clarinews@clarinet.com (JEFF HASEN, UPI Sports Writer) (01/12/90)
LOS ANGELES (UPI) -- No matter which teams win this weekend, Brent Musburger sees little hope for the AFC champion in the Super Bowl. ``The NFC clearly is superior at the top,'' said the host of the ``NFL Today'' on CBS. ``I think the AFC might be better at the bottom, but the teams that got into the playoffs in the NFC are superior to those of the AFC. ``There are four or five NFC teams that would be favored over whoever wins the Denver-Cleveland (AFC championship) game. I'm not sure New Orleans can't play with either one of them. But it's cyclical. It'll change.'' CBS has the Super Bowl telecast, so Musburger would have no reason to hype Sunday's NFC title game between the defending champion San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams. ``I think it's the Super Bowl,'' he said. ``These are the two best teams in the NFL this year.'' Musburger forecasts a close game, but wonders how the Rams can pull off another upset. ``The question is whether the Rams can keep up this incredible streak on the road,'' he said. ``This time, their opponent knows them well. There's no question that the Rams have talent. We'll have to see how much they have left.'' San Francisco reached the title game with a 41-13 thumping of Minnesota. ``The 49ers had just a morning romp,'' Musburger said. ``They showed they have a complete football team. Their field goal kicker (Mike Cofer) had some problems but they were attributed to the long snapper. ``I think the teams can top the two regular-season games with one better. The stakes are higher now. I can see a win in the fourth quarter and it'll likely be a great ending.'' Musburger gives the Browns a decent shot against the Broncos because they survived in the AFC Central, which he believes might be the strongest division in the league. _S_w_i_t_c_h_i_n_g_ _c_h_a_n_n_e_l_s_: Joe Garagiola's return to baseball play-by-play pleases new partner Joe Torre. ``Catchers are the smartest people in the world,'' said Torre, who will work with fellow former catcher Garagiola on California Angels cable telecasts. ``They'll just have to make the broadcast booth a little bigger to accomodate both of us. ``I've admired Joe's work for a number of years. When I started breaking into broadcasting, I received tips from Joe from time to time.'' Garagiola, NBC's long-time baseball voice, resigned from the network before last season after failing to get a quick commitment for a new contract... CBS boxing analyst Gil Clancy returns to the corner Monday night when heavyweights Gerry Cooney and George Foreman meet in Atlantic City, N.J. Clancy has spent two months training Cooney. ``I just wanted to help the kid,'' Clancy said... Aging running back O.J. Anderson of the New York Giants spent the season making an impression on everyone but CBS' Dick Butkus, who last week called him ``Armstrong''... Marv Albert, who is in his 25th year as radio voice of the New York Rangers, will team with John Davidson and Mike Emrick on NBC's telecast of the Jan. 21 NHL All-Star Game from Pittsburgh. Davidson is an analyst on Rangers cablecasts. Emrick, who will report from behind the benches, does play-by-play on SportsChannel America and Philadelphia Flyers cable telecasts. _a_d_v_._ _f_o_r_ _f_r_i_,_ _j_a_n_._ _1_2
clarinews@clarinet.com (JEFF HASEN, UPI Sports Writer) (01/18/90)
LOS ANGELES (UPI) -- Just when it appeared juggling acts and dancing bears were becoming a trend on Super Bowl pregame shows, CBS decides to deal strictly with the game. ``It's a football show on pro football's biggest day,'' CBS Sports Executive Producer Ted Shaker said this week. ``We're not going to do a bunch of talent challenges or silent minutes. That's never been our style.'' Michael Weisman, the former NBC Sports executive producer, introduced in 1986 the silent minute in which the screen went blank and last year a theatrical talent competition among NFL players. In hopes of keeping the two hours moving, Shaker has broken the show into four parts. The first 30 minutes will review the past season, the second 30 minutes will look at the 1980s and glance toward the `90s. Half of the second hour features a chronicle of the final two days of preparation and a segment from Leningrad with a platoon of Marines. The final 30 minutes will focus on the matchup. Shaker said he is not bothered by the perception that the Super Bowl will be a one-sided bore. ``This game has become so much a part of the American culture,'' he said. ``The whole country almost comes to a stop. It's an unofficial national holiday. ``All we can ask for is an exciting game. Maybe in the long run all the talk of the 49ers' dominance will help to motivate the Broncos. But people are going to watch the Super Bowl regardless of who plays in it.'' Super Bowl ratings peaked in 1982 when San Francisco's 26-21 victory over Cincinnati brought a a 49.1 Nielsen number for CBS. Last year's 20-16 win by the 49ers over the Bengals earned NBC a 43.5. ``It's been between 42 and 46 the last few years,'' CBS Sports President Neal Pilson said. ``I'd anticipate the same rating for this one.'' The pregame show Jan. 28 begins at 3 p.m. EST. Switching channels: Pilson refused to speculate on upcoming negotiations for NFL rights. It has been reported CBS will bid for Monday night football, an ABC institution for two decades. ``I'm not prepared to discuss what we're doing on Monday night football or Sunday afternoon football,'' he said. ``What about the current package (where CBS has the desirable NFC rights)? What about our Monday night (prime time) schedule where we're doing quite well, thank you?'' NBC is expected to push for the NFC package when the talks begin following the Super Bowl XXIV. ... The ACE awards, trying to become cable's version of the Emmys, have gained in prestige, but can they be taken seriously when rookie Benny Parsons of ESPN wins for best sports analyst and Paul Ryden of TBS gets the nod for sports show host? The cable year belonged to Chris Berman, who incidentally has never won an ACE award. Berman's ``NFL GameDay'' did take the sports news series category. ... Dan Dierdorf, who had removed the ``oohs'' and ``aahs'' from his fight desription in recent ABC bouts, reverted to bad form during the pay-per-view telecast of George Foreman vs. Gerry Cooney. Showtime's delayed telecast will be shown twice -- including Saturday night at 9 p.m. in CST and 10 p.m. elsewhere. ... John Madden of CBS takes a critical view of football betting lines. ``I've always thought they were stupid,'' he said. ``I never understood it when I was a coach. I never knew what it was. It seems like the coaches and players are in one game and someone is betting on another game. _A_d_v_a_n_c_e_ _f_o_r_ _F_r_i_d_a_y_,_ _J_a_n_._ _1_9
clarinews@clarinet.com (JEFF HASEN, UPI Sports Writer) (02/01/90)
LOS ANGELES (UPI) -- Those crazies with insatiable appetites for sports news can now gorge themselves on Mizlou's fun-and-games version of CNN's ``Headline News.'' Through updated 30-minute slices around the clock, the Sports News Network premise is programming on demand -- giving fans scores and highlights when and how often they supposedly want them. ``The service is designed for sports fans looking to have sports news at their fingertips,'' said Jon Steinlauf, SNN executive vice-president. ``The mandate we see is to take sports fans all over the world to cover the top stories. If you spend 30 minutes with our service, you'll be fully informed.'' Cable viewers already have ``SportsCenter'' three times daily on ESPN and similar half-hour shows twice nightly on CNN's primary network. Both networks also have shown a willingness to break into regular programming for live remote or studio reports. ESPN also updates scores at the top and bottom of each hour every weeknight and all day on weekends. SNN promises to lead each half hour with four to five minutes of headlines, then offer analysis or head to a stadium or news conference following a break. The balance of the 30 minutes will be filled with highlights, features and scores. ``Each half hour will be different,'' Steinlauf said. ``There will be new talent behind the desk and we'll change the interviews.'' Terry Chick, a former CNN sports anchor, has the most prominent role -- working prime time shifts with a variety of partners. Among others hired are former ABC Sports Olympic anchor Becky Dixon, ex-ESPN staffer Karie Ross and Kevin Christopher of TBS Sports. Analysts signed are Mickey Mantle for baseball, Larry Csonka for NFL, Vic Braden for tennis and Harvey Pack for horse racing. ``We want the service to appeal to the knowledgable sports fan,'' Steinlauf said. ``We can't have mispronunciations of names.'' ``Headline News'' launched Dec. 31, 1981, with 800,000 cable homes. It reaches 40 million American households today, is seen in U.S. hotel rooms and in 75 countries via an international feed. SNN said it had 5 million homes -- predominately in the Northeast and Midwest -- on line for its debut Thursday. Much of the rest of the country remained without it. ``We feel it will generate a lot of momentum based on its quality and the sports fan's ability to receive it,'' Steinlauf said. ``We think the big cities will be in the fold first. Hopefully it will be well-distributed some time in 1990. These things take time. We're not going to set the world on fire in 1990. ``The format, if presented right, has the potential to be a leading service in basic cable, alongside the majors. We're in it for the long-term. We feel it will be appreciated and become part of the mainstream.'' Switching channels: Anyone scorched by Hector Camacho's dance-athon with Ray Mancini last year will ignore Saturday night's pay-per-view event pitting the self-proclaimed ``Macho Man'' against Vinny Pazienza. Mancini is a ringside analyst. Promoters bill it as ``Put up or shut up.'' The tip is ``Pass up. ...'' Former NBC anchor Bill Macatee, out of work since ``USA Today on TV'' was canceled last year, has signed to host the USA Network's golf coverage. Macatee's first assignment is the cable network's early-round telecasts of the AT&T National Pro-Am at Pebble Beach, Calif. ... Interesting that CBS made mention of the competition before Sunday's Super Bowl. Will McDonough reported that San Francisco quarterback Joe Montana got inspiration by cranking ABC's ``Monday Night Football'' opening theme on a tape player. ... Anne Montgomery, an anchor-reporter on KSTP in Phoenix since 1987, will join ESPN in late February as a late-night ``SportsCenter'' anchor. _A_d_v_a_n_c_e_ _f_o_r_ _F_r_i_d_a_y