Posted on 05/18/2009 9:15:25 AM PDT by The Good Doctor
BRISTOL, CONN. (AP) —Former Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden is replacing Tony Kornheiser on ESPN’s Monday Night Football broadcast team. The network said Monday that Gruden will be in the booth with Mike Tirico and Ron Jaworski when the show starts its 40th season this fall. Kornheiser cited a fear of flying in his decision to leave after three years. Gruden led the Bucs to the 2003 Super Bowl title and was fired after this past season. He worked as a guest analyst this year with the NFL Network during the draft and scouting combine.
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Now if they would get rid of Steve Phillips from Sunday Night Baseball.
Good start. But they also need to beat Joe Morgan with a few bats...then move on to Tim McCarver. Heck, I could start a thread of sportscasters we’d most like to see thrown screaming from helicopters (thanks, George Carlin!) but I don’t think anyone would get past Olberman here.
Just one sentence from Joe Morgan and I’m hitting the mute button.
Good grief, he’s insufferable and that’s being kind.
Cool. Now I can watch and listen.
Good news. Kornheiser is in his element on PTI, but he’s an embarrassment on MNF.
Gruden belongs on the field. He’s still a good coach.
bttt
That's pretty damned funny right there, and I couldn't agree more. Kornheiser was just painful to listen to last year. I spent the bulk of the season listening to MNF on the radio along with the TV. Tim McCarver used to be insightful (okay, sometimes), but now he's repetitive and ponderous. And repetitive. For his part, Keith Olberdork deserves a special fate. I like the helicopter idea, but he truly requires something a bit more painful. I'll leave the suggestion box open on that one.
I'm sure this is just a sabbatical for Gruden and he'll be back. As far a Kornheiser, they could've replaced him with asparagus and I'd be thrilled.
Although we rarely watched MNF with this team, I did enjoy listening to Jaws put Kornheiser and Tirico in their places. Theismann was too passive, and non-assertive. Jaws is well-prepared, and not afraid to use his knowledge. Now if only they would change the format back to covering the football game, rather than a commercial for the Mouse or any other unrelated guest in the booth....
hh
I am just grateful that Olbermann had already left the mother ship before they had to assemble an MNF broadcast team....
Go, Chucky!
Fear of flying? I think Tony was having a little joke ala Madden. I guess it is better than saying that you were leaving to spend more time with your family.
I don't even consider Olbermann a sportscaster. He's just filling some diversity slot, like those chicks on the sidelines during football game. For me, Joe Morgan is the worst. Just a mumbling boor.
On the great sportscasting front, I couldn't be happier than I am with the New York Mets booth. I watch just about every game, and Keith Hernandez and Ron Darling are awesome. They are insightful funny and completely non-annoying everygame. Gary Cohen is the other guy in the booth, and he's low-key and informative too.
No Tony really does hate to fly. He spent most of he season doing PTI from remote because it was almost always a bus trip for him. On the rare occasion he did fly he usually missed the next day’s show, probably getting over large quantities of sedatives.
Excellent. He made me want to claw my ears out.
I like the Reds tandem of Thom Brennamen and Jeff “Cowboy” Brantley.
Thom’s dad, Marty is a crusty old coot now and whines too much. Thom is the utmost in professional.
Cowboy is honest and knowledgable. Much more interesting to hear than Chris Welch if you ask me.
George Grande is the absolute worse. Nothing worse than a Poo-holes loving Cards fan doing your Reds broadcasts.
Back in the 80s Olbermann was the sports guy on KTLA-TV in Los Angeles. He was smarmy and annoying.
The Mets do have a good broadcast team this year, from what I’ve seen. I bumped into Keith a few times when I lived in New York (during his playing days). Nice guy. We drank some beers and smoked a few cigarettes together in some East Side joint.
That’s interesting. I guess the preference just depends on a lot of things.
I don’t know if Morgan is good or bad, but I really like he and Jon Miller because I grew up listening to them do Sunday Nights.
Jerry Glanville used to do color commentary. Haven't seen him in a while. I don't miss him.
Kornheiser was the worst football announcer I ever heard. The worst. I stopped watching because of him.
Apparently, Jerry’s now the head coach at Portland State University, which would seem to be a few notches down from his NFL gigs.
Hopefully he has a decent staff. From what I saw on TV, there wasn't a whole lot happening between his ears. The guy only had two brain cells, and when they clicked together a word popped out of his mouth.
LMAO
‘We drank some beers and smoked a few cigarettes together in some East Side joint.’
Left handed cigarettes?
Hung from his ankles by a cable and flown at high speed toward a building. Upon hitting the building, he would swing upwards and be tossed through the rotors. A second helicopter would be stationed below ... just in case there are any large chunks left.
LOL. I think he smoked Marlboros. I remember how he sometimes used to poke his head out of the runway leading to the dugout in Shea Stadium with a butt hanging out of his mouth between innings.
This is his fill in job until the Cowboys fire Wade...
That cannot come too soon.
I like that idea of Olberdork being thrown screaming from a helicopter... but only if the helicopter was being flown upside down!
Great news! I think Gruden will be superb, but I also agree with the above poster who says he still belongs on the football field coaching.
No more wearing out my wrist tendons hitting the mute button on MNF! Now, if we could only get Olbermoron to go, that would be great!
I sure hope all the other female American football fans aren’t as heart broken as my wife.
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