Madden was voice of the common man


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Posted by madcityradio.com on April 17, 2009 at 12:25:20:

In Reply to: Legendary Football Announcer, John Madden, Retires posted by madcityradio.com on April 16, 2009 at 11:55:07:

Madden was voice of the common man
Mike Lucas � TCT 4/17/2009 6:21 am
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"The only yardstick for success our society has is being a champion. No one remembers anything else."

---- John Madden

The National Football League has been blessed with two distinctive and legendary "voices" that have helped identify and legitimize the product.

The late John Facenda was the voice of NFL films, the "Voice of God," while John Madden was the voice of the common man, the "Voice of Ordinary Joe."

Madden was a champion as a coach, the head coach of the Oakland Raiders, the 1976 Super Bowl champions.

Madden was also a champion as a television color analyst, championing the underdog, the grunts in the trenches.

The Big Man was our Batman.

Boom! Zonk? Whack!

Holy aerophobia, Big Man!

You will be missed.

One of my first reference points to the NFL was the play-by-play voice of Ray Scott, who mesmerized Cheeseheads with the simplicity of his call.

Madden was like that. His analysis was simple and to the point. He discarded FootballSpeak for MaddenSpeak.

As such, he was speaking to us.

All of us, regardless of gender, or level of commitment to the sport. He made the game come alive because his passion superseded his commentary.

The salty Al DeRogatis first caught my ear in the late '60s and early '70s. He had a unique broadcasting style which, in part, can be traced to his Jersey roots.

Sports Illustrated's pro football historian Paul Zimmerman ---- Dr. Z ---- ranked DeRogatis as the best of the best, the best color analyst of all time.

Not in my book. Madden is No. 1, followed by Don Meredith; the happy-go-lucky Dandy Don, who left an indelible mark on Monday Night Football.

Timing is everything. So is chemistry, and Meredith was the perfect complement to the irascible Howard Cosell, whose social consciousness was a critical element to the early success of MNF.

Cosell tended to rant.

Madden tended to reason.

"Self-praise is for losers," Madden once said. "Be a winner. Stand for something. Always have class. Be humble."

In sum, Madden on Madden.

So how will Cris Collinsworth stand up to the inevitable comparisons to Madden, the living TV legend that he will be now replacing in the NBC booth?

The best thing Collinsworth has going for him is that he's not a clone of Madden, he's not Madden the Sequel, he's not Madden Lite, or whatever you want to label his on-air approach and style.

Collinsworth is a blend of Meredith and Madden. And you can throw Cosell in the mix, too, because Collinsworth isn't afraid to speak his mind.

That's not a surprise since one of his earliest mentors was Bob Trumpy, who has never pulled a punch as an analyst.

NFL wide receiver/diva Terrell Owens wanted nothing to do with Collinsworth after the latter ripped T.O. for his petulant sideline behavior.

In this context, Collinsworth will bring a little edginess to the booth.

Collinsworth is a combination of Andy of Mayberry and Andy Rooney.

The mischievous twinkle in his eyes and the impish grin on his face are a confirmation of what we already know and like about Cris Collinsworth.

He's full of the devil, which should serve him nicely, since he's facing a helluva challenge.


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