Originally published on fellow Bloguin site, Randall Simon’s Sausages
We told you on Friday that we were inspired by a list of 32 of the best announcing calls from Joe Posnanski of Sports Illustrated. Our list on Friday took a look at 10 Not So Great Moments in announcing. Well, we’re not all doom and gloom and mockery here at RSS, although that’s what we largely do best. So, we’ve compiled a list of 10 more great announcing calls in sports. Some of these are personal favorites of ours, some have stood the test of time, and some recent entries should find their way into sportscasting lore. Let us know in the comments below what we missed or one of your personal favorites!
10) Yes Sir!
-Two simple words that meant so much to the golfing world when Jack Nicklaus was attempting to win the Masters at age 46 in 1986. His improbable Sunday back 9 run culminated on the 17th green with this iconic birdie putt that was met by the words from Verne Lundquist (an underrated figure on these lists)… yes sir!
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9) Send it in Jerome!
-Without a doubt, this is the shortest clip on our list at only 4 seconds, but a brief nugget of brilliance from the mercurial Bill Raftery. A lil onions with the backboard shattering Jerome Lane! Did you know… Lane attended St. Vincent-St. Mary high school in Akron? At least America doesn’t hate him too!
8) Make me a bicycle clown!!
-Randy Moller is a former NHL player who is currently the radio play by play man for the Florida Panthers. He has the unique habit of adding a pop culture reference after Panthers goals. This sort of strategy is slightly insane, but massively entertaining. Randy probably took one too many hits to the head in his playing days or too many punches to the face, but the results are a lot of fun for us! Why hasn’t NBC or Versus hired him? Did I mention there are other volumes on Youtube as well? My personal favorite is, “WE LANDED ON THE MOON!”
7) Gerrrrraaaaarrrrrrddddd!!
-It’s no secret that Martin Tyler is one of the best broadcasters in the world and is the voice of soccer. Heck, millions of people know him and Andy Gray via commentary in FIFA games from EA Sports. Gray and Tyler are at their absolute best in these 2 clips featuring Liverpool talisman Steven Gerrard. First, his goal in the ’05 Champions League against Olympiakos that saw the Reds advance to the knockout round and later win the trophy…
Then, the greatest goal I’ve ever seen scored in the last minute against West Ham United in the 2006 FA Cup Final to send the game to extra time and later win the trophy…
6) Old man Willie! He’s going all the way!
-I try to think back to a time when I wasn’t a sports fan. Ok, failed. But if I can pinpoint one image, one soundbyte that convinced me of the brilliance of sports it’s the NFL Films highlights of Super Bowl XI. Willie Brown picked off Fran Tarkenton late in the game and took it back for a TD. That wouldn’t be so special, but the camerawork of NFL Films, the symphonic music, and the call of Raiders play-by-play man Bill King make it stand the test of time. Looking into the eyes of Willie Brown and hearing “Old man Willie…” at the 5:20 mark made me a sports fan and made me hope for a day when my team could have that kind of moment…
5) It’s picked off! It’s picked off! It’s Tracy Porter again…
-… and wouldn’t you know that moment happened this year! Perhaps I’m a little biased with this ranking, but I’ve watched this clip about 44,000 times since last February and it never gets old. Saints radio man Jim Henderson has always been one of the best, and the excitement in his voice as Tracy Porter takes this pick 6 to the house against Peyton Manning sends chills up my spine. All those years of losing and waiting for that one moment in the sun burst forward in these few seconds.
4) Holy Buckeye!
-The ironic thing about this call is that most Buckeye fans hate Brent Musberger. Is it an inferiority complex? A thought that Brent has hated the Bucks since childhood? Money he has on the underdog? Any of these are reasonable scenarios, but Buckeye fans should remember that their favorite announcer was at the center of one of the great moments in OSU football history! The national championship season came down to one play. 4th & 1 at Purdue. Krenzel to Jenkins. Holy Buckeye!
3a) Hello Heisman…
-Keith Jackson is one of the best announcers of all-time and college football isn’t quite the same without him around. He’s maybe the one announcer I remember most from my childhood spending Saturday afternoons with. I can’t think of one announcer so identifiable with a sport from this generation of broadcasters. In the 3rd spot we feature two of his greatest calls. First up, and it pains me to say this as an Ohio native, Desmond Howard’s date with destiny.
3b) Touchdown! Caught by Westbrook for a touchdown! Incredible!
-Secondly, this hail mary pass from Kordell Stewart to Michael Westbrook is one of the great plays in college pig history, and it’s only made better with Keith Jackson at the mic.
2) Uhhh…. OHHHHH!!!!
-Let’s face it, this is Gus Johnson’s world and we’re just living in it. The man is the most entertaining pbp man in the biz and consistently shows why each March. There’s about a million different clips that we could put on here (most of them contained in the amazing Gus Remix), but his most recent work in this year’s March Madness from the Kansas State/Xavier classic is something to behold. Jordan Crawford’s redonkulous 3 in OT (at the 1:25 mark) is so fascinating because only Gus could scream/shout/grunt and turn it into a piece of announcing art.
1) Go Go USA!
-There’s just something about great patriotic sports moments that make them seem all the more special. Of course, Al Michaels’ famous “Do you believe in miracles?” line tops most lists, including SI’s… but could you imagine that a British play by play man announcing soccer of all things could find a place in the hearts of the most red blooded American? At the 2010 WC, the USA needed a goal to get into the knockout round. It looked bleak in extra time against Algeria, but then Landon Donovan scored, and British announcer Ian Darke, just hired by ESPN for the World Cup (now ESPN’s full time lead soccer announcer) gave us one of the great calls of all time.
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