Around the NFL Week 5

SS is right. Berman was at ESPN when no one had ever heard of the network. He was there when ESPN showed a lot of Aussie rules football because the major networks had a lock on the big time American sporting events.

I still miss the Aussie rules football coverage, 30 years later.

Berman's old-school colleague Gayle Gardner was also a pioneer, paving the way for today's female sportscasters. And she was hot.

You couldn't be more wrong. With all due respect. I mean I wasn't born in Bristol, but I do know a thing or two about how it evolved and the people who made it happen. Berman was doing the work of what about 20 people do now, back when ESPN was on trailers surrounded by swamps.

I said his effort and love for what he does are second to none. However our sports crazy nation needed an espn. The George Michael sports machine, as much as i loved it, wasnt enough to feed our sports crazed brains. I also gave him credit for landing the job in the first place.
Im just saying that Espn and the need for and timing of it all blew the hell up and took Berman with it. Not the other way around.
Edit: again not taking anything away from the blood sweat and tears he put into it.
He was in the rite place at the rite time. The nation was ripe for a sports only network. And good for him. Im sure he worked his ass off to help get it off the ground. Not saying he didnt.

I remember Aussie rules on espn, but would argue it was already a totally established brand even 20 or 30 years ago. Shoot I watched sportscenter with buddies every day after high school.

Man Mike Smith looks worried as hell about losing this game. As well he should.

Actually no he's not. For the record, I can't stand him on the air. His on-air act is tired, and was always tough to take when not in small doses. That said, what he did to grow ESPN (and sports media in general) is beyond compare. People talk about putting the work in, he really did. And he's actually quite a strong mentor off camera. I didn't ever have to directly experience it because we were in different fields so his influence and counseling for me was not like it was for his fellow on-air talent.

It's unfortunate that YouTube video has given people the impression that he's an asshole off camera, because it couldn't be further from the truth. The guys who are really assholes off camera are probably not the ones you think.

I thank Berman for everything he's done for the industry I work in, but also think it's time for him to pass the torch. Not an easy thing to do however.

I mean what people have said on here already is pretty much in line with what I agree with.

You say that he's not an asshole, but the videos that were released of Berman looked like they were from multiple days. It didn't look like he was having one bad day, and was being an a-hole, but that rather he might be a daily a-hole.

Sure, some of these guys on camera are a-holes off camera. Whether Berman is or isn't an a-hole isn't the full reason I hate the guy, its just a portion of the reason. His annoyance, which you agree with, is about 90% of the reason why I don't like him. Sure he helped build up ESPN, but that doesn't mean you work there until you die, there comes a when you step down. Bermans time came about 7 years ago. And the fact I see him in commercials now, doesn't help with the whole annoyance thing.

I remember Aussie rules on espn, but would argue it was already a totally established brand even 20 or 30 years ago. Shoot I watched sportscenter with buddies every day after high school.

20 years ago... sure. 30 years ago... Not a chance. 30 years ago, ESPN was only a few years old and was showing racquetball, hurling (sort of a field hockey thing), Aussie rules football and things of that nature. Sports Center showed promise, so they started repeating it over and over.

A deal that ESPN made with the NCAA for College Basketball to air games during march madness that the major networks werent showing got people talking about them (sometime in the very early 80's). Didnt make them much money, but got them recognized. It was college basketball 24/7 for a week or two that had people asking the cable networks to sign ESPN as a cable channel.

When they started, they didnt even call themselves ESPN. They called themselves the ESP Network. Which was confusing for something that was showing sports around the clock.

I remember Aussie rules on espn, but would argue it was already a totally established brand even 20 or 30 years ago. Shoot I watched sportscenter with buddies every day after high school.

It didn't really become "established" until around 1987 when it got the right to air NFL games. So nearly a decade after Berman arrived. And there were other networks that attempted to become sports networks and failed. For example, not many people know the original intention with USA Network was to make it a 24 hour sports network.

I think matty ice is overrated. I dont think he is a great qb.

I think he's good/ top 10. His team is having a bad year. They got rid of their best pass rusher and RT in Clabo. That defense is so depleted from losing Abraham and with injuries, that they can't stop anybody.

I had Atlanta making the playoffs this year. Now I'm inclined to put either 3 NFC north teams in, or 2 NFC North and 2 NFC West teams.

20 years ago... sure. 30 years ago... Not a chance. 30 years ago, ESPN was only a few years old and was showing racquetball, hurling (sort of a field hockey thing), Aussie rules football and things of that nature. Sports Center showed promise, so they started repeating it over and over.

A deal that ESPN made with the NCAA for College Basketball to air games during march madness that the major networks werent showing got people talking about them (sometime in the very early 80's). Didnt make them much money, but got them recognized. It was college basketball 24/7 for a week or two that had people asking the cable networks to sign ESPN as a cable channel.

When they started, they didnt even call themselves ESPN. They called themselves the ESP Network. Which was confusing for something that was showing sports around the clock.

You are correct. I remember that some people informally called ESPN "the basketball channel" in the early 80's.

I mean what people have said on here already is pretty much in line with what I agree with.

You say that he's not an asshole, but the videos that were released of Berman looked like they were from multiple days. It didn't look like he was having one bad day, and was being an a-hole, but that rather he might be a daily a-hole.

Sure, some of these guys on camera are a-holes off camera. Whether Berman is or isn't an a-hole isn't the full reason I hate the guy, its just a portion of the reason. His annoyance, which you agree with, is about 90% of the reason why I don't like him. Sure he helped build up ESPN, but that doesn't mean you work there until you die, there comes a when you step down. Bermans time came about 7 years ago. And the fact I see him in commercials now, doesn't help with the whole annoyance thing.

I don't know what point you're trying to make. But I'm moving on