Grading Bob’s call

#78
#78
BruisedOrange said:
The worst thing about the radio broadcasts, last year and again this year, is that Pat repeatedly steps on Bob's call by just reacting in real-time rather than letting the play get described to the listener, and then providing his color after the fact.

Bob: "Sampson breaks it outside at the 20... gets hit... bounces off..."

Pat: [interrupting] "TOUCHDOWN!" [reacting like a fan instead of playing his part on the broadcast team]

Bob: [continuing to let the listeners know what happened] "... stiff-arms the cornerback... takes a hit from the safety... spins away... dives toward the end zone... HE'S IN! TOUCHDOWN, TENNESSEE!"

How would people feel if watching the game on TV, when Sampson got to the 20 yard line, the video suddenly dropped its 5-second delay and jumped ahead to show Dylan in the endzone? In effect, that's what Pat is doing to the listener.
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That's not on Pat imo, it's on Bob. You can hear the crowd cheer long before Bob fumbles through his vague explanation of what happened. I appreciate Pat telling us what happened while Bob is still trying to figure out which of his catch phrases he is going to use to describe the play. Bob is slower than a 7 year itch. A kicker could kick a field goal from across the river before Bob could figure out if a 20yd field goal is good or not.
 
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#79
#79
UTK said:
Honestly do you even need one? Enthusiasm is a universal language, Carlos is awesome at what he does
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Juan’s calls are fun to listen to as a novelty. If I’m listening to the game on the radio or watching on TV, I need a bit more than screaming.

But I get it, everyone has a style they like.
 
#80
#80
I wish I knew Spanish and I would listen to Carlos. Not a fan of Bob, never have been and never will be. He is extraordinarily dull and boring.
 
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#81
#81
Y'all who are old enough... you do recognize that we don't remember what John Ward's calls sounded like for every 2-yard run off tackle, or incompleted pass. What we remember are the special calls, because they were special--they stood out from the average call of the average play
...which I'm pretty sure were called by John Ward the same way Bob calls 'em today.

Frankly, when I've listened to old John Ward broadcasts, he seemed to purposefully set the energy level low so that when something did happen, it sounded twice as exciting. A well-called game should be like an action movie--if it's constant screaming and explosions, it gets dull and predictable. You need the lulls to appreciate the crescendo.

I think us old timers can be guilty of remembering only the decades of compiled crescendos, and then comparing others against that cherry-picked, memory-edited, sample.
 
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#83
#83
AdoptedVOL said:
Juan’s calls are fun to listen to as a novelty. If I’m listening to the game on the radio or watching on TV, I need a bit more than screaming.

But I get it, everyone has a style they like.
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He’s actually very good at a painting details of what’s happening in the game. lol he just actually shows appropriate emotion during big moments in the game.
 
#84
#84
BruisedOrange said:
Y'all who are old enough... you do recognize that we don't remember what John Ward's calls sounded like for every 2-yard run off tackle, or incompleted pass. What we remember are the special calls, because they were special--they stood out from the average call of the average play
...which I'm pretty sure were called by John Ward the same way Bob calls 'em today.

Frankly, when I've listened to old John Ward broadcasts, he seemed to purposefully set the energy level low so that when something did happen, it sounded twice as exciting. A well-called game should be like an action movie--if it's constant screaming and explosions, it gets dull and predictable. You need the lulls to appreciate the crescendo.

I think us old timers can be guilty of remembering only the decades of compiled crescendos, and then comparing others against that cherry-picked, memory-edited, sample.
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Agree 100% here. We only really remember John Ward for the big play calls.
I also agree that Mr. Ward was masterful at keeping the energy level in check so that when someting exciting did happen, it made it really exciting and fun to listen.

I tend to give Bob a pass because in the landscape of school paid radio play by play announcers, he sits somewhere in the middle of the pack - it just is what it is until he hangs up the microphone and the next guy comes along.

FWIW - due to them being so crazy, unexpectedly good this year, I've been listening to a lot of Indiana games on the radio as I get ready for UT games or do yard work or whatever.
If you have never heard the man, Google or YouTube Don Fischer, Indiana University and listen to some of them calls...thr man is a true master that knows how to work the art !!!
 
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#85
#85
BruisedOrange said:
Y'all who are old enough... you do recognize that we don't remember what John Ward's calls sounded like for every 2-yard run off tackle, or incompleted pass. What we remember are the special calls, because they were special--they stood out from the average call of the average play
...which I'm pretty sure were called by John Ward the same way Bob calls 'em today.

Frankly, when I've listened to old John Ward broadcasts, he seemed to purposefully set the energy level low so that when something did happen, it sounded twice as exciting. A well-called game should be like an action movie--if it's constant screaming and explosions, it gets dull and predictable. You need the lulls to appreciate the crescendo.

I think us old timers can be guilty of remembering only the decades of compiled crescendos, and then comparing others against that cherry-picked, memory-edited, sample.
Click to expand...

Still waiting on a Bob crescendo.
 
#89
#89
Tbh honest... He's got a good radio voice... But he is terrible at painting the picture and energy in big moments
 
#90
#90
Bob does a great job. It’s easy to pick at him when comparing him to John but that’s unfair and unreasonable. Bob struggled with pronunciation in the past but he’s worked hard to get players names right the last few years.

His basketball calls are second to none and that includes John’s.

I’ll be synching his broadcast to the tv from now own since I’ve downloaded synchmygame. No more McElroy for me.
 
#91
#91
Inaccuracy is Bumbling Bobs biggest issue. He can describe action on the field. Except when you line it up with the actual play, he misses players name, field position, yards to gain, time on clock, the actual desceiption of the play, etc.

Excitement is his second . He's dull and mundane. As one poster said, he tries to be neutral at times. Just let it go...be a TN homer.
 
#92
#92
BruisedOrange said:
Y'all who are old enough... you do recognize that we don't remember what John Ward's calls sounded like for every 2-yard run off tackle, or incompleted pass. What we remember are the special calls, because they were special--they stood out from the average call of the average play
...which I'm pretty sure were called by John Ward the same way Bob calls 'em today.

Frankly, when I've listened to old John Ward broadcasts, he seemed to purposefully set the energy level low so that when something did happen, it sounded twice as exciting. A well-called game should be like an action movie--if it's constant screaming and explosions, it gets dull and predictable. You need the lulls to appreciate the crescendo.

I think us old timers can be guilty of remembering only the decades of compiled crescendos, and then comparing others against that cherry-picked, memory-edited, sample.
Click to expand...
John was just easy to listen to and made everything sound interesting. Had a pleasant and smooth voice and just the way he described what he saw was iconic. Of course there are the special moments, but if we talk about the mundane moments in a game, JW was head and shoulders above BK in every way. There were times I turned off the television sound and listened to JW - especially the '86 Sugar Bowl. Got sick and tired of announcers talking about how great Miami is while we were handing them a beat down.
 
#93
#93
PandamoniumReigns said:
Inaccuracy is Bumbling Bobs biggest issue. He can describe action on the field. Except when you line it up with the actual play, he misses players name, field position, yards to gain, time on clock, the actual desceiption of the play, etc.

Excitement is his second . He's dull and mundane. As one poster said, he tries to be neutral at times. Just let it go...be a TN homer.
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So based on your criteria, how did Bob do on this call (aligning action on field with his description, missing players names, field position, yardage, time on clock)?
 
#94
#94
jps2194 said:
John was just easy to listen to and made everything sound interesting. Had a pleasant and smooth voice and just the way he described what he saw was iconic. Of course there are the special moments, but if we talk about the mundane moments in a game, JW was head and shoulders above BK in every way. There were times I turned off the television sound and listened to JW - especially the '86 Sugar Bowl. Got sick and tired of announcers talking about how great Miami is while we were handing them a beat down.
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All radio coverage is better than TV coverage. I'll bet half of our opponent's radio coverage, with its homer-ism, would still be more informative and less aggravating to me as a Tennessee fan than TV coverage.

Of course, that means I do have to sacrifice the restaurant reviews...
 
#95
#95
AdoptedVOL said:
So based on your criteria, how did Bob do on this call (aligning action on field with his description, missing players names, field position, yardage, time on clock)?
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He did fine on that call. He doesn't get them all wrong and I never said he did. He gets a lot wrong though. He's had 25+ years on the job and he's arguably worse now than when he started in 1999.
 
#96
#96
Very funny story from the late President Ronald Reagan on his early years as a sports radio broadcaster in Des Moines, Iowa, that younger people may not have heard. He was calling a live MLB game, Cardinals vs. Cubs---from his Des Moines studio, using only the news wire tickertape print coverage of the game! You can probably guess what happened...
[01:47 - 04:47]

The story of how Reagan got his first job in radio during the Great Depression is funny, but also inspiring for anyone facing obstacles to living their dream. The interview ends with his approach to announcing a live sports event--painting a word picture--that certainly fits in this thread.
[07:23 to end]

 
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#97
#97
GetEmVols said:
Really? That was awesome. Love the emotion.
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The intent of the comment was to draw a chuckle or two. Nothing intentional as some take it. I don’t speak the language so no clue what was said. I just laughed. Something this world could use more of.
 
#98
#98
MurphyVol said:
I think a lot of it is personal preference. I like the way Bob calls a game. Some people prefer Mike Keith's style..I think he sounds like a tween that's just won tickets to see Taylor Swift.

I do miss Tim Priest, they balanced each other well. Tim was a little more excitable and was quite funny at times.
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I agree on both points. Not sure I could stomach Mike Keith any better. Kesling stumbles and fumbles every now and then, but he's ok.

The color man is half the battle. Love Priest and Pat Ryan.

The truth is you can't really cut off your tv sound and listen to the game on radio while watching these days with the delay, so I don't listen to the radio call nearly as often as I did in the John Ward days. Some of that is all the games are on tv anyway. I listen to basketball on the radio more than football these days.
 
#99
#99
Volfan1000 said:
We should petition Learfield IMG and the Vol Network and tell them we want a better announcer than Kesling.
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Here's a very pertinent question: who today has grown up with or is familiar with the experience of listening to radio coverage of an event?

Compare that to someone today who aspires to be a singer: they can listen to hundreds of singers daily, deciding whose style they admire, little vocal stylings or tricks that they can imitate, and with experience singing on street corners, then bars, it all comes together as "their own style" of singing.

Without similar experiences with radio, you're likely to get more "personality" than word pictures. The results might be as misguided and out of touch with listeners as handing John Ward (if he were alive today) a smartphone and tasking him to make a TikTok video.

It's a very specialized skill that requires years of practice, and a love for the medium that gets rarer every generation.

But on the other hand, given the superficial requirements for a career in TV... there are probably some very talented balding men with bad complexions, and overweight women who don't have blond hair and a nose job, who are much better calling a game than who's on TV now! They just don't pass the "professional" eye test for appearance that major sponsors insist on.

I wonder if there are universities offering a Radio Broadcast track/major as part of their Mass Communications degree? Anybody know?
 
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#100
#100
OldVol said:
Bob does a great job. It’s easy to pick at him when comparing him to John but that’s unfair and unreasonable. Bob struggled with pronunciation in the past but he’s worked hard to get players names right the last few years.

His basketball calls are second to none and that includes John’s.

I’ll be synching his broadcast to the tv from now own since I’ve downloaded synchmygame. No more McElroy for me.
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Bob does a great job??? He is terrible!
 
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