This past season, a new broadcasting duos that premiered in the NFL was Ian Eagle and Charles Davis as the second team for the NFL On CBS. Eagle has been on CBS since 1998, but Davis was in his first season calling games for the network after being at FOX as an analyst since 2017. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was not easy for the new pair to establish chemistry, but they found a way to make it work.
On the latest episode of the New York, New York with John Jastremskipodcast, Eagle talked about forming chemistry with Davis during a pandemic. The two never had one in-person meeting during the year, but they decided to have a ZOOM call every week for five straight months. In fact, the trio of Eagle, Davis, and sideline reporter Evan Washburn only saw each other once in-person before their first game of the season together.
“I went into Week 1 thinking that it was going to work,” Eagle said. “We had Cleveland-Baltimore; we took one walk together in Baltimore on the Saturday before the game. The next time together was in the booth. It felt like we had been doing games for 10 years. It was easy. He’s a great teammate. It doesn’t always work that way. It really depends on the individual.”
Ian Eagle mentioned that although his role in the booth is very different from Davis’s, the duo have a similar idea of what a TV broadcast should sound like.
“I don’t want to ask him 12 questions on the air, I want to have a conversation. I know there are some out there that are like it’s your job to set him up. It’s your job to set him up but set him up in a way where you are conversing, not where it is pointed question, pointed question. That’s not a give-and-take, that’s not a partnership. You want it to feel like a couple of people that are at lunch or dinner and you are part of the conversation. That’s really important to me that it is both us and there is back and forth and Charles is a believer in that too.
In the early days of his career, Eagle knew the importance of good teamwork when he worked as the associate producer for Mike & The Mad Dog in 1992. Eagle said the duo were best friends at that time. He wanted to bring the energy he saw then to whatever he would do next.
“If you want to be excellent at this job, you better make the person next to you feel comfortable so they can do their best work. I’ve taken a lot of pride in that part of it, the dynamic between play-by-play and analyst. That was from the seeds of WFAN, seeing in the newsroom and watching it translate on the air.”
Ricky Keeler is a reporter for BSM with a primary focus on sports media podcasts and national personalities. He is also an active podcaster with an interest in pursuing a career in sports media. You can find him on Twitter @Rickinator555 or reach him by email at RickJKeeler@gmail.com.
The Monday Night Football campaign is in full swing, and The Athletic’s Robert Mays had MNF analyst Louis Riddick on The Athletic Football Show to discuss his weekly routine for putting on a top-notch broadcast.
Riddick dove into the process each week and discussed which coach has impressed him the most during his time in the booth. Tuesdays are a rest and recovery day after traveling home — then the process starts on Wednesday.
“We kinda have a, from a booth perspective, between Steve Levy, Brian Griese, myself, and then Phil Dean the producer and Jimmy Platt, the director. Us five get together and just discuss the previous week’s game and whatever we want to bring up that is positive or negative,” Riddick described to Mays on the show.
The brain trust discusses play breakdowns, production, and situations that popped up during the game. Next up is choosing the important voices for the next game that they want to speak to.
“We give Phil the list of coaches and players that we think are important to talk to,” Riddick said. “He sends that into that team’s PR department, and then usually they say yay or no. Most teams are very, very good with giving us the players that we want because it’s better for them. They know the more we highlight them, the better it is for them.”
Riddick expounded more on the production meetings with coaches, including one with a particular Bay Area play-caller.
“I would say our meeting with [San Francisco 49ers head coach] Kyle Shanahan,” Riddick answered. “Before we did the Bills game down in Arizona because they had to move from Santa Clara because of what was happening was some of the best football conversations I’ve ever had in my life, quite honestly. From team building, coach-player relationships, X’s and O’s, the opponent, what he learned from his father, what he feels specifically that running backs need to have and why… It was fricken incredible, incredible.”
Riddick can be seen on Monday Night Football breaking down all the action throughout the 2021 NFL season. Listen to the full episode here.
Russ Heltman is a daily news writer for BSM. He is the morning host and producer for 89.3 WMKV in Cincinnati, OH. He also works in gameday communications for FC Cincinnati and additionally contributes to the AllBengals blog for Sports Illustrated. Russ can be found on Twitter @RussHeltman11 or you can reach him by email at Heltmandm@yahoo.com.
Women in Sports Media Celebrate Kate Scott Joining 76ers
“The west coast native is heading east to continue pursuing her dreams, and she received a ton of support from the women throughout sports media this week.”
Kate Scott is breaking new ground, and the sports broadcasting community took notice.
Scott joined Lisa Byington as the only full-time female voices of NBA franchises when the Philadelphia 76ers announced her addition this week. She replaces longtime TV play-by-play voice Marc Zumoff.
I'm here because of all the women who've come before me, who had it much harder than me, who proved we deserve a shot.
I look forward to earning the respect and trust of a phenomenal city and fanbase one call and game at a time.
“Being the voice of the 76ers is a dream come true,” Scott said to NBC Sports Philadelphia. “As a kid playing hoops alone in my driveway, I actually used to imagine I was Allen Iverson; the clock would wind down in my head, people would scream, ‘You’re too small! You don’t belong!’ But I’d fade away, hit the shot, and the crowd in my mind would go wild.
“To now get the opportunity to be the voice of that team is incredible, and I look forward to earning the respect and trust of the phenomenal city of Philadelphia, and 76ers fans everywhere, one call and one game at a time.”
Scott seemingly busts down barriers every year. She recently became the first woman to call Olympic men’s basketball as part of NBC Sports’ coverage of Tokyo 2020, where she covered both men’s and women’s games.
“Kate’s energy, passion, and tremendous knowledge of the game of basketball made her the ideal candidate to usher in a new era of 76ers basketball on NBC Sports Philadelphia,” Philadelphia 76ers President of Business Operations Chris Heck said. “We’re thrilled that she’ll call our city home and look forward to the lasting connections and memories she’ll make with the best fans in sports. Kate and Alaa [Abdelnaby] are a dynamic broadcast pairing that 76ers fans will enjoy watching on the call this season and beyond.”
The west coast native is heading east to continue pursuing her dreams, and she received a ton of support from women throughout sports media this week.
Congrats @katetscott!! You’ve been kicking ass, calling names & plays for years – just the next chapter for the epic story you are narrating. So proud to know you and call you a friend https://t.co/pepaA7YDzp
Congratulations!!! What a year this will be! So many talented women proving that hard work, tenacity and patience pays off! Good luck this season. Looking forward to hearing yours and @LisaByington’s calls this season! 🙌🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 @nbahttps://t.co/u8Tq8vhyHX
Russ Heltman is a daily news writer for BSM. He is the morning host and producer for 89.3 WMKV in Cincinnati, OH. He also works in gameday communications for FC Cincinnati and additionally contributes to the AllBengals blog for Sports Illustrated. Russ can be found on Twitter @RussHeltman11 or you can reach him by email at Heltmandm@yahoo.com.
Tom Brady going against his former team the New England Patriots is something that every NFL fan will be front and center next Sunday. It seems that ESPN is no exception, as they have announced that Sunday NFL Countdown show will be live from Gillette Stadium on October 3rd.
🏈 @ESPNNFL's Sunday NFL Countdown is hitting the road for Tom Brady's return to Foxborough!
Will ESPN bring in some Boston-centric guests? It is possible, although the Sunday NFL Countdown crew already features two former Patriots in Randy Moss and Tedy Bruschi and a former Boston College quarterback in Matt Hasselbeck. Even Rex Ryan is tangentially connected to the Patriots, having coached two of the team’s division rivals.
For the live show, ESPN is encouraging all fans to come out to watch free of charge starting at 10 a.m EST. For those who come an hour early to the show, there will be a giveaway starting at 9 a.m.
Kickoff for the actual game will be at 8:20 p.m EST on NBC. In that way, this won’t feel entirely different from College GameDay at ESPN, with the show in the morning before all of the kickoffs and the big game not until primetime.
Reice Shipley is a daily news writer and social media assistant for BSM. He is a graduate of Ithaca University, contributor to the Syracuse Mets, and aspires to work behind the scenes in sports media in the future. He can be found on Twitter @Reice_Shipley18 or you may reach him by email at RShipley@ithaca.edu.
