The second year in the "Monday Night Football" booth has brought a new broadcast partner and continued criticism for Mike Tirico. Recently, the voice of MNF sat down with me to discuss the critics, Jaws and Tony, and his beloved "Boss."
 "Monday Night Football" is still "Monday Night Football," but new announcer Mike Tirico isn’t Howard Cosell, and he’s proud of it. "Cosell just kind of blabbed a lot," Tirico says. |
C-VILLE: When you accepted this job, did you have to brace yourself for the criticism that would come with the "Monday Night Football" booth?
Mike Tirico: [Former MNF announcer] Boomer (Esiason) told me there’s no way to simulate the criticism that comes along with "Monday Night Football," because football is the number one sport in the country in terms of people watching it and because "Monday Night Football" is the only game in town and is held up to a standard that is impossible to achieve again because of the Cosell era.
I think someone criticized me two weeks ago at the Green Bay game for being too excited during the game when Brett Favre threw his 82-yard game-winning touchdown, and this week, someone criticized me as a guy who is boring with a tone that is more fitting for a golf broadcast than a football broadcast.
You realize that you are never going to please everybody.
Why is the MNF booth a target of criticism? No one jumps on or writes major columns about Jim Nantz and Phil Simms or Joe Buck and Troy Aikman?
The uniqueness of Tony [Kornheiser] being in the booth opens us up to criticism because it is the only booth in major football where you don’t have a guy who played or coached the game as one of the analysts. He is atypical, so it opens it up to criticism right away.
People are also longing for the days of Howard Cosell. I got to tell you, if that was on TV right now, it’d be laughed off of TV. It would be so uninteresting and uninformative because Cosell just kind of blabbed a lot.
Go pick up a newspaper story from the 1970s of an old Virginia football game, or even if you go back to the Ralph Sampson era and you read a story written about the Final Four teams. You read it and go, "My God, this is boring. This is good writing?"
We’ve just changed as a society because we demand more.
So comparing football broadcasting now, compared to 30-some odd years ago is—when people do it, I just laugh and say, "There is someone who truly doesn’t get it."
Now if you want to compare us and be critical to what other networks do at this time, that’s only fair game.
But "Monday Night Football" is a long institution that has succeeded because it evolved.
One of the big storylines surrounding the MNF booth was the addition of Ron Jaworski. How is the new addition?
Jaws is fabulous; he always has been. I’ve known Ron for years and he brings an enthusiasm to work that is really special. He loves the job and is so prepared.
Phil Simms does a great job with CBS and Troy Aikman at Fox, and we all know about John Madden, what a great job he’s done over the years, and it sounds like a lovefest, but certain [critics] do try to make it a competition of who does this and who does that.
With the individual styles of people within the networks, we have a lot of people who do a great job broadcasting the NFL and explaining it, but I know Jaws goes in with a preparation level that is above so many people because of the time he spends at NFL Films watching games and getting prepared.
He is impeccable in his preparation and we learn so much football from him on the road and, hopefully, it comes through the TV as well.
On the subject of "there’s more to life than football," I understand you are a big Bruce Springsteen fan? How many times have you actually seen him?
Twenty-six or 27. I do have all the ticket stubs. The bulk number was when Springsteen was in Jersey to open up what now is the Izod Center. A high school friend has a ticket connection and we banged out nine of the dozen sold-out shows to start the place so that started the meter running.
Wes McElroy hosts "The Final Round" on ESPN AM840, 3-5pm, Monday-Friday.