Long Live The A-Team

 

2022 Greenwich Old Timers Awards Dinner

OK, so I've hinted at something and I can finally announce it.

The A-Team is breaking up.

No, Chris Erway and I are not in a steel cage, chair-throwing wrestling match in which we'll write diss tracks like John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

Instead of acrimony, it's just that life takes different paths. Chris, his wife Genna, and their daughters are moving to North Carolina.

With everything now official, I can write this post, opening the door for an opportunity for someone to join me in the Greenwich football both for 2024 and beyond.

(Assuming I'm coming back to the Greenwich booth, of course)

I will say up front that there are a couple of people that I've spoken to already but nothing is written in stone yet.

The person to join me would preferably be available for all games. Just as importantly, they might need to fill in for me on play-by-play if my schedule takes me elsewhere, such as in San Francisco in October.

While football playing experience isn't necessary, I want you to know football. What I expect is that you can explain what's going on in the game to the audience. Break down the play of the line. Break down the routes. Catch the nuances that the play-by-play doesn't mention.

Be prepared (in your own style) and open-minded to learning about Greenwich football as well as FCIAC and Connecticut football. 

Chemistry is important. Chris and I sounded like we invited you in to chat with us. At least that was our goal. We could sit at a bar and call a game with a certain level of comfort. That's what we aimed for. 

We knew each other's cadence and rarely stepped on each other. It was generally easy and comfortable.

But, regardless of our entertainment value, we always knew how to call the game and how to focus especially in the high-leverage portions of the game.

I was always proud of the waning moments of the Greenwich/Maloney game last year that ended with a field goal as time expired. If you know you know.

You'll help me by getting officials' names and pronunciations and perhaps getting us booth space in visiting press boxes and other items.

It's possible you could be sent to the field for an interview, or serve as the anchor if I'm handling an interview.

Most of all, be ready to present a broadcast that is viewed as professional but fun. And prepare to laugh.

We'll need to stay in format by covering all commercials plays and reads if necessary as well as creating promos. Most, if not all of that, is on me but on occasion, it might be you to do that -- especially if you're filling in for me.

If by any chance, you do any selling or have any suggested advertisers, that's a large advantage since revenue drives things. And, yes, you will be compensated, though I don't have the definitive 2024 numbers yet.

Obviously, these are the basics of the gig. In football, if you've listened to any one of the top analysts then you might have a good idea of what I expect in the booth.

Then again, if you've ever listened to Chris and me, then you really know that deal.

But Chris and I were like brothers. We argued, we kidded and worked hard for well over a decade. You need to be you. You don't need to be Chris.

As I said, I have a few people in mind but I'm into opening this up to see who is interested.

Once upon a time, we were a team of upwards of six, with me, Sean Kilkelly, Chris Erway, Chris Kaelin, Ryan Demaria, and Nick Fox. Or we had Nick Angotto or someone else. We also had a studio operator back at WGCH.

Eventually, we did away with the crowded booth and the sideline reporters. I'm not saying that will never come back but we simply reached a point where we just kept it simple. Part of that simplicity was that setup and breakdown became very quick for us, which was a great relief to me in terms of time being spent and equipment needed to be transported. It also reduced that amount of space we took up.

So, at least at first, it's likely anyone stepping into the booth with me will be part of a small team. 

But, hopefully, a good team. Even a great team.

Reach out if interested. Nothing is guaranteed.

As for The A-Team, we'll live on in the archives and we've already talked about ways to do a game in his new hometown. Don't be surprised if we occasionally put the team back together.

We'll live on.