I had the pleasure earlier today to speak with Bill Raftery of ESPN, CBS, and Westwood One where he will be announcing the Final Four this weekend around the country on radio with Kevin Kugler and John Thompson.  With trademark catchphrases like "ONIONS" and "man to man," Bill Raftery has become one of the most popular analysts in all of sports.  In addition to his humor and energy, Raftery also brings a wealth of knowledge as a basketball lifer.  In our latest Q&A, Bill talks to Awful Announcing about how he got into broadcasting, what VCU and Butler's run to the Final Four mean for college basketball, his response to Jay Bilas' Tweets, and of course, ONIONS!

Q: Tell us a little bit about your basketball background and how you got into broadcasting. 

A: Well I wasn't a good player, Matt, and then I wasn't a good coach, so it was an easy slide.  In the early days of my college career I met a man by the name of Bob Wolff and my coach asked me to show Bob around and he's a Hall of Fame announcer in the Baseball Hall of Fame.  He was doing a CBS game with us in the NIT.  Bob said, would you want to try and get in my business someday.  And that always stuck in my head, I ended up coaching for 16 years and just thought, let me give this a shot.  Dave Gavitt (former Big East commissioner) was nice enough one late October calling me at Seton Hall and saying look, you've got two days to let me know if you want to do this.  

I had two weeks of practice in in '81 and fortunately there was a Dave Gavitt in my life because the Big East was starting to mushroom and philosophically Seton Hall really wasn't ready for it.  A few years later PJ (Carlesimo) came in and worked hard and struggled and they finally stepped up and did the things everyone else was doing in terms of support and we ended up in the Final Four in '89.  So, that was sort of a tumultuous road to broadcasting.

Q: Everyone will want to know the origins of "Onions!"  Ian Eagle has put the story out there on the internet, is it true?

A: Ian's the one that says Kevin Edwards made a jumper in Miami (for the Nets).  It's something in that head of mine that popped out.  I was trying to be as descriptive as I could about how tough kids are and making big plays and finding ways to win the game and that sort of popped out.  Ian's got the memory man, I never question him, he's the vault.  

Q: So that was something spontaneous that just happened to come to mind?

A: Yea.  In those days a win for the Nets was unusual.  They were struggling and winning in Miami on the road made it sweeter with all the New York and Jersey people that live down there.  It was something that made sense at the time and I never said it for a while.  I guess it popped in once on one of the college games and fortunately it's part of the lexicon, or unfortunately, I'm not sure which.

Maybe we did Create the Caption a few hours too soon.  Somehow on Opening Day, this snapshot was taken of Vin Scully in the Dodgers booth.  Now, Vin Scully is one of the most famous and beloved broadcasters of all-time.  If he were to have an autographed picture of someone in the booth, you would maybe think of great Dodger heroes like Kirk Gibson or Jackie Robinson, maybe Hank Aaron, maybe someone outside of baseball like Ali or Jordan.  No, he has an autographed picture of the greatest Intercontinental Champion of all-time... the Honky Tonk Man.  Here's the Twitpic from FauxFrankWren...



I can't stress enough how cool this is - I mean come on, the Honky Tonk Man!  He was awesome!  Seriously, these are two American legends coming together.  One of the great sports broadcasters in history and the self-proclaimed greatest IC champ of all-time, who is a WWF legend.  Well, not really, but he had a pretty sweet gimmick.  While we're here, we might as well relive one of the biggest moments in each man's career.  First, to commemorate Opening Day, Vin Scully calling Hank Aaron's 715th career home run...



Second, to commemorate Wrestlemania, the Honky Tonk Man getting defeated by the Ultimate Warrior for the IC Title at Summerslam '88, ending his record reign as champ.  Yup, that was the high point for Honky.




***Update: Evidently, we've all been hoodwinked.  According to Fang's Bites, the picture isn't Vin's.  Oh well, it was fun while it lasted...

With Opening Day upon us it's the perfect time for another edition of Create the Caption!  Last time out we featured Rick Pitino and the Louisville Cardinal wallowing in defeat at the hands of Morehead State.  cbweatherman was the winner with, "Mascot: You know that little chicken over there?  It's your son.  Pitino: How could this happen again?!?"  Thanks for participating!  Of course for MLB's Opening Day, we have to go to the NBA for our CtC and this hilarious image from Ball Don't Lie of 6'4" John Wall trying to fight 7'3" Zydrunas Ilgauskas.  Can you create the caption?



Far From Awful Links 

Since it is Opening Day, you simply have to check out this awesome article at GuysGirl.  Bloguin's reigning blogger of the year Blythe Brumleve has matched up every MLB team with a character from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  I know we were all mega fans 20 years ago!  Some random dude contributed as well.  [GuysGirl]

Josh Elliott has graduated from SportsCenter to Good Morning America to be a news reader at ABC.  Of the countless SportsCenter anchors, I thought Elliott was in the top handful as he mixed news and humor very well without overbearing schtick.  He'll be missed at the leader.  [ABC] 

Earlier this week, we showed you all the hate that Jay Bilas and others lobbed towards VCU before the tourney began.  We all know who gets the last laugh, especially with this shirt.  [Twitter] 

The new ESPN PR blog launched.  Meh.  [ESPN Front Row] 

As an alum of a D-III school, the story of the kid getting in the college slam dunk contest is kinda cool.  [Deadspin] 

Speaking of D-III athletics, the longest national championship streak of all-time was broken last weekend.  Kenyon College men's swimming had won 31 consecutive national championships.  They were defeated by North Coast Athletic Conference rival Denison at the national meet in Nashville by 1 point, 500.5 - 499.5.  Being an Ohio Wesleyan grad, I've got the chance to announce the last two NCAC swim meets and see these teams battle in person.  This is definitely a story worthy of national attention.  [NCAA]   

Finally, Wrestlemania is right around the corner.  Here's a preview.  Please make John Cena lose.  [Camel Clutch Blog] 

Also, make sure to check AA tomorrow for a very special Q&A with one of the most popular broadcasters in sports.  I'll give you a hint - vegetables may be involved.

Thursday March 31

Detroit Tigers @ New York Yankees (ESPN 1PM) Sean McDonough, Aaron Boone, Rick Sutcliffe - Yankee Stadium Bronx, NY
San Diego Padres @ St. Louis Cardinals (ESPN 4PM) Dave O'Brien, Nomar Garciaparra - Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO
San Francisco Giants @ Los Angeles Dodgers (ESPN 8PM) Dan Shulman, Orel Hershiser, Bobby Valentine - Dodgers Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

Friday April 1

Houston Astros @ Philadelphia Phillies (ESPN 1PM) Sean McDonough,Aaron Boone,Rick Sutcliffe - Citizen Bank Ballpark, Philadelphia, PA
Boston Red Sox @ Texas Rangers (ESPN 4PM) Dan Shulman, Orel Hershiser, Bobby Valentine - Rangers Ballpark, Arlington, TX
Seattle Mariners @ Oakland Athletics (MLBN 10:00PM) Local Broadcast - Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, CA [Alternate Markets: San Francisco Giants @ Los Angeles Dodgers]

Saturday April 2

Detroit Tigers @ New York Yankees (FOX 4PM) Joe Buck, Tim McCarver - Yankee Stadium Bronx, NY
San Francisco Giants @ Los Angeles Dodgers (FOX 4PM) Kenny Albert, Eric Karros- Dodgers Stadium, Los Angeles, CA
San Diego Padres @ St. Louis Cardinals (FOX 4PM) Thom Brennaman, Mark Grace - Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO
Boston Red Sox @ Texas Rangers (MLBN 8PM) Local Broadcast - Rangers Ballpark, Arlington, TX [Alternate Markets: Arizona Diamondbacks @ Colorado Rockies]

Sunday April 3

Boston Red Sox @ Texas Rangers (TBS 2PM) Brian Anderson, John Smoltz - Rangers Ballpark, Arlington, TX
San Francisco Giants @ Los Angeles Dodgers (ESPN2 8PM) Dan Shulman, Orel Hershiser, Bobby Valentine - Dodgers Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

via Sammy!

Happy Opening Day, everyone. The last time you witnessed meaningful baseball, you probably remember Ken Rosenthal wearing a bow tie and making his 5-foot-short frame appear even more hilarious as he'd interview much taller ball players.

Well, when you see his jovial little face again this season, you'll see him wearing a bow tie -- all the time, and for a variety of good causes [via Fox Sports]:

Each Friday on FOXSports.com, we will display the bow tie I will wear on that week’s broadcast, along with a description of the charity and how to get involved. For the postseason, we plan to conduct polls on which bow tie I should wear for each game.

Funny how it all comes around. I didn’t want to wear a bow tie because I thought it would distract from my work. [Dhani] Jones’ mission, though, aligns perfectly with how I perceive my job.

My goal with every column is to make people think. Jones, through his bow ties, wants to achieve the same thing. Let’s talk bow ties. Let’s talk charities. Here’s to a great season on FOX.

Amen. Dhani Jones, of course, is a former University of Michigan linebacker who started the bow tie cause after his friend, who had been diagnosed with lymphoma, told him to "rock a bow tie" to the 2000 NFL draft.

Rocking a bow tie has always been perceived as kind of super nerdy, but real scholars can assure you that rocking a bow tie has never been cooler. Kudos to Jones and Rosenthal.

Ken Rosenthal to wear bow ties for charity during 2011 MLB on FOX season [Fox Sports]

Good news, everyone! The USA Today reports that CBS has decided to bring back the Luther Vandross version of One Shining Moment, scrapping Jennifer Hudson's version after just one year. This whole One Shining Moment controversy has been very new cokeish in my opinion, they messed around with something that didn't need to be changed in the first place. So, after VCU cuts down the nets Monday night, we can all look forward to pretending that we just got something caught in our eyes as one of our old favorites returns to officially end college basketball season.

I'm counting the seconds until ESPN hires Bruce Pearl as an analyst, but in the meantime word has come down that the "Leader" has hired the age defying Jamie Moyer as an analyst for Baseball Tonight.  Via ESPN PR....

Former Major League Baseball pitcher Jamie Moyer, a 24-year Major League veteran, has joined ESPN as a Baseball Tonight analyst.  Moyer will debut tomorrow, Thursday, March 31, contributing to ESPN’s Opening Day coverage (including the midnight ET episode of Baseball Tonight). He will provide analysis on Baseball Tonight throughout the season.

“I’m excited about the opportunity to work at ESPN,” said Moyer.  “It’s a new challenge and I look forward to this forum as a chance to elaborate on the art of pitching as I rehab from injury this season.  I hope to get back on the diamond in the future.”

Moyer, who is out for the season following Tommy John surgery, hopes to pitch in 2012.

What a crazy month it has been for Jalen Rose.  First, the reviews for "Fab Five" are through the roof, then comes the "Uncle Tom"/Grant Hill fallout, and now he's being arrested.  But wait, that timeline is off because he's being charged with DUI from an accident on March 11th.  Via TMZ....

Law enforcement sources tell us ... the 38-year-old former NBA star was driving along an icy roadway on March 11 when he lost control of his vehicle and crashed.

Cops were called to the scene and Rose agreed to undergo several voluntary roadside sobriety tests. He was later transported to a nearby facility for chemical testing ... those results have not yet been returned. Rose was eventually arrested for driving under the influence.

We're told Rose was in his hometown of Detroit in preparation for the opening of the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy ... a charter school designed to provide under-privileged youth with college prep experience.

If only Grant Hill had THIS information back when he wrote his piece for the New York Times!  Driving under the influence is bad enough, but doing it on an icy road is just flat out dumb.  In any case, Jalen will most likely not be facing any jail time and you'll be able to watch him on First Take again, very soon.

This video is pretty self-explanatory.  Woody Paige tries to say the word "discourse" in wrapping up a conversation about fans conversing with coaches before Around The Horn heads to a commercial.  However, that assumes he knows the meaning of the word discourse.  What he actually says is something quite different.  The best (or worst) part about this video may be his creepy laugh at the end.  Yikes.  Thanks to Black Sports Online for the clip.



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Tuesday night's nationally televised Heat/Cavs game tipped off with the drama of LeBron James having trouble getting himself and his entourage into the Q parking garage before the morning shootaround. Then, LeBron didn't show up at all during player intros or the national anthem because he was allegedly in the bathroom (bad burrito and possibly crying).

During game play, we the viewers had the distinct pleasure of listening to Cavs announcers Fred McLeod and "Mr. Cavalier" Austin Carr call an improbable Cavs win over the heavily favored Heat. They're actually far from a dynamic duo, but they gain several points here for piling on Chris Bosh:



Carr likely got the "Bosh = Rupaul" reference from a former Cav, Shaquille O'Neal, who once said Chris Bosh is the Rupaul of big men. Chris Bosh has done everything in his power to live up to that image, so it was really an easy play for Carr. Bosh finished the game 5-14 shooting and four rebounds. Half man stuff.

For the record, this is our third post this season after a Cavs win (20% of their wins) commenting on something their announcers said during the course of the game. That's a strong rate.

Cavs announcer: Chris Bosh is "Rupaul lookalike" [CBS]