Revisiting the Super Bowl III (Jets vs Colts) Pre-Game Show with Brian Phillips

The Super Bowl. With this Sunday's Panthers/Broncos tilt we'll have had 50 of them. CBS has the call this year, which means several hours of that dopey Phil Simms on Sunday night. The network is producing seven and a half hours of pre-game coverage this year! Let that sink in. 

It didn't used to be that way, you know. Recently I was down another of my You Tube rabbit holes when I discovered some real gold. Beginning with Super Bowl III (Jets upset Colts) I've found the actual network television feeds for some early Super Bowl Telecasts. Let's explore the run-up to kick-off on the oldest one I found.

Super Bowl III

Sunday January 12, 1969

Orange Bowl/Miami, Florida

Jets 16 Colts 7

 

This is one of the biggest upsets in professional sports history.....in any sport. The Jets, led by the flamboyant Joe Namath, were colossal 17 point underdogs to the Colts.

The pre-game show was hosted by play-by-play man Curt Gowdy and ran all of half an hour. Whoever saved the three hour and 46 minute telecast was kind enough to leave the commercials in. A total ban on cigarette ads on television was still two years away and first up at the 1:30 mark is one for Camel!

Break 1 Sponsors:

Camel Cigarettes

Rapid Shave Shaving Cream

 

By 2:44 NBC is showing highlights of the two league championship games. Both fields are in rough shape right! As it should be. Cripes, Namath threw 49 times against the Raiders that day.

Color man Al DeRogatis joins Gowdy at 5:15. At 6:40 Kyle Rote Senior and Pat Summeral take turns sitting with players at practice earlier that week. The late Bubba Smith, who would later have a pretty nice career in the movies and TV, pops up as a young, soft spoken 23 year old scouting Joe Namath at the 9:00 minute mark. 

11:35 DeRogatis uses the word "extemporize" properly. You aren't gonna get that from Phil Simms. People were probably smarter back then. 

It wasn't until the 12:00 minute mark that the network ducks out for only the second commercial break, if you can believe it.

Break 2 Sponsors:

Bic Pens (seriously... a pen commercial in the Super Bowl... This is amazing to me. You might as well advertise coat hangers or moth balls.)

 

Back at 13:00. More interviews. This is boring as hell. I'd have been outside smoking a Camel. 

At 17:30 several players drone about how the two teams, though they've never played, had many connections. They're all standing on the beach reading from a script. No one said "We went out every night this week getting hammered and chasing girls." But you know they did. 

Break time at 20:04.

Break 3 Sponsor:

United Airlines. The focus of the spot is a woman on a business trip. Actually pretty progressive for 1969. 

 

At 21:00 Gowdy has some words and video about by far the most interesting player in this game, Namath. Stuff on other Jets too, including Emerson Boozer. That's a name. To commercial at 23:40.

Break 4 Sponsors:

Rapid Shave (Does Rapid Shave even exist any more?)

Camel

Not one beer commercial yet! Amazing.

 

Back at 24:40 with Gowdy breaking down some Colts players. No bump music, no music under Gowdy. 26:55... Bubba Smith was 6'7" 295. A game-wrecker he was. Huge for 1969. 

End of pre-game at 28:00. They're slowly pulling a weird float into the middle of the field. The people pulling it appear to be dressed as potatoes. Probably Up With People. 

 

Break 5:

Promo For Wild Kingdom! Still photo with v/o. 

 

28:49. Gowdy is heard yelling "hot coffee!" That didn't go over the air though. This feed is the network's minus local inserts. 

Back at 30:00 with some wicked sports flute music as Gowdy starts the game telecast with the sponsor v/o. They are:

Chrysler

Pall Mall Cigarettes (big tip Pall Mall Golds!)

Schlitz Beer ("When you're out of Schlitz, you're out of beer." That's a depressing slogan.)

Gillette Razors (Techmatic Razor. They've been fucking with us with these razors forever.)

TWA ("The all jet airline." Guess that was a big deal back then.)

At 32:20 Gowdy makes mention of the famous Namath guarantee. Everyone thought he was crazy. This game made Joe a household name. He was the pioneer of dropping the ridiculous pre-game gauntlet... but he backed it up.

33:05 Shit. A mass marching band is going to goose step toward that weird Up With People float playing something called "Mr. Touchdown U.S.A." 

33:57 Acid trip time. Those aren't potatoes. They're people in giant football suits, and each represents a team in the AFL or NFL. I wonder if Hunter S. Thompson was at this game with his attorney. If they were I hope they didn't see this part. It would all be too much. So yeah, it's a bunch of footballs with legs holding on to streamers attached to what looks like a wedding cake. At the top is a bunch of smoke pouring out with a guy dressed as a Colt and another as a Jet. Who knows, they could be actual players. Maybe they got paid extra to stand on top of a float.

35:23 Three Apollo 8 astronauts walk on the field. Wow, they're making everyone recite the Pledge of Allegiance before the playing of the National Anthem. The astronauts will lead the pledge on microphone. This pre-game had to be produced by a third grade teacher.

36:22 Even though there's a 500-piece marching band on the field, the anthem is a trumpet solo. Meanwhile the potato football people are still just standing there. 

38:20 Kick Off Next

Break 6 Sponsors:

Pall Mall (touting U.S. Government figures proving that Pall Mall Gold 100's are lower in tar. The voice over guy has a cool smoker voice. Also the Gold 100 is longer. Why did they call them "Pell Mell" when it's spelled Pall Mall? It's pretty metal that you could sell a product back in the day by touting the fact that, while it had some tar in it, not as much as the other brand. Never mind that it still had fucking TAR in it.)

Schlitz ("It's the golden age of Schlitz" and who am I to argue?)

Back at 39:20. That float is never going to get off the field. They're just going to cram it into a corner, I guess.

Kick-off is just ahead and I invite you to take it from there. If you notice anything interesting leave a comment with the run time!

Oh, and my Super Bowl Pick... Panthers 27 Broncos 10. I guarantee it.

An Open Letter to Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones From The NCP

follow@northcoastposse

Dear Jerry Jones,

My name is Big $, from the North Coast Posse. I know we have never met, but I'm sure you are familar with my moniker, as I assume it's how most of your family refers to you at barbecues, reunions etc. I am writing you to personally refer a current member of the Cleveland Browns, as I believe he would be a wonderful addition to your franchise. So without further adieu, here's why the Dallas Cowboys should do all it can to acquire "Johnny Football."

1.) He's just so Gosh Dang exciting! He runs around all over the field without concern to game plan. The crowd loves it! As a matter of fact, he's so concerned with keeping the crowd happy, that even when he's on the sideline he will practice martial arts on an iPad to keep them engaged. If that's not enough, he'll keep the locker room in stitches with his wild lip-synching skills

I hope you like this video

2.) You have to account for the "gets us" factor. Johnny is so Texas, he pisses Lone Star. (This has been medically verified.) He's practically a miniature version of Patrick Duffy's character from Dallas. From Day One your fans will be so attached that they will be throwing money in your direction. I mean your current QB hero is from Wisconsin, it's a no-brainer.

3.) Local commerce. I'm sure if you interview local bar/restaurant owners, they'd all share that it's hard to hit sales goals on Monday afternoons. Have no fear, Johnny and Bae will lead a Monday Funday revolution, saving many a saloon. The Ft. Worth chamber of commerce will laud you a hero for bringing the golden goose to town.

4.) Last but certainly not least, I'm not sure if you are aware or not, but after failing miserably at guiding a two-minute drill against the Chiefs, HE THREW HIS HELMET IN ANGER!!!!. Can you imagine the internal fire necessary to cost your team the game but still be able to TO THROW YOUR HELMET IN ANGER!!! Mr. Jones, In case you missed it I reiterate, HE THREW HIS HELMET IN ANGER!!!!

In conclusion. I'm fairly certain your keen business sense has led you to believe that you should ship your next 3 number one picks to the Browns in exchange for Johnny. However, I'm pretty sure you could contact Sashi, or Hue, or Paul, or Andrew or even Jimmy H and fleece them for a couple of 2's. So. Mr. Jones, the ball is in your court, and I'm  sure youll do whatever is necessary to acquire Johnny Football for "America's team."

Thanks
Big $
The North Coast Posse

The 50-50 Squad: The Good and Bad of a Young OSU Basketball Team - James A. Baumann

1) What makes this Buckeye team so fun to watch?
It's fun to watch young, athletic, and talented players come together, and grow as a team. Want to enjoy this team? Consider every win an overachievement.  

Case in point, this year:  Kam Williams is turning into DeShaun Thomas, just shorter and with a mohawk. I'm hoping that somewhere he has a tattoo that reads "Shoot to get hot. Shoot to stay hot."
Daniel Giddens and Jae'Sean Tate are becoming fan favorites simply through the effort. Trevor Thompson has been a nice addition as well. Part of this may be fans still shaking off their Amir Williams hangover, but the development will be fun to watch.
The crowd gasps with about every move Mickey Mitchell makes. He still needs to slow down a bit and let the game come to him, but we've got the slackjawed yokels from the NCAA to thank for that.
You are going to have to look long and hard to find any college player quicker with the dribble than A.J. Harris is. 
I'm a huge Thad Matta fan and, even though he says he's not wearing a tie this year to avoid the temptation of hanging himself, I have faith in him coaching these players up.

2) What makes this Buckeye team so frustrating to watch?
It's frustrating to watch young, athletic, and talented players make so many ridiculous mistakes.

Case in point, this year:
The Indiana and Maryland games were embarrassing. I'm not sure that Maryland isn't 20 to 30 points better than Ohio State, but it's been a long time since you saw a team with that collective deer-in-the-headlights look. 
If you told me that JaQuan Lyle was going to get a triple double this year, I would have bet multiple Schottenstein Center $8 beers that one of those categories would have been turnovers. Already this year I have seen him dribble the ball off his leg and out of bounds before he crosses half court more times than I have seen in all my collective years of watching basketball. For every nice pass he has made, he's thrown another one directly into a defender's chest.His defense and outside shot is suspect at best. I'm typing this during Thursday's Purdue game and earlier Tate was bringing the ball up the court instead of Lyle. That probably means something. Of course, I'm the same guy who called Evan Turner "Evan Turnover" most of his freshman year. I'm still hoping to be proved wrong. (*Note: the second I typed that phrase, Lyle had his pocket picked while he was more than 30 feet from the hoop. So, yeah. That happened.)
Marc Loving and K'aite Bates Diop are being asked to do more than they probably are ready to at this point in their career. Imagine if D'Angelo Russell was still on this team and they could be number two scoring options behind him and be on the receiving end of a drive-draw-and-dish for wide-open three pointers. When there is less than 10 seconds on the shot clock, which Buckeye do you want to have the ball in his hands? I don't know. I'm not sure they do either.
Giddens is built like those plastic figures that blow around outside car washes, and sometimes seems to have as much control over his extremities. Again, he's only going to get better -- and those lanky arms and legs will also provide about a dozen more "holy crap, how did he do that?!?!" moments before this season is over. But once the Big Ten season kicked in, he's been in perpetual foul trouble.

What might be driving Thad Matta the most crazy, though, is the spotty team defense. There have been very few steals and deflections to start any fast breaks, which should be a strength of this team. There is little pressure on the ball on the perimeter. And, once the perimeter defender is beaten on the dribble, when Giddens or Thompson comes over for the block attempt, even if they cause a miss, nobody is rotating down, so their man is getting the easy rebound and put-back. In those two non-conference home losses, the other team's best play was to drive past Lyle, throw the shot off the backboard, and get the rebound.

3) The Buckeyes  slide into the big dance this year if....
First I don't see this happening. After the Kentucky game, their chances were at their highest point. But considering the Indiana and Maryland losses -- and the fact that the Kentucky win looks less impressive as they took a few more losses on the chin -- it's an outside shot at best. It would take a couple more signature wins in the Big Ten season and then, probably also playing on Sunday in the Big Ten tournament to earn any consideration. 

I'm not going to deny the prestige of continually making the NCAA tournament, but a deep run in the NIT tournament could give these youngsters two more weeks of practice than a first round loss in the big dance. 

4) Other points?
I wrote most of this during the Purdue game and, in retrospect, it served as a pretty good microcosm of what the year is likely to hold. They went on the road into a really hostile environment -- though probably not as hostile as practice has been the last few days after the Maryland whooping -- and fought hard. They were outsized, but had flurries of being hot from the field. They had a lead and a true chance to win the game, but down the stretch their youth reared its ugly head. Purdue made shots. Buckeyes missed theirs. It reminded me of the Memphis game earlier in the year. 

5) The Farmers Almanac predicts the 2017 snowfall and Buckeye basketball team to be above or below average?

Considering how the weather has been the past couple of years, everyone should just replace the almanac with a Magic 8 Ball. Related, I think the Magic 8 Ball would say of next year's Buckeye hoops team, "Outlook Good." Everyone will be back -- it would have been wonderful to have Kobi Simmons joining them -- and we know the best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores. So the team will be better and will win more games. Now, "good" is also relative to what happens with other teams in the league in terms of graduating players and those that leave early for the draft (look at Wisconsin this year).  So, long story short, 2017 will be the next step in this team's growth. In the meantime, I'm feeling that this year will be the one that real fans will point  to when we look down our nose at all the bandwagon jumpers in 2018.

Hue, Sasha and Paul Buy a Moneyball Ticket. Big $ and the NCP Weigh In.....

CG- The Browns actually got the coach they wanted and Hue Jackson seems thrilled with the job. Am I dreaming? Did Hue suffer a concussion during the Bengals v Steelers game? How excited should Browns fans be with the hire?

BIG $: I think Browns fans should be incredibly excited for two reasons: I believe this shows that Haslam had a strategy in mind and he executed it. Any way you slice it, Hue had to be considered the prize of the available coaching pool. Considering that everyone up to Sam Rutigliano turned us down before Pettine was pulled off the trash heap, this was a breath of fresh air. Obviously the much maligned Sashi/Depodesta pairing was acceptable to a guy with Hue's NFL experience. To me, this gives credence to the Moneyball II, NFL boogaloo experiment. If its good enough for Hue, its good enough for me.

CG- What are your thoughts on snatching moneyball master Paul DePodesta away from the Mets? Is it worth taking a look at Jacob deGrom at QB?

1st, I'd take Snydergaard. 2nd, all analytics really is, is examining factual evidence and using said evidence to exploit market inefficiencies. Depodesta obviously has a knack for crunching statistics and molding the results into successful staffing strategies. I believe someone with talent in that arena could translate into any industry, let alone another sport. I'm excited to watch it play out.

CG- Speaking of QB, can we get anything for Johnny football in a trade? And if not, what then?

As a surprise to no one that has ever read the NCP, I believe the removal of Johnny Football will be addition by subtraction. Would a 6th rounder in return be nice? sure, but the quicker JFF is shipped out of the 216, the better


CG-  Here is a question that we will hear 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 times before the NFL draft in June. Do the Browns take a QB at #2? If yes, who? If no, who plays QB next year?

Hue's strength is quarterback whispering, so I believe it would be a waste to not use a #2 pick on a guy for him to mold. Wentz (North Dakota State) piqued my interest during the FCS championship, but is too big of a risk at 2 and wont be around come the 30's.Therefore, I feel Goff and his big frame and arm fit right into Hue's wheel house. McCown and Jackson will make for excellent tutors for the youngster upon his arrival in C town. 

I'm still not sure what this strange sensation is I'm feeling. I've been told by my friends who root for other teams, that its called hope. Sure beats the hollow disgust that has been lingering since about 2005.