Alright guys,
With the First pick in the SE Broadcast Team Draft,
tuq and I have selected...
Al Michaels
With his wide range of sports broadcasting history, including national broadcasts of all of the four major U.S. sports, we felt that he was simply too valuable to not snag with #1. His broadcast partners throughout the years have been a hodgepodge of former players, coaches, well-known minds of the game(s), and Dennis Miller. Throughout it all, however, Michaels still seems to mesh effectively with whoever any network places beside him, creating an efficient and exciting broadcast. To go along with his superb work in the broadcast booth, Michaels is also a valuable in-studio host, possibly making him one of the most versatile broadcasters available. As far as our network's coverage goes, this means he would be able to have a role in almost every broadcast, even those which he may not be best-suited to call such as Golf (although I definitely wouldn't put it past him).
Here is a history of Michaels' broadcasting career, per Wikipedia:
From these various career stops, Michaels has provided us with some of the most memorable calls in broadcasting history, some of which will be shared below:
2004: NBA Western Conference Semifinals, Spurs vs. Lakers - Derek Fisher scores at the buzzer!
In what proved to be an amazing game, highlighted by Tim Duncan's fade-away jumper from the top of the key which left the Lakers 0.4 seconds to work with, Al Michaels and the rest of San Antonio sat
stunned after Derek Fisher threw up a last-second prayer.
2000: Monday Night Football - HE DID WHAT?
Facing a 3rd & 4 from the 43 yard-line with 11:33 left in overtime, Brett Favre dropped back and felt the pressure of the rush and seemingly floated one up for grabs, in the direction of
Antonio Freeman. After some indecisiveness at first, replays clearly showed that Freeman had caught the ball without it ever touching the Lambeau tundra, and the Packers would win the barn-burner of a game 26-20.
1989: World Series - I'll tell you what, we're having an Earth.....
With Tim McCarver going over highlights from the previous game's action, the now infamous
Loma Prieta Earthquake struck California, in the middle of the World Series no less. Michaels seemed to remain calm in front of the mic, merely telling us that the broadcast would return momentarily as many across the country wondered what exactly had happened.
1986: American League Championship Series - Dave Henderson, its a long way from Seattle!
The 1986 ALCS was one that saw the California Angels come within
one strike of their first ever World Series appearance, but just as Donnie Moore delivered the 1-2 offering, Dave Henderson swooped in with the following statement:
He launched a fork-ball over the fence, giving Boston the lead after a four-run ninth. Boston would go on to win the game in 11 innings, and the Series in 7 games. Upon the final out, Michaels exclaimed: "The Red Sox can go from last rites to the World Series...and they do!"
1980: Winter Olympic Games, United States vs. USSR - Do you believe in miracles? YES!
Last, but certainly not least, we leave you with Al Michaels' most memorable call of his broadcasting career, which came at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. Teamed with Ken Dryden, Michaels prepared to broadcast a game which at the outset few realized would be one of the most memorable events in American sporting history. For space purposes, I won't quote
this article, but it's an excellent read on the team and the events that occurred leading up to and including the game against the USSR. Memorable calls from that game include
Mike Eruzione's goal to put the U.S. ahead 4-3, and of course the
last minutes leading up to the U.S. victory. Couldn't find much of the Gold-Medal contest against Finland, but
here is the tie-breaking goal, called by Michaels, which would lead to the eventual U.S. Gold Medal.
In closing, Al Michaels has served the test of time as one of the best broadcasters on television, and his versatility and presentation remain top-notch, something that any network would aspire for in their top-broadcaster.
The tuq/cwicemvp12 Broadcast Network (TCBN?):
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