Dierdorf and Brandstatter are national treasures
The most recent episode of the Shutdown Fullcast just gushes about our radio broadcast team. They were in their car listening to Dan and Jim and loved that it wasn’t some athletic department talking heads whitewashing the “performance” of the teams. “Sack Time” and “hooorrrible” figure prominently in their banter. They liken them to Statler and Waldorf (of Muppets fame) in the press box. I spit out my coffee at one point , but I’m easily amused. Tried to figure out how to embed a podcast but I’m lucky to get a photo to embed. I think I’ll listen this weekend even if I can’t sync the radio and tv.
October 8th, 2019 at 10:19 AM ^
I haven't listened this year (as I can't stand a bad play-by-play guy, and Brandy is unfortunately that). Has someone in the vast MGofandom gathered clips, and matched it to video, of what sounds like some wonderful pissing & moaning?
I searched YouTube, for example, and there is literally nothing.
October 8th, 2019 at 10:25 AM ^
I know a lot of folks bash Brandstatter for his lack of play by play skill, but man, I just love listening to these two. I had to listen to the Wisc game on the radio and my takeaway of that god awful performance was the same that everyone else got that watched it on tv.
October 8th, 2019 at 10:28 AM ^
I don’t have a TV so I often have to listen to the games. Brandy was fine as a color guy. His PBP is very frustrating.
October 8th, 2019 at 10:30 AM ^
It's amazing how it seems like everyone doesn't like Brandy as a PBP guy. Don't think I've seen anyone ever say he's good at it. Feels like they really wanted to bring Deirdorf in but didn't know how to get rid of Brandy. The same thing seems to be happening on Inside Michigan Football with Jon Jansen taking on a lot of the work.
October 8th, 2019 at 12:11 PM ^
Yeah, it just feels like someone in the Athletic Department doesn't want to 'demote' him back to what he was good at so we're stuck with one of the worst PBP announcers I've ever heard.
October 8th, 2019 at 10:34 AM ^
I'm just barely getting to the Dierdorf section, but the beginning of the pod is so good! The part that slayed me the most, was when Ryan Nanni (@celebrityhottub on twitter) said during the UCF/Cinci section, "Orlando is the Europe of Ohio."
October 8th, 2019 at 10:35 AM ^
National treasure? I’m all for burying them. Jim Is unlistenable as a PBP announcer.
October 8th, 2019 at 10:50 AM ^
They’re both garbage. I’m pretty sure Dierdorf has fallen asleep during a game before. Brandy is always like 3 seconds behind and just shouts onomatopoeias, you never get any names or live action. Just radio silence and then “......FUMBLE!!....and.....Michigan has it!!” meanwhile the offense is already on the field lol.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:57 AM ^
agree... I think Dan is showing the effects of playing years of football without helmet padding.
"It isn't right to speculate on the extent of an injury, we don't do that..... but the way he went down I'm afraid he won't be playing for a while."
October 8th, 2019 at 10:39 AM ^
Bring in Impemba and Rod Allen and tell them to let it fly.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:28 AM ^
I see you big fella!! No doubt!!!!
October 8th, 2019 at 10:43 AM ^
I listen to Brandy and Dierdorf in sync, sort of, with tv.
Dierdorf is consistently excellent, insightful and enthusiastic.
I love Brandy, and he continues to improve,
but he still makes many mistakes, misidentifications and sometimes just does not identify player with the ball. On radio alone, you make not know. They always do give me the line play evaluations.
I still love their broadcasts over the talking heads and commercial shills on tv.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:32 AM ^
Uh, they aren't talking heads. They are announcers. Talking heads would be like Stephen A.
Some duos are great, some are crap. Gus Johnson and Klatt are fantastic.
October 8th, 2019 at 10:43 AM ^
The only Statler and Waldorf I know was Verne and Gary
October 8th, 2019 at 10:48 AM ^
I mean it’s because they’re terrible, but in a good way that makes college football what it is. They’re two homers that are bad at their jobs but have unbridled enthusiasm for their school, and we can all enjoy that.
October 8th, 2019 at 10:49 AM ^
I get pretty much all my live M football (and hoops) these days from the mgoblue.com feed. Brandy has improved quite a lot from when he first took over the play by play. That first season was a lot of "he's got it - he's back - he throws -- he's got it -- no he doesn't -- fourth down." It was entertaining in its way.
Then I recall there was a season, maybe that same one, where Brandy spent a lot of air time ragging and needling Dierdorf, kinda weirdly.
But they've settled in, and Dierdorf is awesome.
However, he has praised Shea's arm strength quite a bit, regularly commenting on his throws on outs it seems, "there's that big arm Shea has". That's not the assessment of Shea's arm around here.
What's a radio viewer to think?
October 8th, 2019 at 10:51 AM ^
IT'S SACK TIME!
They're awesome, its like listening to my grandpa and my uncle talk about the game when I was a kid.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:04 AM ^
Yes, it is like listen to a Grandpa, very accurate. Someone who can't do something but swears they can.
Listen, I like Brandy on color, but his PBP is awful. Why in the world Michigan doesn't want someone who is at minimum competent, is very odd.
They need to get someone who can at minimum keep up with the pace of play.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:13 AM ^
Michigan has the money and network to have great media people. I have no idea why we have Brandy & Dierdorf.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:23 AM ^
wow. that is saying something if brandy can't keep up with the pace of play.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:50 AM ^
Granted, I haven't listened this season but the past few seasons I had to catch parts of games in the car. To me it seemed like he was watching as a fan and then remembering that he had to describe the events as they were happening so you'd get a bunch of hurried, breathless words thrown together that did little to paint a picture of what was going on. Very herky-jerky with little continuity and flow and extremely frustrating when you are relying on what you're hearing as the sole source of information.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:39 AM ^
Brandy and Dierdorf are the best. Listening to them is a treat and we are truly blessed as a fan base to have men like this in the booth. They are trying to paint an overall picture of the game, not describe every irrelevant detail. With their experience in both the game of football and broadcasting, they can execute better than any other. When I can, it is worth it to listen to them rather than the clowns they trot out on TV.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:40 AM ^
Warde? Is that you?
October 8th, 2019 at 1:38 PM ^
No. Just somebody with the most rudimentary form of common sense unlike the majority of the whiny fan base on this blog.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:40 AM ^
They could import some slicksters. Some people would be happier with that. Others would be less happy. The net change would be being more like everything else.
October 8th, 2019 at 11:44 AM ^
Personally, I think they should awitch roles. Jim is a good color guy, but no so much PBP. I like Dan's delivery, voice, and temperament better for PBP.
October 8th, 2019 at 1:20 PM ^
Um. No.
October 8th, 2019 at 1:59 PM ^
Do you really prefer's Jim's delivery to Dan's? To my ear that is hard to comprehend, but hey, to each his own.
October 8th, 2019 at 2:05 PM ^
They both sound like they have sandwiches in their mouths.
October 8th, 2019 at 12:04 PM ^
If only they had an actual play by play guy to go with them. Brandy is great as a color guy and HORRIBLE at play-by-play.
October 8th, 2019 at 12:52 PM ^
Yeah, Michigan football still needs a football game play-by-play announcer. Frank Beckman is missed.
Brandy and Dierdorf are both color guys. Like Frank Broyles and Ara Parseighian were next to Keith Jackson or Al Michaels.
But you need a lead story teller to describe what's going on - setting, characters, motives, mood, quickly, succinctly and in real time, etc. - because listeners ARE NOT THERE - and do it with flare and emotion. Also, my God, it's 110,000 fans in that place - somebody mic up the stadium noise more so you can hear the fans reactions to plays - good or bad.
In my view, Brandstatter not only doesn't announce well, he just doesn't announce.
He does not have to be Bob Ufer, Larry Munson or Lyell Bremser.
But he should have a radio voice and a knack for descriptive verbal prose that resonates with the partisan fanatics - whether triumph or tragedy.
Brandstatter has a lot of experience in UM media - tv shows, narrating football videos, commercials, pre-season reviews, etc. And like it or not, right now he IS the voice of Michigan football and probably will remain so until he retires.
October 8th, 2019 at 12:55 PM ^
Absolutely brutal ! “ Tarik Block blacking “ from jimmy
October 8th, 2019 at 2:08 PM ^
When there was a penalty on the last play of the first half, Dan said " That should be an undown time"
October 8th, 2019 at 12:58 PM ^
Brandstatter often gets tongue-tied. The action is just much quicker than his ability to describe it. Not to mention the mistakes: “It’s a first down, no it’s just short.” “It’s a catch, no he dropped it.” Listening to him is frustrating.
October 8th, 2019 at 1:15 PM ^
If Dierdorf and Brandy are national treasures then Joe Buck is the fucking GOAT.
October 8th, 2019 at 1:41 PM ^
Did someone say Muppets?!
I love me some Muppets. Hope to see them 4x before December.
October 8th, 2019 at 1:44 PM ^
In my view where Jim really falls down is the down and distance situations. Every game, he will have several sequences like this:
1st and ten from the 25. Patterson hands to Wilson who finds a big hole up to the 31. It’s going to be 2nd and 7.
October 8th, 2019 at 2:13 PM ^
I really enjoy listening to the games on the radio. I have been volunteering to work Saturday's and honestly think it tones down my emotional involvement vs watching on TV.
October 8th, 2019 at 2:40 PM ^
I love Jim and I think that in the past he was an outstanding color commentator both for Michigan and the Lions. That being said, it is painful to listen to him do play by play, it is really not his strength. He has no flow to his diction and I find it extremely difficult to determine what is actually happening on the field. I agree with others that listening to MSU is just as painful, Blaha’s play by play is remarkably similar to Brandstatter’s. They are both distinguished broadcasters with great careers but not at home doing football play by play. When I listen to other Big Ten broadcasts I am jealous of their broadcast teams. I hope Michigan can find a classy way to improve their football broadcasts without simply dumping Jim like the Lions did. Maybe move him back to color or make him a studio or feature reporter?
October 8th, 2019 at 3:25 PM ^
I think we all know two things:
1) Brandstatter is not a good play-by-play guy.
2) IMG, who produces the broadcast, does not actually care about the quality of the calls and will not be forcing any changes.
What else needs to said?
October 8th, 2019 at 3:50 PM ^
This past Saturday was the first full game I’ve listened to in years. I was so incredibly disturbed by it I was contemplating creating a thread about who we can contact about getting a new PBP guy and moving Brandstatter back to color. It’s bad. And I agree with the take about “saaaack tiime” being super cringeworthy.
October 8th, 2019 at 8:37 PM ^
Can you imagine JBs calls if we actually had a coherent, fast paced, no huddle, speed in space offense that was actually clicking?
I love the guy as a Michigan homer and color guy, but please bring in a real play-by-play announcer and let JB and DD add the color for as long as they care to do it. Everyone wins.
October 8th, 2019 at 9:51 PM ^
Dierdorf’s color is fine. Brandstatter’s play by play is just not good and there’s no real improvement game to game. Generally it’s hard to follow and there is no fluidity to the calls. It’s almost as if the game sequence sneaks up on him and he’s just not able to process it in time. During the Rutgers game he constantly flipped back and forth from Charbonnet to Charboneau. I’ve heard that he is a very good color commentator. If the university wants to have two color guys taking about football every Saturday that’s fine. Not everyone can be Eli Gold.
October 9th, 2019 at 12:31 AM ^
"Catch! Drop! Interception! Touchdown! Penalty!"
For god's sake, make your mind up, Jim!
October 9th, 2019 at 3:34 AM ^
Since age 8 here are my favorite PBP, for Michigan football it was Ufer! For the Lions it was Reynolds, for the wings it was Martyn, for the Pistons it was Blaha.
October 9th, 2019 at 3:35 AM ^
Of course for the Tigers it was Harwell.
October 10th, 2019 at 12:36 AM ^
Brandy is great...but Dan comes off as a total homer in my book, and I loathe his voice at times
in another note, I think Lomas Brown has cotton balls in his mouth when he does lions games.
October 16th, 2019 at 1:43 AM ^
No they're not, they are merely regionally beloved around um. Get a grip. Brandstatter can put lipstick on the um football pig better than anybody but he is a relic of the past glory and um football is still a pig.