Friday, Nov. 06, 2009

Tony Dungy's words carry weight; former Colts coach offers insight and wisdom in role as TV analyst

The rookie NFL television broadcaster making the loudest splash this season talks softly and carries a big clicker.

Tony Dungy's approach to his job in NBC's Sunday Night NFL studio mirrors the approach he took as coach of the Indianapolis Colts. He's credible and low key, bringing a gravitas to the studio not seen since Chris Berman's ascension as clown prince of ESPN.

Because he isn't a boorish, boisterous showman, Dungy never considered moving to television after he retired as the Colts' coach after last season. He didn't think he fit the profile and never thought anyone would offer him the opportunity.

"I thought television would be looking for the wow factor, the entertainment factor that comes with high-energy people," he said in a telephone interview this week. "That's not me."

Dungy, whose work will be on display around the Cowboys-Eagles clash Sunday night, is more teacher than TV preacher, having evolved in just half a season into the final word of wisdom on Sunday's NFL happenings.

"As a coach I had to be myself if I wanted to be effective," Dungy said. "I can't change who I am for television. I am who I was raised to be."

NBC had struggled for three seasons to come up with the right formula for its Football Night in America studio show. Sterling Sharpe was a nonstarter as were Jerome Bettis and the much-ballyhooed Tiki Barber. The network finally seems to have come up with a winning combination this year in Dungy and Rodney Harrison, who supplies the youthful enthusiasm to balance his fellow analyst's solemn approach.

NBC veteran Sam Flood, who produces Football Night in America, said Dungy is driven to succeed. Flood never has worked with anyone who works harder than Dungy. "He is the most thorough," Flood said.

To take advantage of Dungy's coaching eye, NBC has handed him a clicker and asked him to break down tape during pregame, halftime and postgame shows. And it's not just any clicker. The network found an exact replica of the ancient clicker Dungy used for much of his 13 seasons coaching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts. The idea? To make him as comfortable as possible dissecting plays.

Here's an example of Dungy slicing and dicing what he believes is a blown coaching call. After the Vikings' Brett Favre threw a last-second, game-winning touchdown pass to beat Mike Singletary's San Francisco 49ers, Dungy showed precisely what went wrong defensively. He believed the 49ers were in the wrong defense.

"Mike Singletary will not make this mistake again," Dungy said. End of critique.

In reviewing the spectacular Super Bowl XLII catch by the New York Giants' David Tyree against the New England Patriots, Dungy pinpointed a subtle mistake made by defensive back Asante Samuel. "That's something out of character for Asante," he said. Point made.

Just last week, he chastised New York Jets linebacker Bart Scott for an inappropriate postgame comment in the wake of a loss to the Miami Dolphins.

Said Dungy: "My mother used to say, 'When you win, say very little. When you lose, say less.' Bart Scott said too much today. When a team beats you twice, give them credit and go home."

Several days later, Scott told ESPN he had been out of line: "That's a man (Dungy) I have a tremendous amount of respect for. So if he believes that, then I have to go inside with what he said."

On Mondays, Dungy reviews his work from the previous night. On Tuesdays, he gets Flood's critique. Always he wonders what his late mother Cleo, who taught public speaking to two generations of students back home in Jackson, Mich., would say about her son's performance.

"She would say that I could be more effective with my words," Dungy said. "She would say I could have made better choices."

But what would she have said about NBC's choice of her son?

"She would say she was very proud of me."

Around the horn

For what it's worth, the Cowboys are 8-2 on NBC's Sunday Night Football while the Eagles are 0-6. . . . Fox's pregame show expands to two hours Sunday, kicking off at 10 a.m. CST, for its trip to an undisclosed military base in Afghanistan. Curt Menefee, Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Jimmy Johnson and the rest of the crew will be broadcasting from the other side of the world as tribute to our nation's military.

NFL Network, whose 2009 schedule kicks off Thursday with Bears-49ers, does not expect to have a carriage agreement with Time Warner Cable any time soon. Bob Papa and Matt Millen will be calling the games . . . Nancy Lieberman, coach of the fledgling new entry in the NBA D-League, has severed her ties with ESPN, where she has been a staple working women's basketball.

Bill Walton, once a Mavericks TV analyst, has retired from broadcasting in the wake of serious health problems. "As I return after a grueling multi-year, life-threatening, life-changing ordeal with back problems, it is time to dedicate the rest of my life to service," he said in a statement released by his most recent employer, ESPN. "It is great to be back in the game. Thanks everybody - for everything."

World Series report

The six-game Yankees-Phillies affair finished with an 11.7 rating and average audience of 19.4 million viewers for Fox across the country.

The network is ballyhooing that a 46 percent uptick in the national rating represents the largest year-to-year increase in series history. That's true, but last year's 8.4 rating (13.6 million viewers) for the five-game Phillies-Rays series was the lowest ever.

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