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Show StatesmanSports Page 10 Friday, April 17, 2009 Madden calls it a career J O H N M A D D E N announced his retirement from broadcasting after three decades. His final telecast was the Super Bowl between Arizona and Pittsburgh. Madden will be remembered first for his time as coach of the Raiders, including a Super Bowl victory in 1979. He became one of the most recognizable voices on television and even has his own video game - Madden NFL Football. AP photo NEW YORK (AP) - John Maddens last game as a football announcer was a thrilling Super Bowl decided in the final seconds. The perfect ending to a run as one of sports' most popular broadcasters, now that Madden called it a career Thursday. Yet it didn't fit Maddens style to think about his retirement that way. "I'm a grinder," he said on his Bay Area radio show. "You just grind and get through it and when it's all over, you think about it. You don't rush into any decisions." Maddens exuberance for football and blue-collar persona endeared him to TV viewers for three decades. Boom! As sudden as his signature call, he's leaving midway through a six-year contract with NBC's "Sunday Night Football." "I think his work ethic and passion and love for the game made him apart from everybody else," said longtime broadcast partner Pat Summerall. Madden said his health is fine, but at the age of 73, he wanted to spend more time with his family. His 50th wedding anniversary is this fall, and hisfivegrandchildren are old enough to notice when he's gone. "The thing that made it hard is not because I'm second guessing: 'Is it the right decision?' But I enjoyed it so damn much," Madden said. "I enjoyed the game and the players and the coaches and the film and the travel and everything." Cris Collinsworth will replace Madden, moving over from the network's studio show, NBC Sports chief Dick Ebersol said. Collinsworth filled in when Madden took a game off last October. Ebersol called Madden "the absolute best sports broadcaster who ever lived." Madden traveled by bus because of a fear of flying, and with the two Bay Area teams struggling and not hosting any Sunday night games, he would be on the road and away from his family the entire season. Not that Madden expects to sit at home all the time. He'll keep using the bus and stay busy with his many endorsements. His "Madden NFL Football" is the top-selling sports video game of all time. Still, he noted this will be his first season away from the sport since he was a freshman in high school. Madden was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006. He began his pro career as a linebacker coach at Oakland in 1967 and was made head coach two years later, at 33 the youngest coach in what was then the American Football League. Madden led the Raiders to their first Super Bowl victory and retired in 1979. He joined CBS later that year. He worked at CBS until 1994 when the network lost rights to broadcast NFL games, leading him to switch to Fox. He left Fox in 2002 to become the lead analyst for ABC's "Monday Night Football" and joined NBC in 2006 when that network inaugurated a prime-time Sunday game. Madden won 16 Emmy Awards and became one of the most recognizable voices in television, mixing high-volume enthusiasm with serious analysis on the telestrator. "lie was so consistently entertaining — that guy you really wanted to have on the couch with you, but larger than life." Ebersol said. "I think people stayed with a rout or a bad game that Madden might have to broadcast in the second half (more) than they ever would have stayed with anybody else." For the last several years, Madden said, he waited until two months after the season to determine whether to continue, not wanting to rush into a decision. "The last game I did was the Super Bowl, which was pretty good," Madden said. "But, again, that wasn't planned. I didn't say, 'I want to go out on a high note.'" He surprised Ebersol when he told him last week he was retiring. Ebersol flew to California on Wednesday morning and spent 11 hours with Madden, trying to persuade him to change his mind. Ebersol even offered to allow Madden to call games only in September" and November and to take October and December off. His longtime agent, Sandy Monta", said Madden won't change his mind now that his retirement is official. Madden didn't want a dramatic farewell - hv didn't even appear on a conference call Thursday with Ebersol and Montag. "It wouldn't have been me to say the week of the Super Bowl, 'This is my last game,"1 Madden said during his brief radio appearance. Summerall said he knew Madden would be something special the first time they worked together. "He didn't talk down to people," Summerall said. "He talked as if he was sitting next to you and explaining things to you." Fire: Excitement is running high for Ags [] continued from page 8 Bring in this ad for: 3 for $10 (Reg $36) Moisture Wicking Performance Socks We also have specially designed USU socks and Seasonal socks that make great gifts! 2929 N Main Street www.Hnmfg.com 787-8888 All About Socks For right now however, the Aggies only have themselves to compete against. Andersen, though, said he has been pleased with the progress and ability of his running backs. "I think they've done a great job through spring, I believe its a talented position ... we're lucky they can catch the football, too," he said. "It s a talented stable of running backs, and they're all a little bit different." That talent has showcased itself time and time again in the spring scrimmages and practice as the backs jockey for position. "We want them to compete in everything that they do. We want them to compete in the classroom, we want them to compete watching film, we want somebody to be better than somebody else at this," Tuiaki said. "When you start doing that the culture of competition comes out, they want to be good at everything they do and they never want to lose." -t.olsen@aggiemail.usu.edu Linebackers School is almost out! Best prices in town. Storage Units $20 and up 6th Wcsi Storage 2210 N 600 W 455-881-1780 or 455-512-2422 www.6thweststorase.com :RE§TW(X I Arm nod id I MW\ Crest«woods [kuh n-veen-yu/? ns] Definition: Low summer Rates! (From $488) •Private bedroom; private bath -Expanded cable; Free High Speed Internet •Air conditioning; Covered Parking (Edgewood) -Washer and dryer in your apartment -Practically on Campus Synonyms: Summer, Social, Fun, Good Times Used in a sentence: With Crestwoods, your housing choice is made! See also: www.logancrestwoods.com The movie "Talladega Nights" start out with this quote, "America is all about speed. Hot, nasty, bad-ass speed." Linebackers on the USU football team would like to start their season the same way. Linebacker coach Kevin Clune said about 12 players have switched positions, and ail of that was done for the purpose of increasing the speed of the linebackers. Not only are these players that switched learning a new position, they are learning a new defense all together. "Everybody is learning a new defense here, it's not rocket science but at the same time it is new and you got to learn how tofitand how to play with each other and all that stuff," Clune said. One of the major changes was Jacob Actkinson switching from fullback to linebacker, and he is expected to be a major part of the linebacking corp this year. When asked why he was asked to switch, Actkinson said, "For speed, and we have a whole lot of running backs and our schemes now for offense. We don't use a fullback so I was kind of left out." Actkinson is adapting to his new position well; however, he wasn't excited about it at first. "It was difficult at first. It's a totally different ball game, a completely different mentality, but each practice I felt like I progressed a lot and I think I can help this defensive scheme," Actkinson said. "I had very mixed feelings about it, it took me a while to decide, but after talking to some coaches I think it was going to be best for the team if I switched and I really enjoy it right now." One of the reasons Actkinson said he enjoys it so much is because he likes putting hits on people instead of taking them. Clune mentioned how all the major teams in-America that went to bowl games have defenses with lots of speed, which is what the Aggies want their defense to be like. Andersen agrees. "It is built around speed but at the end of the day it is built around physicality also, and the kids have got to be able to run. But at the same time they have to be great athletes, and that's what the whole structure of the defense is really key on," he said. The core of the linebackers will be senior Paul Igboeli. Igboeli was second on team and 13th in WAC with 95 tackles - including 51 solo tackles - last year as a junior. "You got Paul as a senior, he is the guy that has been playing for a long time, he is going to have to be a leader and he is a tremendously quick athlete; he can do a lot of great things," Clune said. "He is in a position where he should be making a lot of tackles, he has got the body, the speed, the experience, all the stuff and he has to put it all together also." Another key to the linebackers is sophomore Kyle Gallagher. After having 47 tackles and ranking sixth on team as a freshman, Gallagher redshirted last year. He is back and ready to make an impact this year. Gallagher feels that his redshirt year has made him a better player. "It helped me be a lot more stronger and a lot more faster, a lot more wiser, too," he said. When asked what his expectations for Gallagher are, Andersen said, "I have very high expectations for him. He has done a nice job in the part of spring ball that he has been able to participate in - the biggest thing is making sure he is on track to get a good grasp of the scheme." The plan is to have four starting linebackers who are ready to play and contribute on the field, he said. Who those four are going to be is still being worked out, and the spots are up for grabs for whoever steps up and earns them. "You can't just have two linebackers at the inside position you really need four linebackers who really want to be able to play but for sure three and hopefully when the dust settles and we get through things at the end of the day we will have all that," Andersen said. Overall this year's linebackers are very young and have a lot of learning to do before the start of the season. The more veteran players are also being counted on to contribute this year. "The older guys ... will also kind of fight their way through it," Clune said. "They should be showing us something here." A lot of the outside linebackers this year moved from the defensive back position. With the new goal of speed it is hoped these players will be able to make the linebackers quicker. "Guys that have moved from the DB position ... they are all brand new to that position so they all have got to learn what they have to get done and where they are fitting and all that stuff," Clune said. All the new players mixed with the few returning linebackers are shaping up to make a pretty exciting year on the defensive side of the ball. Nothing has been decided yet and who will fill those spots is up to the players and how bad they want them. "We will see who rises to the top and who are going to be our guys," Clune said. -p. d. k@aggiemail. usu.edu L i-t-l * marketplace for buying, selling, trading £ getting acquainted . eip wanted ielp Wanted On-Slte Managers Needed Cobble Creek Apartments, LLC is looking for therightmarried couple to manage our student housing apartment complex. Maintenance experience is preferred but not required. Send resume lor each person no later than April 30, 2009 to: Dave, c/o Cobble Creek Apartments, 130 West 700 South. Suite A, Smithfield, UT 84335. Orphanage volunteers needed in Ecuador year-round. Supervised, sale, rewarding. Strict moral' dress P A U L I G B O E L I , 3 1 , tackles Jeremy Mitchell during USU"s spring scrimmage last Saturday. TYLER LARSON photo |