For nearly four decades, Bob Costas was the face and voice of NBC Sports, covering nearly every major league and event. So some kid right now is doing AAA baseball, and hell be the voice someday of the Padres, the Mets, the Cubs, or whomever, and its still the same basic skill set. And I asked him every tough question that I could think of. So I dont know that I was always successful, but I must have been successful a good portion of the time. and DailyDispatch.com. Yes. So the more Costas talked definitively about the connection between football and brain damage, the more it created tension between him, his bosses and the NFL. Costas accepted the award from CLF to a standing ovation. Still, Gentile says, the NFL was "never really dictatorial, at least in my lifetime." NBC had the big events. We have to see how this plays out, and we have to see whether he can articulate something that is more nuanced and more convincing than his original statement. On the other hand, if any team over the last two years had signed Colin Kaepernick, although many of us would have supported that, there would have been huge outcries: Im burning my season tickets in front of the stadium. It's all simple and straightforward.". But, again, Id be the first person to say, Damn it, dont talk about that when Steph Curry is unleashing a three. Plus, I asked Goodell about it in December of 2010, in an on-field interview in Foxborough, and I talked about it on Meet the Press. I was an interview subject in documentaries about the C.T.E. The 2005 South Central graduate, who now serves as Hobart's offensive line coach, has always viewed life and football through the same lens. Costas repeatedly suggested that Outside the Lines reach out to his longtime NBC producer and one of his closest friends, Bruce Cornblatt, saying he would be an excellent resource who would be happy to talk. This time, though, he wrote it in advance to give his bosses an early look, recognizing it could create problems. My only regret about being part of the [Outside the Lines] story, and its a big one, not a small one, is that, to some people, it cast the NBC brass as the bad guys, and they arent. "My thought was, 'What line have I crossed?'". Not only are they good guys but theyre smart, good people. What some people seem to have overlooked is that I had not hosted a single football game for NBC in more than a year. 18Ryan Ellis Jr.5'10"150 58Daymn Holt So.5'4"230 Bob Foster 19Josh Tejeda So.5'11"150 59Cameron Smith Jr.5'10"180 Doug Bloom 20Daemarius Barber Jr.5'9"120 62Caleb Turner So.5'8"180 Josh Mehay 21Hayden Homoky Sr. 6'2"160 64William Hall Sr.5'4"220 Brian Wesley 22Brandon Marciniak Sr.5'6"150 65Will Dopiriak So.5'10"175 Steve Balash CBS almost proved nobody could," says former TV executive Rick Gentile, who was with CBS from 1982 to 1998 and oversaw coverage of some of the world's biggest sporting events, including several Super Bowls. "I think the words were, 'You've crossed the line,'" says Costas, who says he no longer has the text. The Denver Broncos fired Coach Vic Fangio after three losing seasons. Thats an affront to anyones intelligence. One hundred eighty-one pounds., Bob Foster, Whose Left Hook Decimated All but the Heavyweights, Dies at 76, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/23/sports/bob-foster-whose-left-hook-decimated-all-but-the-heavyweights-dies-at-76.html. Bob Foster weighed 192 lbs (87 kg) when playing. But if we've delivered them in a denomination that does not please you, we're terribly sorry, we'll back the truck up, and we'll bring it to you in 20s and 50s if that's the way you'd prefer it. to remove posts that include foul language, personal or abusive attacks, or are By the time the divisional playoffs rolled around -- less than two months after his "Concussion" essay was killed -- Costas had had enough. Career Review. He joined Joe Judge of the Giants, Brian Flores of the Dolphins, Matt Nagy of the Bears and Mike Zimmer of the Vikings, who all were fired earlier in the week. The New York Daily News asked NBC for comment, and a spokesman responded, "Bob's opinions are his own, and they do not represent those of the NBC Sports Group" -- prompting a story from Raissman under the headline, "NBC throws Bob Costas under the bus and in the process sends warning to rest of its talent.". But what about the power dynamic between the leagues and television, and how ESPN may have changed that. Foster won 56 bouts (46 by knockout), lost eight and fought one draw and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. I think what Kaepernick did had a noble intent, and he deserves credit for that. October 15,1886 30-11-1. The bout, at Madison Square Garden, was the first time that Tiger had been knocked out. They have instituted rules changes aimed at making the game safer, awareness programs aimed at youth football, and stricter head trauma protocols, which, even if they don't always work, at least appear to be a step in the right direction. Is this at least in part because a place like ESPN is both a partner with these networks as well as an entity reporting on them? I was part of that. Bring out the hearts and the tinkling piano music, because it really is a touching tableau.". [The former N.B.A. People are evidently more comfortable with literal criminals than they are with someone who protests peacefully and in a dignified way. If I didnt have that platform, then I couldnt have made the same impact. There was a Seinfeld episode where Jerry makes some joke about how he and his fiance are having the only mutual breakup in human history, the joke being that no one actually has a mutual breakup. In a recent interview with ESPNs Outside the Lines, Costas said that his frequent criticisms of the N.F.L.which is not only the most watched entertainment in America but also the only one of the Big Three sports leagues that NBC has the rights tocreated tensions with the network and contributed to his departure. commissioners] Bud Selig, Rob Manfred never said no. How much did Bob Foster weigh when playing? team to change leadership, leaving the league with just one head coach who is Black. All in the family: how three generations of Jaquezes have ruled West Coast basketball. The essay, which has never been made public but was provided to Outside the Lines, began with a description of Omalu as "the neuropathologist who clearly demonstrated what just about everybody now understands -- but which for years the league denied: There is a direct and often tragic link between football and brain damage.". And occasionally they did journalistic stuff, and they still do. How many games did Bob Foster play? The Giants havent made the playoffs since the 2016 season and havent won a playoff game in a decade. "Between all that exposure, the audience trusted him. "It was a very, very fruitful run of nearly four decades, and I have nothing but respect and appreciation for all of it.". coaches who find themselves out a job now that the regular season has ended. But Costas always had aspirations beyond sportscasting. I would not put him with Curt Flood. That is an absurd misimpression that somehow has grown out of this. BY THE TIME NBC was officially signing its new deal, Costas says he had invoked a clause in his contract that would allow him to step away from football and the Olympics to take on an emeritus role. I had no problem with it. Zimmer finishes his tenure with a record of 72-56-1. They turned to Andy Dalton and the rookie Justin Fields this season with mostly poor results. For the better part of a year, during dozens of conversations with Outside the Lines -- short ones, long ones, in person, on the phone -- Costas made a point of noting how, in spite of everything he was saying, he had no issues with anyone at NBC. ESPN ended up running excerpts from the film and a companion book, as planned, and it continues to cover the concussion issue to this day. But he could not make a successful leap to the heavyweight division, which offered the biggest purses. The team began the season with the journeyman Tyrod Taylor starting at quarterback, giving way to a battle for efficacy in early December when the rookie Davis Mills was marginally better in relief of Taylor, who had injured his hamstring. Now, I dont care how many chartered planes are involved. Its just timing and leverage, he once said in accounting for his fearsome left hook. "Some of this is like blinking in a hostage video. Here was the preeminent voice of televised sports, looking straight into the camera, telling millions of fans who tuned in that he, they -- all of us -- were essentially complicit in the human destruction caused by a gladiator sport. And I was excited about that prospect. He remade late-night television, but there were still time constraints and space constraints. immediately shot it down. +44 (0)7540 787812 frances@constructionandbuildingphotography.com. "Dick would have preferred to give the league a little easier ride," Costas says. And the following year, on "The Last Word," he called the sport "inherently violent and brutal" and suggested that head trauma could lead to off-field criminal conduct by some players. There was never an issue with Bob's willingness to speak his mind. ", Wladika recalled an incident during the 1993 NBA Finals when Costas interviewed then-commissioner David Stern in the throes of gambling allegations involving Michael Jordan. "I was right about steroids in baseball, and I was the only network broadcaster who even mentioned it. NBC declined to license ESPN its footage involving Costas in a video version of this story that aired on E:60. I had already opted out, and the only reason they had asked me to host that one Super Bowl was because, in an odd bit of scheduling, NBC had the Super Bowl on Sunday and the Olympics in South Korea started on Thursday, and Mike Tirico had succeeded me in both those roles. Thats a badge of honor? Fighting in a division with an upper limit of 175 pounds, Foster was unusually tall, at 6 feet 3 inches, though slender, and he had long arms. We present them here for purely educational purposes. By 2027, according to a USA Today report citing the sports analytics firm Navigate Research, that number could hit $17 billion -- meaning each of the league's 32 teams would pocket more than a half-billion dollars from TV every year. Its not supposed to have a lethargic pace, and thats what Manfred and company and the Players Association, if theyre enlightened about it, have to grapple with. Like other clubs, the Giants may focus first on finding a general manager before hiring Judges replacement. Which non-quarterback group will define each top-25 team's season? I did a couple of essays for them, subsequent to that. Find out more. Do these things that you just brought up make you think that he should not be grouped with a number of other athletes throughout history whom you would probably think of as heroic political spokespeople? You know the list. The very fact that somebodys talking about this indicates the impact that it had. He believed it was his responsibility to address uncomfortable truths, or "elephants in the room," as he often called them. . Some of what it was able to do must have stuck to the wall, or else you wouldnt be talking to me. "My response was, 'The purpose of it is so I can sleep at night,' you know?" By signing up, you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement. Screw him. Yet, when domestic abusers or people with long rap sheets bounce from one team to another, there arent picket lines, by and large, outside the stadium. Its college sports. Costas told Outside the Lines that his credibility -- and, frankly, that of the network -- relied on his willingness to address hard topics. He began boxing in the Golden Gloves at 13, played football in high school, and then joined the Air Force and fought in service bouts. unit 3: personal and business finance grade boundaries. Says Costas: "Look, the NFL isn't just the most important sports property, it's the single-most important property in all of American television. We conducted polls at Seton Hall and you could see the numbers go up of parents who didn't want their kids to play football. Over the previous decade, Costas had become the face of football on NBC, hosting one of TV's most-watched programs, "Sunday Night Football." IN DECEMBER 2015, the movie "Concussion" was set for a Christmas Day release in nearly 3,000 theaters across America. And thats the truth. Costas says he never heard from anyone with the NFL complaining about his statements, nor does he say his bosses at NBC protested or suggested they had ever been contacted by league officials. Do you ever think about how your career would have been different if you had come up in this era, where you would have to have a social-media presence and prove yourself in the current media environment? It's all about preparedness and adaptability. The Official Twitter Account of the Hobart Statesmen - 12x Liberty League Champions - NCAA Elite Eight 2012 & 2014 #GoStatesmen #TheHobartWay. Baseballs supposed to have a pleasing, leisurely pace. "I recall the phrase, 'It's a six-hour, daylong celebration of football, and you're not the right person to celebrate football,'" Costas says. The diversity of people Costas interviewed over the years is mind-boggling, speaking to his intelligence and utility: From Johnny Cash to Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Tom Jones to Pierre Salinger, Gary Busey to Ozzy Osbourne, William Shatner to Charlton Heston. "That was for the 50th Super Bowl in 2016. ", He then went on a nearly one-and-a-half minute riff about football and brain damage that was punctuated by this statement: "The reality is that this game destroys people's brains -- not everyone's, but a substantial number. That some soon-to-be-forgotten, regular-season football game in October should actually be important enough to divert the voice of the World Series from Boston to Houston before he goes to Los Angeles for Game Three. These are partnerships, but they tilt heavily toward the league's Park Avenue offices. Is football at a place now where its power to demand this stuff is unparalleled in the history of modern sports? And I let them know, in 2015, that it was my intention to opt out of both and to enter into an emeritus clause in my contract. All rights reserved. What I tried to do was, when there was an interview that could be done, I tried to ask the pertinent questions, and when there was an opportunity for an essay, I tried to present my best understanding of that issue, maybe in a way that others werent inclined to doon the network level. We welcome comments from registered users. He served as the head football coach at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) from 1989 to 1992, compiling a record of 30-11-1. In speaking with Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News, he said of the league's promotion: "It's a little much to take, while watching a game, that you are constantly bombarded with 'Football is Family' [commercials]. Youve got a lot of stuff coming from a lot of different directions. David Culley, who won four games in one season as the Houston Texans head coach, was fired Thursday, adding to a growing list of N.F.L. But the agreement included an understanding that if NBC should get baseball, I would come back. It was a devastating blow for the network, and it literally took years and years to pull out." NBC was scheduled to air Indianapolis at Pittsburgh on Dec. 6. I had no stake in doing it, but it was I who first suggested that we might have reached a point of diminishing returns. The former quarterback turned broadcaster has been dubbed Romostradamus for his ability to predict plays before they happen. But it would have been a legitimate interview of a newsmaker. Nothing harshly critical of the I.O.C., other Olympic organizations or sponsors is said on the special with Bob Costas as host. The spots were designed, in part, to counter negative publicity that had come to surround the league, especially around head trauma. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. What was surprising about Costas was not that he was concerned that he might offend anyone at NBC, but how concerned he was. The team announced that it would retain General Manager Chris Grier. Some of it was solipsistic, but it was amusing in its own way because you went to Bill Simmons for Bill Simmons. IN THE SPRING of 2005, NBC, led by Ebersol, agreed to pay the NFL $600 million per year to televise its games on Sunday nights. Game Three of the World Series. says Vince Wladika, who spent 11 years as a communications executive at Fox and NBC, working with Costas from 1989 to 1994. When the interview ended, Costas says Ebersol expressed his displeasure. assistant coach, David Culley was hired for the Texans head coach job in January 2021. He hosted his first Olympics in 1992, in the midst of Juan Antonio Samaranch's 21-year run as IOC president. IN DECEMBER, COSTAS was inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame. Would you fit well in the N.B.A. Bob Foster, a devastating puncher who was one of boxings most dominant light-heavyweight champions but failed in his quest to capture a heavyweight title when he was knocked out by Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali, died on Saturday in Albuquerque. Why Tony Romo Is a Genius at Football Commentary. that its relatively meaningless Thursday-night game in October should get in the way of the World Series? Why didnt more of these good people want to have this type of coverage? Do you think that thats a fair criticism, in either case? Everyone walks on eggshells around the NFL.". 3 NCAC (1989-1990, 1992) Bob Foster (born January 12, 1941) is an American football coach. Within an hour, Costas says he received a text from Flood, who oversees sports production for NBC. He had suggestions for how to phrase and contextualize certain elements of the piece, and he regularly lamented that some people might perceive him as bitter -- again, despite regular assurances that the story would not reflect him as bitter. The answer came back quickly: Goodell wouldn't do it. Pelt me with cotton balls?. Because of the stakes, the NFL has enormous influence over how networks portray the sport. For nearly four decades, Bob Costas was the face and voice of NBC Sports, covering nearly every major league and event. And when, in 2015, NBC, understandably, because they have their prerogatives and I have my own concerns and they dont always coincide, said that they couldnt air the proposed essay that would have roughly coincided with the premire of the Will Smith concussion movieit was at that point that I realized, since the reason for that was that they were in negotiations for Thursday Night Football, that those windows of opportunity to address these subjects in front of the largest possible audience were closing and getting ever narrower. We're very disappointed that after 40 years with NBC, he has chosen to mischaracterize and share these private interactions.". Foster became engulfed in South Africas apartheid drama in December 1973 when he defended his title in Johannesburg against the South African Pierre Fourie in what was described as the countrys first professional interracial boxing match. championship. "More and more is being learned about the now-undeniable link between concussions especially repeat concussions -- and subsequent problems with dementia, depression, early onset Alzheimer's, an entire array of serious medical problems stemming from an injury that is more common in football than in most other sports. "As soon as we lost the NFL, we lost like 16 of our best [affiliate] stations to Fox. Game Stats Season Stats Nov 1, 2022 @ 5:55am 42-25 (W) Hobart @ Highland On 10/28, the Hobart varsity football team won their away playoff game against Highland (IN) by a score of 42-25. In a surprising move, the Dolphins dismissed Brian Flores on Monday despite a 9-8 season, and a seven-game winning streak that nearly vaulted Miami into the playoffs. The next day, in an email to Sports Business Daily, Costas wrote, "The decision was mutually agreeable, and not only do I not have a problem with it, I am actually happy about it. Hobart's stats have been entered for the 42-25 win @ Highland on 10/28/2022 7:00 PM. Well, thats a different argument. Were right in the middle of the game.. There was a piece on Deadspin titled Bob Costas Wants to Have it Both Ways. The argument was essentially that you have been criticizing football while also, until fairly recently, being part of football broadcasts. His time in the spotlight, from the early nineteen-eighties to this past. And dont talk about any of this stuff when Tom Brady is conducting another last-minute drive or Patrick Mahomes is doing something incredible.. This was not the norm across all sports. It doesnt mean that he cant, if he should return to the field, take a knee if he feels like taking a knee. Fosters death was confirmed by his son Nelson Smith, who said Foster had been in failing health. ', "And it's just as important to the networks that the NFL continue to be the NFL.". So they asked me to come back and, in the spirit of the emeritus agreement, I said, Sure, Ill come back and Ill host the Super Bowl. I wouldnt have made one penny more or one penny less if I did it or didnt do it. The Broncos were in contention for a playoff spot heading into the last quarter of the season, thanks to one of the leagues top defenses, but then lost their last four games.