Gary Danielson's knowledge of the game is pretty amazing.

GrayTide said:

Absolutely, Vern in great at the 16th at the Masters. Vern does get a little confused at times, but IMO both are very impartial and try to call it as they see it. And yes, Gary is very knowledgeable in the technical aspects of the game.

Click to expand...

Pollock or Palmer, during the Auburn- KSU game, referred to KSU as Kansas at least 3x...

I'll agree that Gary is knowledgeable, but I'll refrain from joining the Gary & Verne lovefest.

BamainBoston said:

And the great ones know when to shut up.

Click to expand...

Exactly my point.

Bamabuzzard said:

I know he is a part of one of the most criticized announcing crews around. But Gary Danielson knows football. It was amazing how many times he called plays before they even happened. "When Alabama goes under center they normally throw the fade to Cooper." Seconds later we throw the fade to Cooper. He does things like this throughout the game. There are a lot of former players who are announcing crews but I don't think there is another one that even comes close to doing what Danielson does with regards to telling he audience what to look for next. He deserves some kudos for that.

Click to expand...

I agree 100%. He may get hung up here and there on team names or players but thats Vern rubbing off on him. He is not affrad to give his personal opinion either which many fans cant deal with that part. I like somone willing to give their opinion along with their knowledge and insite of the game. He takes a lot of flack but he knows the game and has helped millions of average fans of the game understand what is going on and explaning what is happening. He gets A+ from me for his game knowledge and real time breakdown and game insight.

BoSox Tider said:

I think we were all spoiled by Keith Jackson. He was one in a million!

Click to expand...

Oh. well.... There`s Keith Jackson. Nobody else in the conversation (IMHO, of course).

formersoldier71 said:

I'll agree that Gary is knowledgeable, but I'll refrain from joining the Gary & Verne lovefest.

Click to expand...

at least from me, its not a love fest, just an acknowledgement of them doing their jobs.

i know how good bama is, i don't need a commentator to tell me over and over during the game

BamainBoston said:

And the great ones know when to shut up.

Click to expand...

well, the folks paying their salary seem to think they are doing just fine.

Bamabuzzard said:

I know he is a part of one of the most criticized announcing crews around. But Gary Danielson knows football. It was amazing how many times he called plays before they even happened. "When Alabama goes under center they normally throw the fade to Cooper." Seconds later we throw the fade to Cooper. He does things like this throughout the game. There are a lot of former players who are announcing crews but I don't think there is another one that even comes close to doing what Danielson does with regards to telling he audience what to look for next. He deserves some kudos for that.

Click to expand...

I concur. I've always liked Verne and Gary despite the flack they receive. Another analyst who does this an incredible amount is Todd Blackledge. To me, Todd, Gary, and Herbie are the gold standard for college football color analysts.

BamainBoston said:

That makes them above criticism.

Click to expand...

as far as i can tell, you are free to criticize them as much as you wish. but it looks like they are here for the long haul.

92tide said:

well, the folks paying their salary seem to think they are doing just fine.

Click to expand...

Or at least doing better than anyone else would do that they could currently hire at that salary.
[emoji3]

Before we give ole Gary too much credit, remember he meets with the staff on the Thursday or Friday before the game and is provided inside information. ie: re like to run the fade on 2nd down near the goal line if the D is in this alignment or on 3rd and 4 with 3 wides we will run this or that. Makes him look like a real expert when he is really just parroting info he got from the coaches. With that said he does have unique insight at times. I have no idea why he denies the existence of momentum though, that's curious, but he says he doesn't believe in it.

uafan4life said:

Or at least doing better than anyone else would do that they could currently hire at that salary.
[emoji3]

Click to expand...

i have no clue how much those guys make, but i would bet that vern and gary (and the espn top crew) are making some serious bank.

Personally, I like them both. I like them for the reasons the OP mentioned about Danielson and because they give what I feel is a view consistent with what the rest of the country thinks. I know that through our Crimson glasses any snub is blasphemy and any praise was long overdue but I prefer to have someone who gives it to me straight. Take the bias out of it and tell me how it really is.

BamaMoon said:

CV, I heard the same thing, but my "interpretation" of GD's comment was that he saw what was happening and knew the Bama exposed the Gator secondary. To me it was like his comments was "Oh boy, UF just blew it."

Click to expand...

This was also how I took it. GD is a fan of proper execution and solid fundamentals and is usually dismayed when assignments are blown regardless of the teams involved,

Bamabuzzard said:

The alternatives aren't very promising either. As far as I can see there aren't any up and coming "voices" that are in line to replace a lot of the old timers. As much as I dislike Musberger he's got a great broadcasting voice and has some good cliches in his arsenal for big games and big moments. One of my favorites was in the Notre Dame game "Folks if this was a prize fight they'd stop it." LOL!

Click to expand...

i think it was herbie that was announcing with him that game. it felt like he just wanted to say "notre dame is just flat getting their [rears] kicked" but had to be more diplomatic

Verne has a great voice, but misses too many calls. He is only 74, but does not seem to be equal to the tempo of calling play-by-play anymore. There's a reason why Keith Jackson dialed it back in his early 70's and hung it up for good at 77. Plus, I hate the way Verne says "measurement" (MAY-zhur-mint).

Gary Danielson is a highly intelligent, first-class student of the game. He does tend to get fixated on a particular play or theme, and drive it into the ground, but then again, color guys have a difficult task, keeping the audience engaged when the teams are not playing. I do not, however, appreciate his assumed familiarity with Coach Saban, referring to him as "Nick" on the air without express, written permission to do so from Coach Saban. In the absence of such permission, the word "Nick" may never be used in reference to Coach Saban unless preceded by "Lord" or possibly "Darth".

Regardless of their merits, I will never forgive these two for their man-crush on Tim Tebow. Never.