listen for the fans. After all, how many football bowl games can one take!?!

I viewed the new Mickey Rourke movie “The Wrestler” this past week. It is an interesting story about an athlete’s comeback in the sports world. Of course, there is always the debate as to whether pro wrestling is really a sport. But we can save that for another time and place! Rourke does a great job of absorbing himself in the role. At times during the movie, it seems like this ex-heartthrob is not acting, but portraying himself in his own destructive career. He should be nominated for an Oscar, as should co-star Marisa Tomei, who plays a sexy stripper. Hot, hot, hot. My only question is, what the heck really happened to Rourke’s face? The boxing career did not do him justice. I remember him in “Body Heat” and
“9½ weeks.” In those flicks, he was not a bad looking dude.

New Year’s resolutions for football on television

Just a few suggestions for the football TV world as we enter a new year:

During football game broadcasts and studio shows, have the broadcasters stop saying,“in this football game,” or “when you run the football” or “the football team did this or that.” We all know it is a football game or we would not be watching, so stop saying football so much.

Force the broadcast teams to wear identical blazers. CBS employs this practice and it looks sharp. I hate to see the play-by-play man in a dark blazer and the analyst in a light-gray blazer. Look uniformed, it is a much better look on TV.

The same point can be said for the studio people. Although blazers in a studio would not look good, keep the colors traditional and subtle. This includes the ties and all the trimmings.

Never allow ESPN’s Lou Holtz and partner Mark May or the NFL Network’s Deion Sanders and partner Marshall Faulk near a game broadcast booth ever, ever again.

Whenever possible, eliminate three-man booths during game broadcasts.

Duplicate NBC and always show a graph of the personnel that is in the game. Example: 3 WRs, 1 TE vs. 6 DBs, 1 LB. The fan is very educated, help them watch the game.

Drive charts are great tools to summarize the game. The more graphic the chart, the better. Use pictures of the field to illustrate a point and what has taken place on a given drive.

Seventy-five percent of the people watching games gamble on the games. Why not say during a broadcast the point spread and what the over-under is?

Although this area has improved greatly, keep reducing the amount of time spent on showing lineups. Wait until the middle of the first quarter and then have the analyst talk about who the linemen are.

For one year, no more football players on “Dancing with the Stars.” Enough already!

As a network, decide if you want substance or fame when you hire new analysts. ESPN hired great new analysts in Trent Dilfer and Keyshawn Johnson, but dropped the ball with Cris Carter and Emmitt Smith. At Fox, Brian Billick is very good, but Tony Boselli aimlessly chatters the entire game.

Locally, hire someone to consult like the great John Catchings, ex-guru at KPIX (Ch. 5), to help produce and improve the postgame shows. They are all the same, with the same script and desperately need some new juice and new ideas.

Who said it

Jed York
The 49ers’ newly named team president declared: “This is the last time our season ends in December,” after telling the world that the Niners have signed Mike Singletary to a four-year, $10 million deal. Hey, Jed, I hope so, for your sake. Winning in the NFL isn’t easy! Some cheap advice, make sure you surround yourself and Samurai Mike with people that have a clue about what it takes to win in the NFL.

Dan Dierdorf
“Hoyt Wilhelm would have been proud of a knuckleball like that,” the CBS analyst and Pro Football Hall of Famer said when Buffalo Bills kicker Rian Lindell missed a field-goal attempt in last week’s New England Patriots-Bills game. The winds were blowing some 60 mph and the goal posts were bent out of shape most of the game. Talk about game strategy!

Off Target

Gary Cavalli and Doug Kelly did a phenomenal job of presenting the Emerald Bowl last weekend. However, the broadcast was average at best. Analyst Rodney Gilmore is solid, but play-by-play gut Joe Tessitore was awful. That being said, they were not the worst (so far) of the bowl season. Eric Collins (who is he?) and Shaun King did the commentary for the PapaJohns.com Bowl between Rutgers and North Carolina State. They set the bar at an all-time low. What a joke and a disgrace for ESPN to have these two clowns do a game.

One to watch

It’s finally here, the last college football game! On Thursday, Fox (KTVU, Ch. 2) will present the BCS championship. Florida, led by lefty QB Tim Tebow, will take on the Sooners from Oklahoma, led by Heisman winner Sam Bradford. This should be a dandy of a game. Although the Gators are 3-point favorites, I like the Sooners in this one. Bob Stoops has returned the magic to Norman and I really think they are the hottest team in the nation. Take OU and the points, but do not touch the over-under.

Sports by numbers

New York Giants’ odds to win the super bowl
2-1

Miami Dolphins’ odds to win the super bowl
30-1

Dolphins’ odds prior to the season to win the super bowl
250-1

Artie Gigantino spent 25 years as a coach at the major-college and NFL levels, was lead college football analyst for Fox Sports Net for seven years, was with CBS for one year and was an executive with the Raiders for three years. E-mail him at agigantino@sfexaminer.com.