Sunday, November 11, 2007

What we need for record feedback is a good Andy Fales rumor...

Good gosh. I guess what we need for record feedback is a good Andy Fales rumor. Wow. Thank you for all the input, questions, and conspiracy theories. I enjoyed them all, some more than others.

I'm glad to tell you what I think, or what I know, but nothing more. In this case, I think Andy wants to work at channel 13 again. I know my boss wants Andy here, as do I.

A local talk radio host urged Shawn Terrell and Chris Hassel to get their resumes in order, because one of them is sure to be fired if/when Andy returns, but that simply is not true. Shawn and Chris aren't going anywhere regardless---they're both doing a great job---and Heather Burnside will continue to be a part of the channel 13 sports team, as well as SoundOFF.

As for Heidi Soliday, I wish her well. Sometimes people mistakenly think we must be enemies, but Heidi has always been nice to me, and we shared many laughs and late nights covering teams on the road over the years. I also remember being really sick with a cold in Dallas and having Heidi bring me medicine. Best wishes to Heidi. Enjoy not working nights.

I remember the '72 Dolphins. I loved that team. But these guys are getting old with their yearly celebration of the final undefeated team falling. Now Don Shula wants an asterisk if the Patriots run the table?! The Patriots got caught cheating, but it has nothing to do with the way they're destroying teams. The Patriots could show teams their game plan and still win by 20. Shula is now backpeddling and doing a damage control. He should. (By the way, I think the Pats go 19-0).

I'm glad the Iowa Barnstormers are back. I'm not sure there's enough money to go around in Des Moines for the Stormers, Stars, Energy, Bucs, and all the college and high school teams, but I hope so. I love entertainment options. I used to lenjoy taking the kids to Barnstormer games. It's perfect for the short-attention span generation. It's like a video game come to life.

I do hope head coach John Gregory slipped when he said how much he loved Des Moinez (pronounce the "s"). Gregory was here for the glory years, so he knows better. He's not like those flight attendants: "We're now making our initial descent into Dess Moinez. We should be on the ground in 15 minutes."

Good move by the Barnstormers hanging on to the basic logo and look. It's classic. If arena football can be "classic".

Iowa Stars and Barnstormers look to Iowa State for a lesson in how to sell tickets. Besides shrewd marketing---which is no small factor---Jamie Pollard has the good sense to price season tickets so low, families have trouble not buying. The result: record total for football followed by a new record for men's basketball. $99 for season tickets? To quote Sean Connery in the Untouchables: "Here endeth the lesson."

Finally saw a few movies. Bee Movie is fun, and great for kids. For adults, it's nice to hear Jerry Seindfeld's voice again. This is no classic like Shrek or Toy Story, but Bee Movie earns a grade of, what else, B.

Michael Clayton is an old fashioned drama like they used to make in the 70's. It takes its time, but it all pays off. George Clooney is terrific. The man is rich, good looking, and talented. I hate him. B+

Jenny and I went to see American Gangster Saturday night. We had to sit in the front row at the Century. Normally I know better, since I've had neck surgery, but I really wanted to see this. Even though I was in pain, and the actors looked blurry and distorted from my vantage point, it's a terrific movie. Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe in the same movie? You can't beat that. (note: do you know their first on screen teaming? Virtuosity. Not good.) A-

A sad farewell to the Sierra theaters in West Des Moines. I'll miss this place. My son, Cade, saw his first movie there at age 1 week (with Pat and Sally Dix). It was Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Cade never made a peep; he crouched and hid. I was proud right away. Another time, my mother and I went and they warned us the heat wasn't working, we put on gloves and hats, bought hot cocoa and watched In America. It's a good memory. The Sierra will be missed.

Great job by Steve Loney at Drake. He stepped in at the last minute, and did a good job coaching the Bulldogs. He's not interested in more than one year---the man has coached in the NFL---and he'll be missed.

I've been watching Entourage on DVD. Man, is it funny. Jeremy Piven is priceless. Didn't he go to Drake?

Ed Wilson can flat out tailgate.

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

I saw your "I Think..." segment. I must say it was good, but please don't underestimate the coaching of Dan Hawkins. I didn't go to the game, but I had heard about it and heard that it was a controversial ending. Whether that was true or not, I wouldn't rule it out. The Colorado kicker made 2 field goals and neither one counted. Something is fishy there.

As for the Hawkeyes, I don't care how they win, as long as they win. It's not the Big 12, you can't expect to score 73 or 76 points against somebody and blow them out because there is something in the Big Ten called defense. The Big 12 should learn it.

One final note, Ed Wilson is the man!


Gary

Anonymous said...

is andy for sure coming back? if he is, that would be awesome. i miss whats bugging any

Anonymous said...

*Andy

Keith Murphy said...

Gary,

Hawkins is a good coach, and he's turning Colorado in the right direction, which is why his blunder Saturday is so surprising.
Leading 21-0, you don't go for it on 4th down in your own territory. The Cyclone stop changed momentum, and gave Iowa State new life.

The end was bizarre. That CU kicker was money too. The guy deserved having at least one clutch kick count.

Thanks,
Keith

P.S. for "Anonymous",
Andy is coming back to Des Moines.

WindBreak247 said...

Keith,

Made my first trip down to KC since Andy left, and happened to catch him on the 6:00 news Saturday. He was trying, but you can tell he's miserable. Bring him back, so we can start yelling at him at the ISU games and having him continue to ignore us even though we *know* he hears us.

Incidentally, Heather knows how to work a crowd. She was awesome at the CU game Sat.

You ain't lying about Entourage. I started watching it in the middle of the summer, and am completely addicted. All we have left that's on DVD is the 2nd half of the third season. I wanna watch it, but at the same time, I don't wanna be done with 'em.

Hope all is well.

Anonymous said...

Keith ,
i am glad to hear that andy is coming back to des moines. when he comes back to des moines is he going to continue at channel 13 if he does, is he going to continue whats bugging andy? i like watching you both on soundoff

thanks,

Anonymous said...

I know that I am more than likely going to take a "Blog Beating" here but am I the only one who thinks it is a little lame that Andy is tucking his tail between his legs and running back to Des Moines already?? Talk about not being able to cut the cord! I am all for doing what makes you happy in life but give change a chance. He could very well be walking away from the best opportunity of his life but I guess, on the other hand, he could be walking back into the best opportunity of his life as well. Damn you Andy for messing with my emotions, so!! Why do I love you so!!!
---
Actually, I think that if any blame needs to laid on someone for Andy's "troubles" in KC, it would need to be placed squarely on the shoulders of you Mr. Murphy!! I think I remember reading a comment from you in an article that stated something to the effect that you wouldn't be surprised if Andy became "the Man" or something to that effect in KC. That comment didn't sit well with the Len Dawson fans in KC, and I'm sure it made for an uncomfortable situation for Andy.
---
This was all a part of your plan all along wasn't it!! We're onto you both Keith and Andy!!! I sure hope that, if Andy comes back, he either gets his own show or is back on SoundOff. He is an incredible talent.

Keith Murphy said...

Shawn,

That was a funny start to your feedback. Well played.

You're right, my comment to the Des Moines Register how "it might not be long before Andy's the man there" did Andy no favors. Unfortunately, and I understand better than most how this happens, the Register completely left out the part where I said "Len is in his 70's and reportedly thinking about retirement, but KMBC made it clear to Andy, as long as Len wants to work, he has the top job". It was meant to be a compliment in my belief in Andy's abilities, and the knowledge KMBC was hiring Andy as the heir apparent WHEN Len steps down. Context is everything. I'm sorry the KC media ran with that without having the actual intent.

However, please make no mistake, Andy is doing just fine in KC and KMBC does NOT want him to leave. This was a personal decision for Andy, and love him, like him or hate him (and most love), we're fortunate to have such a unique and distinctive talent returning to this market.

Windbreak,

You're right, Heather does know how to work a crowd. She's great with people. I watched her and Ed in action at the same time this past Saturday. They're extroverts very comfortable in their own skin. Me, I'm an introvert in an extrovert profession, but I do enjoy how nice people are (even when they're jabbing Ed for forecasting warm weather when you can't feel your toes).

Thanks.
Keith

Anonymous said...

Gary,

Could you be any more mis-informed? First, there was nothing "fishy" about the end of the ISU game. Colorado kicked the ball before all of their own players even got off the field. Nevermind the fact that they kicked it before the officials gave the go ahead. They took the only chance they had by illegally snapping it before the clock ran out. That they were able to commit this foul and still get a second chance is wrong! From here on out, if I were a college coach and the clock was about to run out, I would instruct my players to tackle the official, grab the ball out of his hands and kick it! Sure I would get a sizable penalty but at least I would have a chance to kick it while there was still time on the clock.

Second, after seeing Colorado live and on TV and also way too many Boise "blue field" State games this year, I am convinced that the former Boise OC was the true brains of that operation. The only thing I have seen from Hawkins is his typical arrogant attitude. Look for him to be run out of Colorado in 2 years.

Third, apparently those daunting Big Ten defenses weren't good enough to stop ISU and Missouri.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous,

Even Keith Murphy said the ending was strange.

You are seriously mistaken about Hawkins. He's already shown this year that he can coach. It ISU on the verge of becoming bowl eligible? Oh yeah, they had another good season though. Don't be jealous because Colorado has a top caliber coach who can win games unlike Chizik at ISU.

Look at the scores of all the Big Ten games compared to the Big 12 games. The Big 12 teams do not play defense. It's right there on paper.


Gary

Anonymous said...

i agree with a couple of things here.

Ed Wilson is the man

that the win by the cyclones over colorado was indeed strange but a win is a win no matter how it is done. props to them. though i havent seen them straight out win a game. they barely beat the 3 teams they won against.

yes the hawkeyes are still THE TEAM in Iowa

on a last note, i hope that when andy comes back in january he continues whats bugging andy.

Anonymous said...

I have the inside scoop. All of the WHO sports positions are taken so that only leaves one highly coveted spot for Andy to take at WHO. Look for Andy to bring back the Duane Ellet magic and bring Floppy back to WHO. I can see him now going off on the third kid in a row who tells the "Why did the man put the car in the oven" joke. He will also be coming back to Sound-Off with a riveting "What's Buggin' Floppy" segment. The only hang up with Andy's contract is that he wants to get rid of the Beagle and bring Floppy back as a Bulldog.

Anonymous said...

"Don't be jealous because Colorado has a top caliber coach who can win games unlike Chizik at ISU."

Yeah, such a top caliber coach that he lost to Chizik's Cyclones. Amazing considering Chizik won't win games at ISU, according to the brain-child that is Gary.

Anonymous said...

"though i havent seen them straight out win a game. they barely beat the 3 teams they won against."

Another great post. Apparently this poster missed the game against K-State, where ISU won by 2 possessions and led all but about 2 minutes of the game.

Anonymous said...

"The Big 12 teams do not play defense. It's right there on paper."

Look at all the scores of Big 10 games compared to Big 12 games. The Big 10 teams do not play offense. It's right there on paper.

Anonymous said...

Are you kidding? The Big 10 plays awesome offense!

-Iowa Hawkeyes

Anonymous said...

Yep, I for one think the Hawkeyes played GREAT offense against W. Mich. Oh yeah, they played GREAT defense too. Time for the Hawk fans to start calling for Ferentz's head again.

Anonymous said...

Is it just me, or does there appear to be room for a fourth face next to Shawn Terrel on the WHO Sports tab? Possibly making room for Andy?

Anonymous said...

Keith,

I think the Des Moines area is going to remember why they fell in love with arena football. It's great to have them back. I'm not going to miss a game!

GO STORMERS!

Anonymous said...

we have what the people think but what is keith murphys mind. such as the return of andy fales, the hawkeye situtaion on and off field and cyclones football and basketball. possbily other random things on keiths mind

Anonymous said...

Iowa's season started in shambles and hadn't gotten any better towards the end. It was just all downhill from the very beginning. This is by far Ferentz's best coaching job yet because it is a miracle that Iowa even finished the season at 6-6.

How'd Iowa State do with a veteran team with no suspensions or hardly any injuries? Oh yeah, they had a good season though. Yeah, you'll come back with, how'd Iowa do against ISU, but please, that just strengthens the arguement about the Iowa game being ISU's "Superbowl".

None of us can really talk smack except for the Panther fans because UNI is the only team who has represented.


Gary

Anonymous said...

Go Panthers!

UNI Alum '94

I hope we get to watch the next game on tv (not Mediacom though).

Anonymous said...

"How'd Iowa State do with a veteran team...."

Gary, please do some research before spouting off.

Check out the stats in an article posted by the Rag today: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071120/SPORTS020602/711200402&plckCurrentPage=0&sid=sitelife.desmoinesregister.com

Passing yards: Seniors: 89.1% Others: 10.9%
Rushing yards: Seniors: 19.7% Others: 80.3%
Receiving yards: Seniors: 42.5% Others 57.5%
Scoring: Seniors: 47.7% Others 52.3%
Tackles: Seniors: 33.3% Others 66.7%
Sacks: Seniors: 37.5% Others 62.5%
Tackles for loss: Seniors: 48.4% Others 51.6%
Interceptions: Seniors: 20% Others 80%

ISU is a fairly young team. They do lose 3 very good players to graduation (Blythe, Meyer and Bowen), but aside from those 3 guys, ISU has a lot of talent returning, and the majority of guys who saw the field this year saw it for the first time at the Division 1 level. Combine that with the "veterans" learning a new system, and its pretty obvious why they struggled.

And yeah, since you already mentioned it, how'd Iowa do against them?

Iowa, like ISU, is still probably 2 years away from making any real noise in conference play. Its just the nature of the beast, especially these days with fewer scholarships to go around.

Bryan