Whoa, Nellie! Keith Jackson talks Cosell, college football and cotton

Los Angeles Times ^ | September 10, 2013 | Chris Erskine

[EveningStar]

Keith Jackson has some stories, all right. Of riding his horse four miles to his rural Georgia high school. Of nights carousing with Paul "Bear" Bryant. Of the time Howard Cosell, smelling like a Russian distillery, set Jackson's pants on fire during a telecast of "Monday Night Football." ...

Any other tips for today's broadcasters?

"They talk too damn much," he says. "You wear the audience out." ...

[EveningStar]

ping

[colorado tanker]

Keith was one of the best.

When Arledge replaced Jackson with Frank Gifford, he told him he was going to make him "Mr. College Football." He was that, alright.

[MamaB]

Some FB friends are really upset with bama. They had bear’s hat on site instead of anything to do with 9-11. It is his 100th bd. A friend knew him and said he was a womanizer and drunk. No one I would have as a role model. DC police counted at least 800,000 motcycle riders by 1 pm. Kind of outnumbered the rop.

[AppyPappy]

Speaking of vodka

[re_nortex]

...riding his horse four miles to his rural Georgia high school...

I think a case can be made that some of the best sportscasters (and color guys) either were born or raised in the South.

• Mel Allen
• Ernie Harwell
• Red Barber
• Jim Nantz
• Pat Summerall
• Lindsey Nelson
• Dizzy Dean
• Verne Lundquist (Born in Minnesota but a longtime Texan)

On the other hand, the voice of perhaps the most Southern of college football teams, Alabama's Crimson Tide, is a Jewish fellow from Brooklyn, Eli Gold (shown below):

[Talisker]

"They talk too damn much," he says."

This is so true, in all broadcast sports anymore. They overtalk for all the soccer moms. Explaining every little obvious thing, spouting absolute idiocy over supposed strategy and tactics obvious to a ten year old, prattling on like women at a tea party about utterly irrelevent "color" details, endless crap...

Sometimes I can get a radio station just doing play-by-play, and I run that and turn off the video soundcast...

BLISS...

[Dysart]

Any other tips for today's broadcasters? "They talk too damn much," he says. "You wear the audience out." ..

It's like a three ring circus trying to watch a football game anymore. Sports broadcasters truly operate as if their presentation is the product and draw, not the game, and therein lies the beginning of the problem. Don't get me started on that rant..

But Keith Jackson, who has been replaced largely by buffoons, was among the very best and it's not the same without him.

[aft_lizard]

I miss Keith Jacksons intro on Nebraskas Tunnel Walk..he was part of what made it special.

[bleach]

The best. Whoa Nelly!

He’s right, radio is theater of the mind and a good play by play man can create the pictures. You don’t need that on TV. And while we’re at it. knock off the damn human interest and social engineering crap. Leave the ribbons and pink shoes in the locker-room.

[VerySadAmerican]

I was listening to the old guy who recently retired from calling Georgia’s games (I’m sure someone will post his name). Georgia scored on a 99 yard touchdown run and the guy said “Folks, I wish you could have seen what I just saw.”

[tomkat]

They talk too damn much

A.bloody.men

[bleach]

Did you ever hear a show called Leonard’s Losers? Absolutely one of best/funniest prognosticators ever. Picked the losers of each game. Something like this:

“Georgia versus Florida. Georgia coach Vince Dooley leads a pack of hungry junkyard dawgs into Jacksonville to feast on some fresh king size lizard meat. But as any Florida swamper will tell you, a Gainesville Gator has a tough old hide and can bite just as hard as any Bulldog. Leonard’s Loser, in a close one, Florida.”

[ExNewsExSpook]

You are referring, I’m sure, to the late Larry Munson, the voice of the Dawgs for more than 40 years. But IMO, the best play-by-play announcer for an SEC school over the last 40 years was John Ward, who called UT Vols football and basketball for 30 years before retiring in 1998.

[Ken H]

Dizzy Dean

Now you're talking. I loved listening to him and Pee Wee Reese on the Saturday game of the week. He liked his Falstaff beer and seemed to have a nice buzz going by the later innings.

[Perdogg]

ping

[FreeAtlanta]

We need a bet line for this weekend.

With UGA off, the two games I am following are the Vols vs. the Ducks and Bama vs. the Aggies

Will the Vols make it respectable or ... I can’t believe I am typing this... upset the mighty Ducks?

How badly will Bama crush A&M and Johnny Football?

I wish UGA was playing, but we do need to heal up some after 2 weeks of top 10 teams.

[VerySadAmerican]

Yep. Larry Munson. I lived in Georgia for a short time and loved listening to him.

[VerySadAmerican]

I remember back in the 70s there was a sports guy on the radio who would give the scores of “The teams that lost, and lost big.”

[okie01]

You are referring, I’m sure, to the late Larry Munson, the voice of the Dawgs for more than 40 years. But IMO, the best play-by-play announcer for an SEC school over the last 40 years was John Ward, who called UT Vols football and basketball for 30 years before retiring in 1998.

I recall a dignified gentleman who called Georgia Tech football many years ago. He referred to the end zone as "the land of milk and honey".