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NCAA Tournament on CBS: Announcers
March 19th, 2009
by Shawn Siegel
Hoops on TV
When you watch as much of the NCAA Tournament as us die-hards do.. you inevitably form close bonds with the announcers on CBS. Some strong congenial bonds.. others I could do without. Here is the CBS college basketball roster, including links to profiles on CBS.com, their role during the broadcast, and my rating of their recent work.
For 2009, we have a huge change as Clark Kellogg replaces Billy Packer as lead color-man alongside Jim Nantz. Interesting that CBS replaced Packer, who was easily the network's worst commentator for the past handful of years, with Kellogg.. who I've always felt was the second worst CBS had to offer. Give CBS a nod for consistency. Also new this year, we have Greg Anthony replacing Kellogg in the booth, young Carter Blackburn spelling Dick Enberg, and Craig Bolerjack making his D1 tourney debut.
C is considered your run of the mill broadcaster, neither exceptional nor annoying. On the most part, CBS does a good job with their coverage, hence mostly respectable grades (as opposed to a similar report card I could do for ESPN...)
A Ian Eagle (Announcer)
A- Bill Raftery (Color)
B+ Jim Nantz (Announcer - FF)
B+ Greg Gumbel (Studio)
B Jay Bilas (Color)
B Kevin Harlan (Announcer)
B Verne Lundquist (Announcer)
B Lesley Visser (Sideline)
B- Greg Anthony (Studio, New 2009)
B- Len Elmore (Color)
C+ Stephen Bardo (Color)
C+ Seth Davis (Studio)
C+ Dick Enberg (Announcer)
C+ Gus Johnson (Announcer)
C+ Jim Spanarkel (Color)
C Carter Blackburn (Announcer, New 2009)
C Craig Bolerjack (Announcer, New 2009)
C Dan Bonner (Sideline)
C Tim Brando (Anouncer)
C Mike Gminski (Color)
C Bob Wenzel (Color)
C Tracy Wolfson (Sideline)
D+ Clark Kellogg (Color - FF)
Notes:
Gus Johnson is slowly but surely growing on me. Anthony has made a nice transition into his studio role, and continues to improve. A lot of people dislike Nantz and Gumble, but these guys are professionals who consistently get the job done. Dick Enberg's a legend, but his peak days are in the rear at this point. Crater Blackburn is a young Syracuse guy who seems to be on the network's fast-track.
No Longer Part of CBS Team
B- Sam Ryan (Sideline)
D Billy Packer (Retired)
Comments
NCAA announcers for Gonzaga vs NC
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 2009-03-27 21:40.
I think announcers could show some class and not call playing abilities "weapons" it shows such uneducated slang. Get a life announcer, show your educated and there's more to life than the street.
announcers
Submitted by J. Kaminski (not verified) on Thu, 2009-03-19 07:34.
Gus Johnson is my favorite, especially when the game gets exciting. My least favorite is Dan Bonner, who is a master of saying the obvious.
Enjoy the site.
jk
basketball announcers
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 2010-01-23 17:54.
I do not understand these rankins. Clark Kellogg is ranked last with a D rating. He is my favorite and I am just upset that I was not allowed to help Billy Packer pack with his anti-Al McGuire mentality. Verne Lunquist is a bit of a "used car salesman".
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About Shawn Siegel
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Shawn Siegel - CHN President & Head Editor
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CHN Editor
Shawn Siegel is the self-proclaimed "hardest working man on the internet." He created CHN back in the summer of 2002, and it has since grown into the web's largest independent college basketball site. Besides designing and maintaining the site, Shawn also deals with advertising, marketing, editing.. and virtually all other aspects of running the site. Shawn's college basketball and NBA Draft commentary has appeared across the web, print, and radio media. Please email him with any and all media requests.
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CBS Announcers vs Raycom Sports
The announcers are very disppointing. I have been watching and attending SEC basketball games all season, as we usually do. Whether you watch or attend, if you do it faithfully, you get to know the players and coaches, as well as their personal stories.
The Raycom staff knew the players and coaches personally and admired and respected them. It is obvious as they interview them, and listening to them call a game, they pronounce their names correctly and don't repeat stories from the beginning of the season. The CBS announcers tell stories that are no longer relevant about the players and make silly comments about the length of player's hair and shorts.
If you are going to have the tournament games, as I understand you are from now on, please get some younger announcers, preferably some former SEC players who understand the players of today and the fans of today. There are a lot of players who have graduated in the last 15 years with degrees in Sports Information or Broadcasting. Sure they are looking for employment!
Thank you for your time.