Mike Dougherty's Blog

“In space” cadets at the mike

October 24, 2009
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The announcers for this Arkansas-Mississippi football game in Oxford (for the so-called SEC Network) act as if they arrived about 15 minutes before game time.

I don’t know who they are and I don’t think they’ve favored one team or another, but the play-by-play guy has already confused his quarterbacks, calling Mississippi’s Jevan Snead “Ryan Mallett” during that opening drive. He has on numerous occasions mentioned that the ball carrier gained “two yards or maybe up to the line of scrimmage.”

I would rather he get it right by waiting another second than guess badly and then change it within the same sentence. … Maybe it’s just a personal thing, but if he’s reporting what’s happening to me, I would rather he get it right.

One more thing, why do so many announcers think they have to jump on the bandwagon when someone “creates” a cute word for another perfectly good term such as a receiver “runs well in space” instead of “runs well in the open.” It strikes me as just trying to show that he’s “cool” or “with it.”

Oh, they now have reminded me that the play-by-play announcer  is Dave Neal and the color commentator is former Heisman Trophy-winner Andre Ware.