Are You Ready for Some Football?

Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal. Photo by JoAnn Sturman

W.R. Priskna

fliesinyoureyes.com

“Never ascribe to malice that which can adequately be explained by incompetence”

Napoleon Bonaparte quotes (French General, Politician and Emperor (1769-1821)

I love football. For five months each year I watch way too much of it, but my wife likes football even more than I do. I'll come home from work, and she'll have the game on. First thing Sunday morning she's tuning into the NFL pregame shows to get the latest buzz about the games and the players. Most of my friends are jealous that their wives and girl friends don't have the appropriate amount of passion for the new national pastime.

For as much football as I watch, there are few things that make me scratch my head. Take NBC's Sunday Night Football, for instance. The network has two good announcers in the booth, Chris Collingsworth and Al Michaels, but the sideline reporter Andrea Kremer is clueless. Her father must be a vice president of NBC, because I have never seen anyone more out of place. Maybe it's her screechy voice or those ridiculous hats she wears, but I think it's her persona. She just looks like she would be a lot more comfortable having dinner at a five star restaurant or watching a ballet than interviewing football players. If I ever get a chance to meet her, I am going to ask her how many points a touchdown is worth.

Suzy Kolber and Michele Tafoya are okay. They're full of energy and have big smiles. I'd like to think they would enjoy the game while having a beer or two with fans in the stands. I'm not sure this would be Andrea's cup of tea. Maybe I'm being unfair, but my intuition tells me if she sat in the stands, she would be looking at her watch during the game and nagging her husband to leave after the first quarter.

The other issue that perplexes me is the lack of Hispanic and Asian announcers. I know a lot of these guys, and they're totally into football. There are a bunch of high quality Hispanic players, and the Hispanic fans are die hard. They are so into their teams and stick with them come thick or thin. There are a lot of men and women Raider fans out here, and despite very few wins the last decade, the Latino community never gives up on them. The Raiders can get trashed by the Bills 30-0 one week, but their fans know they are going to beat the Patriots in Boston the next week.

Asian guys know NFL football inside and out. You don't see a lot of them playing college or professional football, but they play recreationally with passion. I see them in the parks playing pick up games all the time – much like I did when I was their age. I just can't figure out why they are not better represented in the broadcasting side of sports. They know the game and follow their teams with fervor. There must be at least one or two of them in the country who would like to make a living calling the games and having a few cold ones with the jocks after the game. They've got to be just as good as Andrea or Jack Buck's son.