Easily tops 'Who's Now' as the worst promotion they've ever come up with. Nice job, guys!

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I said it yesterday after it was posted that it was an embarrassment. A lot of what makes great highlights are the announcers who make them. Joe Starkey on The Play is one of the top five calls in sports broadcasting history.

I don't really have a problem with the concept of the Greatest Highlight. But to have Berman do his decades-old schtick brings down whatever credibility and respect he and ESPN still had out there. With me, it was less than zero.

Oh, and it's not really drawing people. I think I heard yesterday when they were doing the bracket draw that there were fewer than 2,000 votes. And it must be low because if you go to the site, they only show the percentage of votes, not the raw vote.

If it comes on, I turn away. A complete embarrassment.

Before I saw your post yesterday on this I wrote about it as well. part of what makes the highlight great and memorable is the call.

This is blasphemous. I was so pissed of I wrote the Ombudswoman.

http://soxanddawgs.com/?p=3391

Guys...It's a highlight. An old highlight. To equate this to Who's Now is preposterous. This really is harmless.

I don't have a problem with the concept either Milehigh and I even said it might be a good idea originally (without Berman).

I think that noise he makes should be banned by the FCC personally.

The concept is pretty good - let the fans vote on the best highlight they have ever seen. It is a harmless segment. Until you let Berman do the call of each and every clip. Part of what makes each play great is the spontaneous call of the announcer. I actually thought I would watch the segment, until I heard Berman's voice-over. Now, not a chance.

It's not a competition for best play or best call, though. It's a competition for best highlight. That's why it makes sense for Berman to do them. And while nobody seems to like Berman too much on the blogs (myself included), he's the most popular anchor ESPN has. It makes sense. Really it does.

Very valid point Anon, but I still think the voice over aspect is just asinine. A highlight is everything....the play, the year, the call, the network it was on, and the circumstances surrounding it.

What happens when he voices over the 1980 U.S. Olympic highlight?

"What happens when he voices over the 1980 U.S. Olympic highlight?"

I don't know, the final raping of my childhood?!

Seeing the Laettner play without the CBS audio was not good. Seeing Aaron without Milo Hamilton's call under it was bad. 1980 without Michaels will be the last straw.

It might make sense, logically, but it's a complete pile of shit from an entertainment stand point.

WHAT~@!!

WHAT?!?~

WHAT>!?

WHAT?!?!

I think it's pure gold, myself. Of course, I think I have the most satisfying cock in the world, too.

Is that what Rosy and her 5 sisters tell you?

This trumped up shit has got to stop. When will they ever take this gas bag off the air?

I agree. The call by the play by play guy is a huge part of the highlight. It is part of what you remember about it. Plus having Berman voice over it takes away some of the crowd noise.

"Do you believe in miracles...WHAT"

They get it all wrong. What made Sportscenter originally great? It was highlights of all the games you couldn't watch. ESPN thought it was the personalities presenting the highlights. They are necessary but it is best when they stay out of the way. Sometimes the highlight is best with the radio announcer, sometimes it is best with the TV announcer, but it is always better when the ESPN personality just shuts the fuck up.

I agree. ESPN is falling apart big time. Berman said at least 5-10 whops in 13 seconds. What a joke. FIre his fat self. Have you ever heard of exercise Chris?

As much as I hate Chris Connelly, I would rather see more of his feel good puff pieces than this shit.

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WHOOP!

It's always good to have a guy with a voice totally fucked up by years of pill popping and alcohol abuse ruin prefectly good calls done by seasoned announcers.

I CAN'T WHOOP BELIEVE TICK TITITICK TICK WHAT I BOMMUBMBUMBUMBUBOOSH JUST WHOOP SAWEEEDERAIIIIIIDAS!!!

What a fuckin clown. Wonder if he and Rush had some stories about pill popping to tell each other.

I watch this stuff on mute, it's almost perfect, but i agree it's not the same without the original announcers. i mean, all that stuff they say was made up on the spot. berman's voiceovers sound scripted because he knows how it ends. 0 emotion. Plus, i think it's a shame that they're letting some at worst female reporters go, but theyre letting this mockery of the anchor postion stay on and show the world he can still crack his voice on command.

*i meant at worst mediocre

NO NOT JORDANS SHOT!!!!!! SCREW YOU BERMAN. YOU ARE RUINING THE GREATEST MOMENT IN BULLS HISTORY. dammit costas where are you!!!

1988 US Open Oak Hill CC Rochester NY:Berman taping a standup in front of the clubhouse,my brother and I walk in back of him,waving our arms ,yelling and pointing at Berman.Berman yells"Cut"and glares at us,we keep walking...he was PISSED.heh heh

Err,1989 Oak Hill...88 was Brookline Ma.

For me it comes down to this: you can't script the calls for the greatest plays ever.

I put ESPN for the MD / Duke game but this greatest highlight thing was on at the end of SC, so I went back and watched the creidts of the Simpsons rerun I was watching, it was better than Berman. Didnt they run an Ultimate Highlight segment in the fall ?

Some of the other comments about the local announcers play calls, I agree with. The NHL network runs a highlight show where the goals are called by the broadcasters doing the game, and the studio hosts give their analysis afterward. It works out pretty well.

If we're going to be subjected to ESPN voice overs on these highlights, wouldn't it make more sense to have someone that does SportsCenter more than once a year do them? Scott Van Pelt, Kenny Mayne, hell, even Stuart Scott would be better. Listening to Berman do these just makes me miss the good old days of SC with Olbermann and Patrick.