It wasnt long ago Western Civilization was terrified of an omnipotent menace slowly taking over the world. When the Berlin Wall and the Soviet Union both crumbled that threat of communism finally ended. Unfortunately, the powers that be misidentified the intruder. That presence which would come to grip American society by its throat?
Football.
Everywhere you turn this month you will see it. Yes, the Midwest is a living, breathing leather-bound oblong spheroid. But this is truly a national phenomenon and is annually growing bigger and stronger, until eventually we will all just be eating John Maddens Turducken sausage for breakfast.
Last Thursday Fox actually showed a Dolphins-Panthers preseason game in primetime. Just to detail how absurd this is, Thursday night is routinely the most sought after time slot in television. Fox understood how, shall we say, less than marquee the match up was by sending its second string broadcast team. No, the contest wasnt battling the new fall lineup, but theres only one reason network execs would air it. Because it would compete in the ratings, asking not why Fox fed us that, but instead, why would we watch that?
Major League Baseball playoff games have been carried on Fox Family Channel. Forget finding NHL playoff games unless your cable provider enjoys 24-hour Tour de France coverage. But a Dolphins-Panthers exhibition game found its way into mid-week network primetime. Wow.
Media outlets are tripping over themselves in a frantic attempt to share their ATM pin numbers. Fox dealt out a whopping $80 million per season to carry college footballs five BCS bowl games. ThatŐs like the Sams Club discount of football negotiations, as NBC paid a seizure-inducing $8.8 billion (yes, with a -b-) for the right to broadcast eight seasons of the NFL.
More ink has been spilled analyzing Tony Kornheisers early runs in the Monday Night Football booth than BPs Alaskan pipeline. More than two million copies of the Madden 07 video game were sold in the first week alone. Fantasy football has become a multi-billion dollar industry, with newsstand exposure equivalent to Oprah.
My shows certainly guilty of attempting to over saturate the market as well. After weeks of pining from the Kansas City sports fan trapped in the throes of another bludgeoning baseball summer, we unveiled -The Daily Football Fix- every morning at 7:45a. I was shortly thereafter stopped multiple times by listeners with wild eyes and appreciation. -You have know idea how much I needed that,- one told me. -Its always football season.- It was May 20th.
Thats just it, though. There is no point of over saturation right now, no critical mass in sight. People are gobbling up football like bird flu vaccinations. Television ratings are up, attendance is at an all-time high and the health of professional, college, high school and even arena football is unquestioned.
Baseball has done its part in creating this mania, alienating fans with both steroids and strikes. The NFLs competitive balance also stokes the American spirit of equality, where the Pittsburgh Steelers can win a Super Bowl, but the cross town Pirates are just another small-market woebegone. On top of it, footballs schedule fits most perfectly into our daily existence. No one with any semblance of a life can watch 162 baseball games. But everyones got three hours on a Saturday or Sunday to take in some gridiron glory on the La-Z-Boy and a few hours in the cubicle during the week to tinker with their fantasy team.
That subversive influence you feel is not the Iron Curtain; its the Steel Curtain. Forget Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthys red scare, now its Wisconsin resident Mike McCarthys green-and-gold snare, as he tries to right the ship as head coach of the Packers. We failed to identify the oncoming tide of football influence until it was too late. But hey, look at the bright side. At least we have Dolphins-Panthers.
BEST OF: The Panthers Dancers stop by and don't stop talking for twenty minutes. Wait, you're home schooled? BEST OF: Heat legend Glen Rice in studio on dropping 56 on the Magic, Final Fours and MMA. BEST OF: "The Obama Guy" now has D.A.'s old job! He asked the Prez a question, then he joined the show. BEST OF: Phil and Chris Simms drop by the broadcast to rap about dad's career and son's future. BEST OF: Why so few minority college coaches? DA answers with one word: Boosters. BEST OF: When a Super Bowl MVP and Hall of Famer talks, you listen. The immortal Lynn Swann. BEST OF: TNA Wrestling's Traci Brooks on being blessed with, ahem, great dimensions. DA LOVES THE KIDS: After Marlins summer-camp day, the next gen of Fish Fans might be in trouble. DA LOVES THE KIDS: Part 1 Heat charity camp shows us D-Wright's defense needs a little work.
DA LOVES THE KIDS: Part 2 Not everyone is thrilled with the hiring of Eric Spoelstra. INSTANT CLASSIC: Free-agent Joe Horn blasts his old coaches and asks for Dolphins forgiveness, all live on the show! INSTANT CLASSIC: The man who took down Kimbo Slice: overnight celebrity Seth Petruzelli talks about the fight that stunned the fight world. BEST OF: Author Jeff Pearlman on the controversial Cowboys dynasty. Uh, ew. BEST OF: Heat rookie Mario Chalmers needs help hot-boxing. Cough, cough.. BEST OF: DA is named a Godfather. Can he handle the responsibility or will he sleep with the fishes? BEST OF: DA witnesses the greatest kids game ever. Rock, paper, scissors, space! STAR WARS GEEKS: Part 1 DA goes where no sportstalk host has gone before: Star Wars premier night.
STAR WARS GEEKS: Part 2 Will DA make it out alive or turn into an extra from the Cantina Bar? INSTANT CLASSIC: Legend of the MMA Dan "Hendo" Henderson on the circus attraction to Kimbo and the rise of UFC. BEST OF: New UFC Champ Forrest Griffin on the belt and bouncing out of fighting while the gettin's good. INSTANT CLASSIC: Zo's youth clinic brings us immediate joy: Heat Kids Say the Darndest Things BEST OF: Miami boxer Joey "Twinkle Fingers" Hernandez found himself on the streets. How he got his mojo back. BEST OF: CBS4 Weather Wizard and Miss Florida Lissette Gonzalez on the jet-stream and the wave. BEST OF: Marino delivers a commencement speech and DA's own graduation horrors. INSTANT CLASSIC: Cats winger Nathan Horton is married to a Playmate? Oops. INSTANT CLASSIC: What does JoePa really mean at pressers? Ask Penn State 101. INSTANT CLASSIC: St. Patty's Day means celebrating Irish sports legends: DA Show style. INSTANT CLASSIC: Canes Big Man Dwayne Collins has his Aladdin DVD stolen. The Horror! INSTANT CLASSIC: Dontrelle says peace to South Florida with DA. Here's his Top-3 movies of all-time. SUPER BOWL XLII: NYG's Lawrence Tynes stops by after the ticker tape parade. INSTANT CLASSIC: Is Shaq becoming M.C. Hammer Jr? Say it ain't so. INSTANT CLASSIC: DA melts down as his alma mater brings brings back the dimwitted Greg Robinson for more SU pain. INSTANT CLASSIC: This placed DA squarely on the Chiefs blacklist forever. DA and King Carl in THE Battle Royale. BEST OF: Where it all started: Herm
and Carl agree... Damon is a nice name. SUPER BOWL XL: D.A. does his best investigative work ever. It's the field turf press conference from Detroit. INSTANT CLASSIC: The Mark Mangino Montage tastes better than ever! INSTANT CLASSIC: The 2007 Herm-Gasm. 'Nuff said. INSTANT CLASSIC: The Chiefs Dept. of Misinformation is at it once again. Are the Chiefs wearing white or not? Don't ask them. INSTANT CLASSIC: Chicago's legendary Mike North joins DA to preview Chiefs- Bears. Da Bears! INSTANT CLASSIC : The annual DA Show NBA Mock Draft is here... with a return from Stormbot. FEATURED AUDIO: Royals legend Denny Matthews has bought his first cell phone. Unfortunately, it's not as easy as 6-4-3. FEATURED AUDIO: A fond DA Show farewell to Buddy Bell. He really was "Our Buddy." FEATURED AUDIO
: Lauren Nichole has made quite an impression with her traffic reports. Great or gross? You decide. The
one, the only, Zach Greinke from Royals Spring Training. The
2007 One NIT NIT Moment.
The 2006 Caller Hall of Fame Track One: Christopher Walken's legendary roast
of the new class
First the staff. Then listeners. Now LJ has the Herm-gasm? Crazy
Ray sings the Growing Pains theme song. The
Royals 70's jingle that puts a smile on your face during another horrid season
in KC. The
local TV anchors slip up on the broadcast and luckily the D.A. Show was rolling
tape. 6-6-06:
The Crypt Keeper's Holiday Crazy
Ray displays his talent for singing. Could he make a run at the next American
Idol? Oklahoma
takes it on the chin with this famous call from R.B. Missed
any of the NIT NIT action? Check out the recaps of the games and a special
edition of The One NIT NIT Moment. We
couldn't leave Alex the Intern out of the mix, check out the drunk dial message
Alex left for D.A. The
D.A. Show tribute to Alan Thicke.
Is
Crazy Ray really crazy? Take a listen to find out.
A
D.A. Show Investigation reveals color commentators handing out the pink slip
to local college coaches.
Quinner's
feeling a bit down. We ask, what's wrong with Quinn Snyder? Herm Edwards gave us quotable material right from jump street. He gets a montage based on his introduction presser. A
staple of any good office party. It's the Dick Vermeil montage XP: final edition.
Duh, ok.
DA's Hometown Hottie contest created controversy throughout KC. Radio superstar Johnny Dare stuck his nose in the middle of it. The
callers finally had their own chance to put their stamp on the Vermeil montage Why
do the sista's hate the show? It all started here: Yvette's call of the day The original D.A. Show parody of Jim Rome's smack-off (circa '04). The '05 D.A. Show parody of Jim Rome's smack-off, complete with a certain national columnist. The '06 smack-smack, which brought all the D.A. Show legends together for one fab event. You asked for it. We delivered. DA Show icon Alan Thicke's first appearance.
By D.A.
