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Sports Talk Veteran Larry Coltar Dies in Flood

Brandon Contes

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Veteran sports radio personality, Larry Cotlar, died Saturday night after floodwaters in Des Moines, Iowa swept Cotlar into a creek as he attempted to exit his stalled vehicle.  Six to eight inches of rain fell per hour, with a nearby creek rising 15 feet in just over three hours.

Cotlar has been a broadcaster in sports radio since 1974.  A staple in Des Moines, Cotlar hosted an afternoon show on ESPN 1350 while also serving as the voice of the Drake University Bulldogs.  Cotlar’s career also included stops in Vegas and Chicago as a national radio host.

With the outpouring of sadness and kind words from people around the country, the respect Cotlar earned throughout his career stretched beyond his credentials from behind the microphone.

“I think Larry would be a guy that would not want to talk about his legacy,” said Andy Garman, who co-hosted an afternoon sports radio show with Cotlar for five years on 1700-AM in Des Moines. “He just loved doing his job every day. He came in with a smile and said, ‘Let’s go to work.’”

Cotlar’s 44-year broadcasting career saw him develop enough connections to author an autobiography titled The Biggest Rolodex in Sports.  According to Randy Wehofer, who previously worked with Cotlar on a national show and currently serves as an assistant manager of the Iowa Cubs, the rolodex was no exaggeration.

“When news breaks and you wonder, ‘Who can we call on this?’ He knew. He was always prepared, and that’s so much of this business. You’ve got to react quickly and know who to call. He built relationships and made them last,” Wehofer said.

Cotlar recently survived prostate cancer after undergoing surgery in 2017 and became an outspoken advocate for men to get tested.  The 2007 Iowa Sportscaster of the year is survived by his wife, Deb Brewer-Cotlar and two sons.

Brandon Contes is a freelance writer for BSM. He can be found on Twitter @BrandonContes. To reach him by email click here.

 

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Jim Rome: I Don’t Want to Talk About How the NFL Sucks Every Day

Rome argued that “hate is the new dopamine” while noting that he doesn’t want to talk about what he hates all day.

Jordan Bondurant

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Jim Rome
(Photo: CBS Sports Radio)

Jim Rome didn’t want to have to be that guy on Tuesday, but he had no choice.

Rome opened his CBS Sports Radio show by prefacing his comments on Monday night’s Bears/Vikings game by saying his goal isn’t to just ridicule the NFL schedule into oblivion.

“I don’t come in here every single day looking to bag on and hate on NFL primetime games,” Rome said. “And yes, I’m the one who said it – hate is the new dopamine. But that’s not how I get down. That’s not my deal.”

Jim Rome added that just saying everything sucks isn’t a sports take. But he pivoted from there saying that it’s OK to say 95% of the primetime games in the NFL suck because it’s true.

“Then not only is it a take, it’s the only take,” he said. “How are these games actually managing in primetime to get worse and worse? And how is anything going to top the atrocity that we sat through last night?”

Fans in theory should get a more competitive, high-scoring affair on Thursday night when the Seahawks take on the Cowboys. But Rome just couldn’t believe how torturous Monday night’s contest really was.

“Technically, the Bears did win that game. But technically, really, we all lost,” he said.

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Mad Dog: Gus Johnson ‘Bothered The Hell Out of Me’ Saturday

“For crying out loud, Michigan/Ohio State isn’t even better than North Carolina/Duke, who play twice a year. So let’s be careful with the hype machine.”

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A photo of Chris "Mad Dog" Russo
(Photo: SiriusXM)

FOX Sports college football voice Gus Johnson has made no bones about his affinity for Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. However, Chris “Mad Dog” Russo has heard enough.

During his Mad Dog Unleashed program on SiriusXM, Russo shared that not only was Johnson obnoxious for the constant use of a nickname he bestowed up Harrison, but he was also misguided for calling Ohio State/Michigan the greatest rivalry in sports.

“Gus Johnson — the hype machine that he is — please, when you broadcast a ballgame, I don’t need to hear about Maserati Marv, number one. And number two, that’s not the greatest rivalry in sports history. Have you heard of the Yankees and the Red Sox? Giants and the Dodgers? How about Bears/Packers? Have you heard about that?

“For crying out loud, Michigan/Ohio State isn’t even better than North Carolina/Duke, who play twice a year. So let’s be careful with the hype machine. That bothered the hell out of me.”

When a caller pushed back on Russo’s opinion on the Michigan/Ohio State rivalry, he continued by saying “That rivalry’s not Yankees/Red Sox. To compare college football to the Yankees and the Red Sox is ludicrous.”

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Nashville Predators Radio Voice Pete Weber Calling 2,000th Game Tuesday

“I always wanted to be there for the birth of a team. I feel like I’ve been a pretty fair midwife here.”

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A photo of Pete Weber
(Photo: Nashville Predators)

Nashville Predators radio voice Pete Weber is set to hit a career milestone Tuesday, as he’ll call his 2,000th game for the NHL franchise.

Weber told The Tennessean that he has relished the opportunity to be the voice of a team since its inception. He claimed he applied for and was a finalist for the radio play-by-play job when the Carolina Panthers were conceived, before ultimately landing with the Predators.

“I always wanted to be there for the birth of a team,” said Weber. “I feel like I’ve been a pretty fair midwife here.”

Despite missing time late last season due to a rare brain condition, Weber said he has no plans of retiring anytime soon.

“I have not thought about it, other than when I thought about how (former Philadelphia Phillies announcer) Harry Kalas was carried dead out of the broadcast booth in Washington,” Pete Weber said. “I thought, ‘Well, that’s an interesting way to go. I don’t necessarily know that I want to do it like that. But it could happen. I’m not going to say no.”

Weber’s 2,000th game will come as the Nashville Predators play host to the Pittsburgh Penguins. 102.5 The Game is the flagship home of the Predators Radio Network.

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