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Mount Rushmore of Sports Commentators

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hollandnucat

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Being a slower time of the year on the message board thought it may be fun to hear who people think belong on the Mount Rushmore of Sports Commentators. Five for the 4 spots that come to mind for me are; Howard Cosell, Al Michaels, Dick Enberg, Jim McKay and Bob Costas. Just basing off of impact and influence.
 
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Harry Kalas. The longtime beloved voice of the Phillies and also the guy who took over for John Facenda on NFL Films. Died too soon.
 
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That's more than three.

I'd consider Keith Jackson and Brent Musberger too, though I'm not sure who'd they displace from the above.

And don't forget John Madden. Dick Vitale (love him or hate him). Harry Caray. Mel Allen. Jack Buck. Ernie Harwell.

And the #1 guy of all: Vin Scully.

I'm sure there's tons I've forgotten that are before my time, and plenty during my time too.
 
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hollandnucat said:
Being a slower time of the year on the message board thought it may be fun to hear who people think belong on the Mount Rushmore of Sports Commentators. Five for the 4 spots that come to mind for me are; Howard Cosell, Al Michaels, Dick Enberg, Jim McKay and Bob Costas. Just basing off of impact and influence.
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Costas is (was?) so into how smart he was, he gets in the way of the game. Keep him on the teleprompter.

There was nothing like Madden and Summerall.

Michaels calls a great everything, and peaked with (Miracles ? YES) when he was in his 30s and I was a fetus.

The big national moments are great, but there’s nothing like the relationship a listener forms with a great local guy. Pat Hughes is uniquely great.

I can also say that I really, really enjoy Joe Davis and Orel Hershiser on the occasional MLB Network game. There’ll never be another Vin, but Davis has some old-schoolness to him.

Michaels is 1. Then there’s everybody else.

As much as I wanted to hate Musberger,
I never could.

And I’m so happy Nantz is off the final four, finally.

It’s a shame, at least for hoops fans, that Marv was demoted for being a little freaky. (Violent too? I don’t really remember.)

No comment on Cosell. I have no frame of reference.

I associate mckay (who I doubt I ever noticed) with the Olympics, and Enberg with Wimbledon, so that limits their Rushmore-ness to me.

Michaels, Madden/Summerall, Musberger, Scully.
 
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Costas lived in St. Louis when I was growing up and his first wife was our pharmacist’s daughter.

He would come as a parent to his kids little league games and basically broadcast/entertain the parents. His kid was in 3rd grade at the time ;-)
 
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FrancisSearle75 said:
Having watched every Bulls playoff game in the 90s, I'll have to add Marv Albert in there as well.
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I thought about Marv, but I felt he was a notch below the all-time greats, but if I had to pick guys that I just remember in the background of my lifetime as a personal Mt. Rushmore, he'd be on it, along with probably Michaels, Caray, and Eanet, though it would be hard to leave off Madden, Scully, Enberg, and Mussberger.
 
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Milo Hamilton was a friend for many years, and although he probably doesn't belong on this list, he was a great guy. He joined us for dinner frequently at our fraternity house, because one of my good friends in the fraternity was his spotter for various sporting events. Milo, at one point, did DePaul basketball and would get us tickets if there was somebody we wanted to see, such as my old high school nemesis Willie Somerset at Duquesne.
 
No Chores said:
Milo Hamilton was a friend for many years, and although he probably doesn't belong on this list, he was a great guy. He joined us for dinner frequently at our fraternity house, because one of my good friends in the fraternity was his spotter for various sporting events. Milo, at one point, did DePaul basketball and would get us tickets if there was somebody we wanted to see, such as my old high school nemesis Willie Somerset at Duquesne.
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Milo went to Iowa and spent the early part of his career calling Minor League Baseball at beautiful John O’Donnell Stadium Davenport, Iowa. Was invited back in 1999 or 2000 for some sort of ‘All-Century Team’ promotion.

While a whole bunch of former big leaguers made it in town that season (including Player of the Century CARNEY LANSFORD!) , the legend of Milo’s prickitude lived on the Quad Cities for years.
 
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NUCat320 said:
Milo went to Iowa and spent the early part of his career calling Minor League Baseball at beautiful John O’Donnell Stadium Davenport, Iowa. Was invited back in 1999 or 2000 for some sort of ‘All-Century Team’ promotion.

While a whole bunch of former big leaguers made it in town that season (including Player of the Century CARNEY LANSFORD!) , the legend of Milo’s prickitude lived on the Quad Cities for years.
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So, what's your point?
 
hollandnucat said:
Being a slower time of the year on the message board thought it may be fun to hear who people think belong on the Mount Rushmore of Sports Commentators. Five for the 4 spots that come to mind for me are; Howard Cosell, Al Michaels, Dick Enberg, Jim McKay and Bob Costas. Just basing off of impact and influence.
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Limiting my nominations to those who crossed over to multiple sports and transcended the games they called.

1. Dick Enberg: His college basketball gig with Al McGuire and Billy Packard ranks with Madden/Summeral. Did it all really well. Whatever the situation demanded.
2. Keith Jackson: The most colorful multi-sport play-by-play guy ever. Could set the stage and spin THE story of the game like nobody else. His presence on the call defined the game as BIG.
3. Al Michaels: The ultimate pro's pro.
4. Brent Musburger: His body of work is really impressive.

Special Mention to Verne Lundquist. Never got the recognition he deserved. Spoke less. Said way more. Loved his every call at the Masters.

Special Recognition to Judy Rankin for her long time coverage of golf. A great commentator and a classy, very special human being.

Lots of other great names/talents.

GOUNUII
 
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GOUNUII said:
Special Mention to Verne Lundquist. Never got the recognition he deserved. Spoke less. Said way more. Loved his every call at the Masters.

Special Recognition to Judy Rankin for her long time coverage of golf. A great commentator and a classy, very special human being.

Lots of other great names/talents.

GOUNUII
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Verne was awesome. They tried to give him a sendoff as the Voice of the SEC, and I guess the CBS gig over the last few decades was his biggest, but it, frankly, seemed small relative to the quality of his broadcasts. I guess he never got to the biggest stages. (He deserved to be the Final Four guy, methinks.)

Verne Wiki note: He was inducted into the Sun Bowl Hall of Fame the same year that UCLA returned consecutive onside kicks for touchdowns against NU. Ohhh,
to have gotten revenge a few weekends ago!
 
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SmellyCat said:
So wait, do we like Milo Hamilton or not?
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I liked him a lot and he was a good friend and very generous to me and lots of my friends and fraternity brothers. If other people didn't like him, especially those who knew him personally, I would have to say I simply disagree with them. I knew Milo well over 50 years ago and I'll bet nobody else posting here did.
 
NUCat320 said:
Ultimately, I guess it depends if you like the type of person who yells at unpaid interns or not.
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Every person I’ve ever considered a friend had their shortcomings. Even the people I have loved have been less than perfect.

GOUNUII
 
Pat Summerall is criminally underrated. Both roles for NFL, plus golf and tennis
 
NUCat320 said:
Milo went to Iowa and spent the early part of his career calling Minor League Baseball at beautiful John O’Donnell Stadium Davenport, Iowa. Was invited back in 1999 or 2000 for some sort of ‘All-Century Team’ promotion.

While a whole bunch of former big leaguers made it in town that season (including Player of the Century CARNEY LANSFORD!) , the legend of Milo’s prickitude lived on the Quad Cities for years.
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Ronald Reagan announced games for the Iowa Hawkeyes.
 
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GOUNUII said:
Every person I’ve ever considered a friend had their shortcomings. Even the people I have loved have been less than perfect.

GOUNUII
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It’s actually, as I am thinking, a great lesson. Milo may have been a great guy. I have no idea. But I do know that, one day, he was a real jerk to a lot of people who were excited to have him in town.

I worked in Davenport for four years in the early 00s, and one day was leafing an old box of stuff and came across a signed stack of Milo cards. I was regaled with stories of what a jerk he was that day, four or five years prior. Yelling at interns is the memory that stands out.

Maybe success changed him — I don’t know if @No Chores ever met Milo after college. Maybe he was having a bad day.

Regardless, his prickitude lived on five years later, to the point that it was the only thing that anybody had met him in that scenario remembered.

I met several big leaguers, Hall of Famers, broadcast types when I was in the minor league world. You remember the jerks, and you remember the nice guys. Most, thankfully, were either nice or avoidant. Rod Carew was so nice to me when I was a terrible, terrible young broadcaster, and 90-year-old Buck O’Neil was fully Buck when he was in town.

It’s that Joe DiMaggio thing: I always give my best, because it might be the only time some kid sees me.

Milo could have been nicer that day. People remembered, and dozens of my former colleagues thought ‘Man, What a Jerk’ when they saw he died on the espn scroll a few years ago.

MUSBERGER!
 
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NUCat320 said:
It’s actually, as I am thinking, a great lesson. Milo may have been a great guy. I have no idea. But I do know that, one day, he was a real jerk to a lot of people who were excited to have him in town.

I worked in Davenport for four ears in the early 00s, and one day was leafing an old box of stuff and came across a signed stack of Milo cards. I was regaled with stories of what a jerk he was that day, four or five years prior. Yelling at interns is the memory that stands out.

Maybe success changed him — I don’t know if Chores ever met Milo after college. Maybe he was having a bad day.

Regardless, his prickitude lived on five years later, to the point that it was the only thing that anybody had met him in that scenario remembered.

I met several big leaguers, Hall of Famers, broadcast types when I was in the minor league world. You remember the jerks, and you remember the nice guys. Most, thankfully, were either nice or avoidant. Rod Carew was so nice to me when I was a terrible, terrible young broadcaster, and 90-year-old Buck O’Neil was fully Buck when he was in town.

It’s that Joe DiMaggio thing: I always give my best, because it might be the only time some kid sees me.

Milo could have been nicer that day. People remembered, and dozens of my former colleagues thought ‘Man, What a Jerk’ when they saw he died on the espn scroll a few years ago.

MUSBERGER!
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Fixed it.
 
NUCat320 said:
It’s actually, as I am thinking, a great lesson. Milo may have been a great guy. I have no idea. But I do know that, one day, he was a real jerk to a lot of people who were excited to have him in town.

I worked in Davenport for four years in the early 00s, and one day was leafing an old box of stuff and came across a signed stack of Milo cards. I was regaled with stories of what a jerk he was that day, four or five years prior. Yelling at interns is the memory that stands out.

Maybe success changed him — I don’t know if @No Chores ever met Milo after college. Maybe he was having a bad day.

Regardless, his prickitude lived on five years later, to the point that it was the only thing that anybody had met him in that scenario remembered.

I met several big leaguers, Hall of Famers, broadcast types when I was in the minor league world. You remember the jerks, and you remember the nice guys. Most, thankfully, were either nice or avoidant. Rod Carew was so nice to me when I was a terrible, terrible young broadcaster, and 90-year-old Buck O’Neil was fully Buck when he was in town.

It’s that Joe DiMaggio thing: I always give my best, because it might be the only time some kid sees me.

Milo could have been nicer that day. People remembered, and dozens of my former colleagues thought ‘Man, What a Jerk’ when they saw he died on the espn scroll a few years ago.

MUSBERGER!
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Your interaction with Milo took place when he was about 73 years old. Most people when they reach that age get a little impatient and cranky. When he was visiting our fraternity house he was in his late thirties and he could not have been more kind, fun and generous. Interestingly, my fraternity brother who spotted for Milo at NU basketball games concluded his legal career in Houston with Coca Cola. He saw Milo frequently, and loved him like a father. Milo is in the Broadcasting Hall of Fame. He did the Astros games for many years, and a street was named for him in that city when he died. By anybody's standards Milo was a good guy, and I'll bet you would have liked him if you had known him.
 
Keith Jackson.

And often it's market by market. People in Seatle don' t know who Harry Carey is (was).

For character I vote for the Pittsburgh Penguins play by play guy.

"Tie me down and shave my face a rusty razor!"

 
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My opinion is you grow up hearing a voice and it resonates with you. For instance, growing up in suburban Chicago I heard all the local people do their thing, Lloyd and Boudreau with the Cubs, Brickhouse with the Cubs and Bears, Caray and Piersall with the Sox. Even the Blackhawk radio broadcasts were distinctive.

Monday Night Football was Jack Buck & Hank Stram. Kevin Harlan doesn’t click. (Kevin Kugler does)!

I know Michigan people who swear by Ernie Harwell. I listen to YouTube games and it just doesn’t click for me. Same with Pat Hughes. I hear a practiced voice, not a natural one and I just can’t connect.

I’m also cognizant of the fact that broadcasting has completely changed from a profession where a set of pipes and command of the dictionary set you up, to an experience now crammed with sponsorship messages.

For me any list starts with Keith Jackson and Vin Scully. They were great even when paired with complete morons They also excelled no matter what sport they were calling (listen to Jackson call Eric Heiden’s skating medals in Lake Placid or Scully calling the NFL. They were proud men who avoided (as far as I know) the sense of entitlement that turned me off in others.

For instance, Milo Hamilton saw the writing on the wall when the Cubs hired Harry Carey. He could have handled it several different ways, he chose to be petty. Sorry, but when a “Hall of Fame” inducts Milo Hamilton, it’s no longer a collection of the very best, it’s simply a “Hall of Longevity”. He may have been good and steady in his job, he was never great.

Thanks for the thread
 
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FrancisSearle75 said:
Having watched every Bulls playoff game in the 90s, I'll have to add Marv Albert in there as well.
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I wouldn't vote for Marv Albert...EVER! I sat next to him on a trip to FLA and he was as unfriendly a person I have ever met. No response to initial greeting, stayed stuck in his newspapers except when Dennis Rodman walked by. Might be a great announcer but not a nice person.
 
Joe Namath. Some player didn't make a play and Namath just landed on him. I think he lasted one game, but he did not mince words and had zero PC.
 
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You have to add Vin Scully. he was calling games for the Dodgers back when Jackie Robinson was playing to retiring a few years ago.
 
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NURoseBowl said:
I know Marc Albert was a bigger, national name . . . but Jim Durham was better. Another guy who died too young.
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Jim Durham was great. He made the game come alive through the radio.
 
No Chores said:
Your interaction with Milo took place when he was about 73 years old. Most people when they reach that age get a little impatient and cranky. When he was visiting our fraternity house he was in his late thirties and he could not have been more kind, fun and generous. Interestingly, my fraternity brother who spotted for Milo at NU basketball games concluded his legal career in Houston with Coca Cola. He saw Milo frequently, and loved him like a father. Milo is in the Broadcasting Hall of Fame. He did the Astros games for many years, and a street was named for him in that city when he died. By anybody's standards Milo was a good guy, and I'll bet you would have liked him if you had known him.
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I grew up listening to Milo call Astros games on the radio (KTRH 740 AM) in the '80s and '90s. He was unquestionably the voice of the Astros.

Oh yeah, he was also on the broadcast when Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth's home run record in 1974.

 
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Eurocat said:
Keith Jackson.

And often it's market by market. People in Seatle don' t know who Harry Carey is (was).

For character I vote for the Pittsburgh Penguins play by play guy.

"Tie me down and shave my face a rusty razor!"

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the one that always stuck with me for some reason was "Michael Michael Motorcycle"
 
Howard Cosell is #1.
Keith Jackson, for sure.
Al Michaels.
Brent Woody Musburger - the NU part makes him a must, although it isnt clear if he graduated. Wikipedia say he got kicked out, other sources say he left, others say he graduated.

after that, maybe you could argue Costas or Enberg.

Droning sleep-inducers like Vin Scully and Jack Buck don't measure up to Harray Caray for fun at the old ballpark.
 
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