The Catchprhrase

 

"Hello, friends" Jim Nantz and Tony Romo
(Photo: Mary Kouw/CBS SPORTS)

"It is HIGH! It is FAR! It is GONE!"

"See ya!"

"It's OUTTA HERE!"

"You can put it on the board ... YES!"

Those are all home run calls by different broadcasters. Each one is easily recognized (John Sterling, Michael Kay, Gary Cohen, Ken "Hawk" Harrelson"). Each one is a trademark. It's their catchphrase.

And there are plenty of others all over sports.

A member of the Play-by-Play group on Facebook asked about developing one and, to be honest, there are enough people to answer it without me getting involved. In this case, specifically, it was about developing a signature touchdown call in football.

If I were to answer, it would largely be this:

No. Don't do it. You don't need one.

First of all, you can't just magically say, "I'm going to start using a catchphrase" and whip one up! Things have to happen naturally.

In truth, I said "hi friends" on the radio before I knew Jim Nantz "Hello friends." Now, he's more famous and has a better claim to it than I do but it's not trademarked. Also, I don't really think of that as a catchphrase even though, I suppose by definition, it is one.

The earliest catchphrase -- the canned play-by-play call, if you will -- was the "that ball is going ... it is going ... it is GONE!" of Mel Allen. It certainly worked well for him, just like his "Hello there, everybody" did.

"Oh my!" worked spectacularly for Dick Enberg as an exclamation to any big moment.

"BANG!" from Mike Breen for a huge three-point basket made is actually fantastic. Yes, I'm guilty of using that one a few times.

Still, they've just never really been for me. That's not to say I don't have a few things that I've apparently used consistently over the year.

Somewhere along the line, I started using "stanza" to describe a quarter of a game (or a period of hockey). It was just a way of changing up terminology and I liked the nod to poetry. One time, I didn't use it for some reason during a football game and Chris Erway was disappointed. He chided me about it on the air.

He was legitimately disappointed and I've rarely missed it since, normally slotting it in the first quarter, er, stanza.

I also, according to Susan, tend to say that "we'll put a ribbon" on a game as we get ready for the post-game show. I suppose that grew out of saying "wrap the game up." 

I'm sure there are a few others, such as my saying the name of the town or game site along with a term of farewell at the end of every broadcast: "From Greenwich, Connecticut, good night everyone." AJ pointed that one out to me.

But the closest I have to any kind of an "in-game" catchphrase is simplicity.

"Touchdown (team name!)!"

"Gone!" (for a home run. Incidentally, that's what Vin would say.)

"Score!" (hockey, soccer, field hockey, water polo, lacrosse)

And so on. I don't need flashy one-liners. I'd rather come up with things that are natural, like "It's insanity in here!" after the Ryan Preisano playoff buzzer-beater that got me on SportsCenter.

I don't like having nifty little quotes that I've written down ahead of time. If something pops in my brain, I'd rather use that.

I'd also be fumbling over my notes to get my fancy line prepared. I think Red Barber would come down from the heavenly broadcast booth and unplug my microphone.

So my advice to the poster on Facebook is to overall avoid catchphrases unless one happens organically and sticks. Personally, I'd rather be known for the quality of the broadcast.

Don't try to concoct some cute expression. Don't grab your yellow legal pad and scribble down a bunch of inane sayings so that you can go "viral." That clock will tick away quickly and run out. Your fifteen minutes will evaporate.

Here's an idea: call the game. Report it. Tell stories. Be excited at the right times. Don't oversell it. Don't exaggerate. Earn the trust of your audience.

And give the score. Constantly.

Also, hear the words of Red Barber, once spoken to a young Vin Scully.

"You bring one thing into the booth that no one else does: yourself."

Do that.

From the computer in Greenwich, Connecticut, good night everyone.