Sports and Torts: Pat Summerall

Pat Summerall talks about his days in the NFL, his move to broadcasting, some of the memorable events he called, and his long partnership with John Madden

Sports and Torts: Helena Chansky and Nate the Great

Helena tells us about her prep for the fitness compettion at the Arnold Sports Festival coming up next month. Learn what it takes to get an amazing body like hers!



Then, we hoop it up with Basketball Hall of Famer Nate Thurmond about his career, playing high school ball with Gus Johnson, playing in Philly with Wilt, the current state of the Warriors and why he believes all of the best small forwards in NBA history start with the letter B

Pat Summerall

Pat Summerall was born on May 10, 1930 in Lake City, Florida and is a former American football player and television sportscaster, having worked at CBS, FOX, and ESPN.

Summerall is best known for his work with John Madden on CBS and FOX\'s NFL telecasts, and in 1999 he was inducted into the American Sportscasters Association Hall of Fame. Visit his official website is www.PatSummerall.net

Summerall spent ten years as a professional football player in the National Football League, primarily as a placekicker. The Detroit Lions drafted Summerall as a fourth-round draft choice in the 1952 NFL Draft. Summerall played the pre-season with the Lions before breaking his arm, which ended the year for him. After that season, he was traded and went on to play for the Chicago Cardinals from 1953 to 1957 and the New York Giants from 1958 to 1961, during which he was a part of The Greatest Game Ever Played. His best professional year statistically was 1959, when Summerall scored 90 points on 30-for-30 (100%) extra-point kicking and 20-for-29 (69%) field goal kicking.

After retiring from football, Summerall became a broadcaster for CBS Sports. He started in 1962 working part-time on New York Giants\' broadcasts. In 1964, CBS hired Summerall full-time to work its NFL telecasts, initially as a color commentator and then (beginning midway through the 1974 season) as a play-by-play announcer. Summerall covered other events including ABA basketball. Summerall also did sportscasts for the network\'s flagship radio station until 1966 when he did a morning drive-time music/talk program, WCBS-AM. In 1969, Summerall took part in NBC\'s coverage of Super Bowl III. He also co-hosted the syndicated NFL Films series This Week in Pro Football in the late 1960s and early \'70s.

During the 1970s, Summerall usually worked with Tom Brookshier as his broadcasting partner for NFL (mostly NFC) games on CBS, and the colorful Summerall-Brookshier duo worked three Super Bowls (X, XII, and XIV) together. Summerall, Brookshier, NFL on CBS producer Bob Wussler and Miami Dolphins owner Joe Robbie appeared as themselves during the 1977 film Black Sunday, which was filmed on location at the Orange Bowl in Miami during Super Bowl X.

In 1981, Summerall was teamed with former Oakland Raiders coach John Madden, a pairing that would last for 22 seasons on two networks and become one of the most well-known partnerships in TV sportscasting history. Summerall and Madden were first teamed on a 1979 broadcast of a Minnesota Vikings–Tampa Bay Buccaneers game.

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Nate Thurmond

A genial giant of a man, Nate Thurmond was one of the all-time great NBA centers, with a rugged, in-your-face style of play that frequently intimidated even Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain. The Hall of Famer played 14 professional seasons in the 1960s and 1970s, posting career averages of 15.0 points and 15.0 rebounds per game. Among the all-time NBA leaders in rebounding, Thurmond was selected to play in seven NBA All-Star Games and was selected to the NBA All-Defensive First or Second Team five times.

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