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These guys are paid to do what they do, and should be competent professionals. Bob Kesling's issues are well documented. He mispronounces names, doesn't give down and distance properly, is pretty bland to listen to. With Denton, I think he's probably getting old and not reading properly. He was better 15 years ago. When you are being paid a lot of money to do a job, you need to do it properly. If you can't, why should you have that job?

I enjoy Denton.  But to each his own.

Vinnie, have you listened to him lately? He's calling stuff that even I can see is wrong.  :eek:

Kessling drives me crazy.  I listen to most of the game on the radio and I count on a good broadcast from him....still waiting.  He cannot paint an accurate picture of what is going on.

Example....." Its first down and Poole is in the backfield...he gets the ball.....AND IS HIT AT THE LINE OF SCRIMMAGE for a short gain....looks like it will be second and one.....Check that, it was Neal with the carry.    Second down and Neal gets the ball....AND HE BREAKS A TACKLE...AND DRAGS AN OPPONENT FOR A BIG GAIN......looks like it will be......third and one.   Check that....Poole was back in the game to make that carry."   

I CANNOT STAND IT ANYMORE!!!!! :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead:      Bob is a nice man...a great Tennessee guy....but he sucks at calling a game.  I have been tired of him for many years. 

This last line sums it up nicely.

Agree totally on Kessling.  He strikes me as someone who doesn't follow football or watch much of it away from the games he's working.  You can just tell.

I think Bob was a pretty good sports reporter when he did that. He got the play by play job probably because of his connections (I don't know that as fact, but I have heard that). That just isn't what he is good at. Some say people expect too much because he follows John Ward. I don't think expecting someone to be competent at his job is too much.

I ran into Kessling years ago at the Varsity in Atlanta. We were in separate lines and I did a double take at him as I was looking around. He noticed I recognized him. Then I heard "What'll ya have?" and the encounter ended.

Should have been Mike Keith.  Period... Yet another gaff by UT admin...

Listening to Kesling, especially in a close game, can be a maddening experience. Listen, I have never asked Bob to be John Ward. And I can excuse the occasional gaffe with player's names. But what is inexcusible is his sloppiness in play by play.

Too many times a running back goes for "a couple" or a "short gain"...then before the next play runs he'll say something like "2nd and 5." Well, a five yard gain is NOT a "short gain." Or say, Bama, according to BK runs for two on first down, three on second down. So you think we've got them 3rd and 5...a good chance to stop the drive. Only to have Bob announce "3rd and a short-two." HUH? It's frustrating trying to decypher what the situation is if you're following by radio broadcast.

Was Bob chosen before Keith became the Titans' play by play guy?

No. Mike left the year before Ward retired.

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I hear what everyone is saying about Kesling and agree that you can't follow the game.  However, I have listened to other SEC play by play guys and they are just as bad.  The Alabama guy drives me crazy..."they gain 4 yards on first down" and then "it is 2nd and 8".  Huh!?  The LSU guys you can't even follow what is happening because they are talking about things that aren't happening on the field.  UGA is awful as is UF.

The UF guy is annoying as hell with his "Ooooh my!" every 2 seconds.

Eli Gold, the bammer announcer, is about the worst in the biz IMO.  I recall years of listening on my car radio while running errands, (since it was the only game on), of dialing into it in the middle of the game, listening 5, 7, 15, one time even 20(!) minutes, and having no idea of what the score was and often even who had the ball!  Seriously, I have heard him describe 4 consecutive plays and had no idea who HAD THE BALL!  And forget down and distance.  Just forget it.  It does not exist.   :mad: :laugh:

By all accounts, Bob is a good guy. And I suspect that whether or not we're consciously comparing him to John Ward, if Ward hadn't been the play-by-play guy for 30 years, or hadn't been as good as he was, we wouldn't be having this discussion right now.

But, man oh man, is Kesling hard to listen to. And I agree with those who say that other SEC radio guys are just as bad. Radio has become a lost art. Guys who could paint a vivid picture of the game with words alone are long gone. The inaccuracies aside, the biggest difference between Kesling and Ward is how fluid John Ward was, compared to how choppy Kesling is. Ward could talk in a smooth, continuous manner, describing the formation as the team broke the huddle, the defense's blitz, the way the quarterback went through his progression, etc. His voice could excite you and soothe you at the same time. He had a special knack for consistently calling the action without trying to keep up with the action. It didn't matter if the guy was skipping into the end zone and the crowd gave away the fact that he had scored, Ward would still go through his progression of describing the guy's cutback at the 40, broken tackle at the 35, etc. Kesling doesn't have the ability to do any of that. He just isn't a natural radio guy. As a television play-by-play guy, he wasn't too bad. And, as has already been stated, he was pretty good as a sports anchor and narrator for highlight films. On the radio...bleh. (Although he is much better at basketball than football.)

Another area where Kesling has struggled is his struggles to develop a catch phrase. He just hasn't been able to pull it off. The "Touchdown Travis Stephens, Touchdown Tennessee" wasn't bad; it just sounded a little too rehearsed. He needs to lose the "checkerboards" reference and never use it again.

Although I think Mike Keith is a little too over-the-top sometimes, I'd like to see UT replace Kesling with Keith.

Although this is getting off-topic, another difference between Kesling and Ward is that Kesling just isn't much of a people person. His interaction with fans at the Kickoff Call-In Show appears strained. Ward was a people person first. I have chatted with Kesling before and almost felt like he was having to keep his hand in his pocket to avoid glancing at his watch. Ward, on the other hand, has never been like that. A few years ago we were standing outside the top level entrance at the northwest entrance to Thompson-Boling waiting for the gates to open. It was colder than heck. John and his wife happened to walk up and slip into line. I introduced myself to him and he took the time to ask where we were from, what I did for a living, etc. Then more people began to gather around, some wanting photos, some wanting an autograph. He took the time to interact with each one of them. Here's a guy who can enter any gate he wants at any time he wants, and sit anywhere he wants, but he's standing outside in the bone-chilling cold with the rest of us, waiting for the public entrances to open with the rest of us, waiting to go sit in the seats with the rest of us. I seriously doubt you'd ever see Kesling in a similar situation.

You can't tell me that he didn't know that John Ward was retiring the next year and that UT alreday said it was Bob.  He had sooo much more experience as a play caller.  I think he would have wanted the UT job more and would have waited for UT over the Titans offer if he knew he was going to be the UT guy.  It was one of the worst decisions by the UT Admin imo.

No, he was already gone by the time Ward announced his retirement.

I have heard rumors that Ward wanted Kesling and didn't like Keith, but those are unsubstantiated.

I do not think that Keith would've taken the UT job over the Titans. He makes more money for less work (no basketball) and he's a midstate guy ... he went to UT but he was born and raised in the midstate. I think Keith also found it important to blaze his own trail rather than follow a legend.

The timeline for clarification... the Titans hired him as Director of Broadcasting in 1997 when they moved to Tennessee and played their one season in Memphis. The next year he did color when they played at Vandy and he took over as the play by play guy in 1999.

Ward announced he was retiring in the summer of 1998.

I still say what John Ward announced publically was know inside much earlier.  I have also heard about a ward/Keith riff as well.

I still say he would have wanted the UT job more.  I mean come on, the Titans???   :hurl:

Did you miss the part where I said he makes more money for less work and gets to live in his hometown?

Did you miss the part where he is the play by play caller for the Titans...  :hurl:

Seriously, I have stepped down in money for a better gig before.  Money doesn't always equal more happiness. 

That is no excuse for aligning yourself with hooligans and ne'er do wells when you can associate with choir boys like the Vols.

Dang, I was starting to wonder :dielaughing: what kinda bait I had to use to drag you into this.... :dielaughing:

I have 5 games of words with friends going and my battery is getting low. I gotta pick and choose when to post.

More money for less work doing a similar job and getting to live in your hometown which is the key part to my point.

If I were in his shoes I would take the Titans job and it has nothing to do with liking the Titans more than the Vols... it has to do with keeping mama happy in my case. She loves middle TN and doesn't care for East TN.

The thing is... the Titans are Middle Tennessee.  They should have been named the Nashville Titans.  Tennessee truly is three different states in one. 
None seem to care much for the others.

Probably why I hate them.....that and the asshat fans insisting I root for them - while they preach at me wearing a stupid "got 13?" shirt.

But they weren't.

FWIW I love middle TN and east TN.

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Point?  Mine is they are not "Tennessee's" team.  They are Nashville's team.

They're still the Oilers to me.  :-D

Except for a few holdouts who refuse to accept them because they still see them as Nashville's answer to UT football, that doesn't fly any more. I'm not a diehard Titans fan by any means, but Titan fandom far exceeds Nashville, or even Middle Tennessee. I'd be willing to bet that the number of people outside Nashville who root for them because they're in Tennessee far exceeds the number of people outside Nashville who won't root for them because they're in Nashville. That makes them Tennessee's team.

They are named Tennessee Titans because they wanted the state's backing, not just Nashville's.

Not that it is scientific by any means, but I have listened to the Knoxville sports shows discuss this.  Callers are all over the board in who they root for in E. Tenn. (or at least Knoxville).  By no means are the overwhelmingly for the Titans.

Statistically insignificant.

I never said it was a poll.  Just saw a pattern. 

Has this ever been polled?

My point is that they are named the Tennessee Titans and anybody that is bothered by that is misplacing their energy. It's just a name. It means nothing as far as who the team "belongs to". I bet there are a ton of new englanders that don't like the Pats either but nobody bitches about that.

gee thanks a lot.

But, then again, the Vols are not really Tennessee's team; they are UTK's team (there is UTC).  And, given the three Grand Divisions, Nashville has Vandy and Memphis has Memphis State (ok, Memphis University).  Historically, Memphis also has Ole Miss.  You will still see more Tigers and Rebels fans there than Vols fans.  I am not a Titans fan because I was an Eagles fan long ago before the Oilers moved to Memphis then Nashville.  But, I often find myself rooting for them, and my kids also root for them just because they are "Tennessee" and they have family in Tennessee.   :biggrin:  It's all relative (so to speak).   :wink:   

Good point.  Mine might be a time bound point.  Maybe kids today growing up are more inclined to be Titans fans b/c of "Tennessee".  I think adults in Nashville were much more inclined to be become Titans fans b/c they are in Nashville and that is where they play.  Adults in E. Tenn were less inclined b/c they are in Nashville and they already had allegencies.  The name of "Tennessee" Titans did not change their allegency

I am not a fan of the Titans. With that said, I do not root against them either. If the Titans do well, great. If not, no lost sleep here.

I grew up pulling for the Cowboys. It has been a long, long time since the Cowboys were any good and I still pull for the Cowboys. Others pull for the Falcons and have all their lives. Just because a team arrived and called themselves the Tennessee Titans was no reason for fans of other teams to jump ship.

It wasn't necessarily a reason for fans of other teams to jump ship, but that doesn't mean that fans of other teams were wrong to switch allegiances from teams that they liked before.

To each his own. However, many, including a certain resident VTTW Titans sunshine pumper, insist that true Tennesseans must pull for the Titans. Why, just the other day he or she said as much.

I think that is why there is some recoil when this subject comes up from time to time.

CW

That is bait directed toward me. Wailing Vol tries very hard to engage me in nonsense.

I'm thinking of someone else. But who it is is not important.

CW

+1

Wailing Vol and Smokey Joe are the same person.

I've said it before, especially to Lyn... The majority of Titan fans are not that way and a very large contingent of Titan fans are also Vol fans.

All it takes is one.

OK.

I like the Titans and I don't even live in Tennessee anymore, although they are the closest team.  But then again, my NFL allegiances are multiple anyway.

Well that was easy!   :wave: :wave:

NO NO NO Keith is an egotist of the highest caliber....

I didn't mean any offense... I am not a fan of Memphis though.

Compared to Blob? 

Having dealt with Keith he is much more of an egotist than Kesling....Keith thinks he knows it all and doesn't...Kesling thinks he knows it all and is connected enough to get the answers......

Everyone who roots for the Titans is a turd and needs his eggs stomped.

Okay, not really. I can sympathize with those arguing that the Titans do not feel like "Tennessee's team." Around Knoxville you really don't find much advertising and don't hear much conversation. But I do know there are at least a lot of Knoxvillians who take the Titans as their #1 NFL team-- they're just not NFL people so it's not something they live and breathe. I would guess that 2.5 hours away (in the same state) from most NFL teams, you'd find more hardcore fandom.

But the Titans are a first generation franchise when it comes to Tennessee. 10EC's kids and his kids' kids will grow up with the Titans being around, and that will probably eventually make Titan fanship a bit more pervasive across Tennessee.

NFL football is like all other pro sports to me if you take away my allegiance to UT players; I have no team. I only have teams I don't like. I prefer the Titans to at least half the league, so that's something.

Funny thing.  My favorite team (and I really don't like NFL anyway) is the Seahawks.  I remember watching Steve Largent and appreciating a white boy that could catch. 

The Titans job was a perfect fit for Mike.  He is from the Nashville area (Franklin), his family is still there, and he wanted to be involved in the NFL from day one.  He is also more than just the Titans play by play guy - he serves as the "Director of Broadcasting" - which includes working with sponsors - and makes way more money than Kesling does.  I just don't see him leaving the Titans to come back to UT.  

And an edit after I read the rest of this thread:

Bottom line, if you don't want to root for the Titans, don't.  I have no problem with their calling themselves the Tennessee Titans.  While it is obvious that a majority of their season ticket holders live in Middle Tennessee, they have fans from all over the state.  I watch the Titans when I want to, and my TV has an on/off button when I don't want to watch them.  Nobody is forcing anybody to watch/support the Titans, just like nobody forces anybody to be a UT fan.    

Another thing I find funny is the "UT vs. The Titans" thing.  The fan bases just don't cross that much.  Vanderbilt lost potential season ticket holders when the Titans came to town, not UT.  The Titans didn't take anything away from UT, and in fact, that is an apples and bananas comparison.  

And to close, and I know I am risking being labled the bad guy once again, but to call Mike Ketih an egotist, while cannonizing Bobby Denton just drips of irony.  
 

Didn't really bother me I just had to gig you a little bit.   :naughty: 

I never CANONIZED Denton...I was jsut remarking that Keith was an egotist there was not any attempt to link him to Denton or canonize Denton in way shape form or fashion so how was that leap accomplished?

I respect Keith for the job he does but I still think he is an egotist.

I think 101st combined the points of view of several different posters.

I think for it to meet the criteria of being ironic, the same poster would need to have cannonized Denton and label Keith an egoist.

It's like the song " ironic" which mentions nothing ironic but really disappointments and pains in the neck. Isn't it ironic...dontcha think.