Memories of an idol, Pat Summerall

When I read the names 'Young,' 'Rice' or 'Aikman' in print, still to this day, I hear them recited in the brilliant cadence of the great Pat Summerall.

Tuesday, Summerall died - and maybe a bit of my childhood did as well.

Each and every fall, for two decades, Pat and John Madden ushered in a new season, as consistent as the changing of the leaves and the crisp chill emerging in the air.

I can't count how many Sundays I spent as a kid on the couch listening to the two, decked out in my jersey with Nerf football clutched in hand.

Watching football and sports has never just been about the players on the field or the wins and losses in the paper the next day for me. Most kids wrote in the kindergarten yearbook they wanted to be a firefighter or doctor when they grew up. 

I wanted to be a sports announcer.

I wanted to be Pat Summerall.

Pat was my idol. I'd sit on the couch and lower the volume a bit to call the games myself, trying to do the job just as well as him (obviously an impossible task, especially for a 7-year-old). 

The thrill of watching Summerall call a Steve Young to Jerry Rice touchdown was matched only by doing it myself (there were plenty of opportunities with that duo).

Summerall called 16 Super Bowls, the most of any announcer in history. His pairing with John Madden was the greatest of all-time, their chemistry unparalleled. The two played off each other to perfection, Summerall's simple yet brilliant calls followed by Madden's bombastic breakdowns. 

Pat and John called a lot of important games in the 20-plus years they were paired together on both CBS and FOX. There were colossal Niners-Cowboys NFC Championships, frigid forays on the "Frozen Tundra," and the Patriots' Super Bowl XXXVI upset of the Greatest Show on Turf.



Vintage Summerall in the final Super Bowl he called with FOX. Flashy was never the word to describe his style. He never screamed or shouted, ala Gus Johnson or many of today's breed. Summerall let the game breathe (allowing Madden to talk, often a lot) - and it was perfect. 

Every game had a big game feel with Pat behind the mic, whether it was week two at the Meadowlands or Super Bowl Sunday.

For some, Summerall's voice will be forever tied to hours spent playing Madden. Others will associate it with the glory days of two of the most popular, powerhouse franchises.

That deep tone tinged with a hint of a Southern drawl resonated on so many transcendent Sundays, a voice of God in football's cathedrals.

What never showed through though in Summerall's broadcasting was his own personal demon, alcohol. Summerall went to rehab and needed a liver transplant. I only found all this out about him when I chose to write a paper on him in 6th grade and had to research his life (a bit shocking to discover about someone you idolize).

But what I also learned was that Pat overcame that struggle and continued on for many years, luckily for all of us, at the top of his industry.

Summerall called Super Bowl XII in 1978, 11 years before I was even born. His impact spans generations of sports fans.

Sometimes, I watch a game and imagine what it would be like if Pat and John could be on the call.

Maybe it's just longing for childhood yore but there's always a part of me that wishes it was still Summerall's simple uttering of 'touchdown' punctuating a player passing the pylon.

For me, Pat was as much a part of the game as the greats I grew up watching.

I may have wore a Young jersey but Pat was my guy. 

His name never showed up in the box score while he was up in the booth but he was the best, an inspiration and legend whose voice will live on forever.