Tag: Mike Goldberg

Mike Goldberg, NFL Announcer: One and Done


(More like “And It Is Alllll Over!!!”)

You guys might have heard that longtime UFC announcer Mike Goldberg was recently given a shot at calling some plays for the NFL — specifically, the Lions-Vikings game last Sunday. You might also have heard that it did not go well. Following several flubs involving yardage gains, player’s names, and what teams those players were on, the online community lashed out at Goldberg, for they in their infinite wisdom know not what it is to err and treat those who do accordingly. The Lions fan website “Pride of Detroit” was even harsher in its criticism of Goldie:

FOX managed to outdo itself on Sunday with the worst broadcast of a football game I have ever witnessed in my life. The announcers, Mike Goldberg and Brendon Ayanbadejo, had no business calling an NFL game, as evidenced by their constant mistakes. They repeatedly misidentified coaches and players — no, Golden Tate and Sam Martin aren’t on the Vikings — and it felt like they did zero preparation for this game. Actually, it felt like they were reading from an error-filled script and had no prior knowledge of either team. It was painful to listen to them on Sunday.

Things only got worse for the man behind such infamous catchphrases as “The Progidy” and “Diaz smells the opening” from there, as he proceeded to lash out at several of his critics in a less than professional manner via Twitter (which is always a smart move if career longevity is your endgame). As such, NFL officials announced earlier today that Goldberg has been relieved of his scheduled play-by-play duties for this week’s Vikings-Bills game. A statement is expected to be released shortly.


(More like “And It Is Alllll Over!!!”)

You guys might have heard that longtime UFC announcer Mike Goldberg was recently given a shot at calling some plays for the NFL — specifically, the Lions-Vikings game last Sunday. You might also have heard that it did not go well. Following several flubs involving yardage gains, player’s names, and what teams those players were on, the online community lashed out at Goldberg, for they in their infinite wisdom know not what it is to err and treat those who do accordingly. The Lions fan website “Pride of Detroit” was even harsher in its criticism of Goldie:

FOX managed to outdo itself on Sunday with the worst broadcast of a football game I have ever witnessed in my life. The announcers, Mike Goldberg and Brendon Ayanbadejo, had no business calling an NFL game, as evidenced by their constant mistakes. They repeatedly misidentified coaches and players — no, Golden Tate and Sam Martin aren’t on the Vikings — and it felt like they did zero preparation for this game. Actually, it felt like they were reading from an error-filled script and had no prior knowledge of either team. It was painful to listen to them on Sunday.

Things only got worse for the man behind such infamous catchphrases as “The Progidy” and “Diaz smells the opening” from there, as he proceeded to lash out at several of his critics in a less than professional manner via Twitter (which is always a smart move if career longevity is your endgame). As such, NFL officials announced earlier today that Goldberg has been relieved of his scheduled play-by-play duties for this week’s Vikings-Bills game. A statement is expected to be released shortly.

This was pretty much a disaster all around for Goldberg, FOX, and the UFC — a one-and-done stint on par with Rolles Gracie, if you will — and honestly, I kind of feel bad for the guy. While he should never have responded to his critics in the way he did, let’s not act like he was being set up for success here. MMA fans have had it out for Goldberg for some time now and were going to pounce on his every mistake, which makes it all the bigger a shame that he provided so many opportunities for us to do so.

At least Goldberg will always have his regular UFC gig to fall back on, but in the meantime, can we all start rallying for FOX to give Joe Rogan a shot? The five minutes he would last before laying into Roger Goodell, Adrian Peterson, and Ray Rice with the fury of a thousand suns would be glorious I tells ya.

–J. Jones

Video of the Day: Rogan and Goldberg Commentate EA UFC Glitches, Part 2!

(Props: TommyToeHold)

After racking up over a million views with the first installment, TommyToeHold is back with another hysterical batch of EA Sports UFC glitches, as commentated by (fake) Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg. Much respect to Tommy for putting out a sequel that’s just as funny as the original. My four favorite lines, taken completely out of context:

“Very Grudge-like, Joe.”

“Reminds me of a young Babalu.” “No he doesn’t, Mike.”

“Mike, there’s a bigfoot, he’s being strangled, Mike.”

“I have to think this is going the distance, aaaand he’s dead.”


(Props: TommyToeHold)

After racking up over a million views with the first installment, TommyToeHold is back with another hysterical batch of EA Sports UFC glitches, as commentated by (fake) Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg. Much respect to Tommy for putting out a sequel that’s just as funny as the original. My four favorite lines, taken completely out of context:

“Very Grudge-like, Joe.”

“Reminds me of a young Babalu.” “No he doesn’t, Mike.”

“Mike, there’s a bigfoot, he’s being strangled, Mike.”

“I have to think this is going the distance, aaaand he’s dead.”

Friday Links: Josh Koscheck Gets a New Desk Job, ‘Killa B’ Back in the UFC, Girls Dressed Like Ninja Turtles + More

(“I *SAY* TINGS, AND DEN I GO OUT AND *DO* DUM. AND PEOPLE DAYW ME WHEN I *SAY* DEM. UNTIL I GO AND *DO* DUM.” / Props: YouTube.com/UFC)

Josh Koscheck Joins FOX Sports 1 Broadcast Desk for ‘Bader vs. St. Preux’ (UFC on FOX)

NSAC Files Formal Complaint Against Wanderlei Silva (MMAJunkie)

With Titan FC’s Blessing, Ben Saunders Returns to UFC (MMAFighting)

UFC Announcer Mike Goldberg to Call Two NFL Games This Upcoming Season (Sherdog)

You’re Massively Underprepared For A Fight – Here’s The Most Important Lesson You Need (AskMen)

Girls Dressed Like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Radass)

The Worst Video Games of the ’90s (Gamefront)

Do Movies With Intentionally Misspelled Titles Always Suck? An Investigation (ScreenJunkies)

Check Out Greg Oden’s Hilarious Mugshot (EveryJoe)

Be Glad They’re Extinct: 3 Bizarre Dinosaurs You Never Learned About (DoubleViking)

Nicki Minaj’s Latest Photoshoot for Fader Magazine (DrunkenStepfather)

Fake Video of “Drunk Wife Makes Grilled Cheeses” Goes Viral (PopHangover)

Petition Wants “Weird Al” Yankovic For Super Bowl XLIX Half-Time Show (EscapistMagazine)


(“I *SAY* TINGS, AND DEN I GO OUT AND *DO* DUM. AND PEOPLE DAYW ME WHEN I *SAY* DEM. UNTIL I GO AND *DO* DUM.” / Props: YouTube.com/UFC)

Josh Koscheck Joins FOX Sports 1 Broadcast Desk for ‘Bader vs. St. Preux’ (UFC on FOX)

NSAC Files Formal Complaint Against Wanderlei Silva (MMAJunkie)

With Titan FC’s Blessing, Ben Saunders Returns to UFC (MMAFighting)

UFC Announcer Mike Goldberg to Call Two NFL Games This Upcoming Season (Sherdog)

You’re Massively Underprepared For A Fight – Here’s The Most Important Lesson You Need (AskMen)

Girls Dressed Like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Radass)

The Worst Video Games of the ’90s (Gamefront)

Do Movies With Intentionally Misspelled Titles Always Suck? An Investigation (ScreenJunkies)

Check Out Greg Oden’s Hilarious Mugshot (EveryJoe)

Be Glad They’re Extinct: 3 Bizarre Dinosaurs You Never Learned About (DoubleViking)

Nicki Minaj’s Latest Photoshoot for Fader Magazine (DrunkenStepfather)

Fake Video of “Drunk Wife Makes Grilled Cheeses” Goes Viral (PopHangover)

Petition Wants “Weird Al” Yankovic For Super Bowl XLIX Half-Time Show (EscapistMagazine)

Must-See: EA UFC Glitches, Commentated by Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg

(Props: Tommy Toe Hold)

“Jones just pulled a mummy guard, now he’s trying to lure Alex in by casting a spell.”

“Joe, what are the benefits of completely freezing your body during a fight with yourself?”

“Alex goes for a leg, gets a hold of a ghost that’s been haunting the arena, and huge takedown.”

Brilliant.

Previously: The 12 Most Awesome/Terrible ‘EA Sports UFC’ Demo Videos Created by Actual Users


(Props: Tommy Toe Hold)

“Jones just pulled a mummy guard, now he’s trying to lure Alex in by casting a spell.”

“Joe, what are the benefits of completely freezing your body during a fight with yourself?”

“Alex goes for a leg, gets a hold of a ghost that’s been haunting the arena, and huge takedown.”

Brilliant.

Previously: The 12 Most Awesome/Terrible ‘EA Sports UFC’ Demo Videos Created by Actual Users

Hilarious Video of the Day: Miley Cyrus at the VMAs, With Commentary by Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg

(Props: FreeFights4You via Luke Thomas)

Apologies if you saw it already, but this is an absolute classic. “Full back-mount here! Aw, this is nasty. This…this is horrific.”

#dead

Previously: Miley Cyrus Performs at the VMAs, Tries Too Hard, Is Gross


(Props: FreeFights4You via Luke Thomas)

Apologies if you saw it already, but this is an absolute classic. “Full back-mount here! Aw, this is nasty. This…this is horrific.”

#dead

Previously: Miley Cyrus Performs at the VMAs, Tries Too Hard, Is Gross

Does the Pairing of Joe Rogan and Jon Anik for ‘UFC on FOX Sports 1:1? Signify a Lack of Confidence in Mike Goldberg?

(To be fair, “smelling the opening” is still an incredibly popular phrase on the set of blind pornos.)

We would like to preface this article by stating that we in no way have anything against Mike Goldberg the broadcaster. Sure, he falls back on some cliche phrases every now and again and fumbles through the occasional fighter nickname, but how many of us can claim to be batting a thousand at our respective occupations? Rarely a day goes by where I don’t fumble a fact or treat the English language like an experimental concept, and I usually have the benefit of giving my work a once-over (well, a half-over) before publishing it. In short, Goldberg may not be the best in the business, but the fact that he still seems generally enthused to be at any UFC event after all these years — he first started working with the promotion in 1997 — more than compensates for his sporadic (and often hilarious) cluelessness.

However, the NY Post’s Marc Raimondi broke the news yesterday that the announcing team for the UFC’s Fox Sports 1:1 debut in August would not feature Goldberg at all:


(To be fair, “smelling the opening” is still an incredibly popular phrase on the set of blind pornos.)

We would like to preface this article by stating that we in no way have anything against Mike Goldberg the broadcaster. Sure, he falls back on some cliche phrases every now and again and fumbles through the occasional fighter nickname, but how many of us can claim to be batting a thousand at our respective occupations? Rarely a day goes by where I don’t fumble a fact or treat the English language like an experimental concept, and I usually have the benefit of giving my work a once-over (well, a half-over) before publishing it. In short, Goldberg may not be the best in the business, but the fact that he still seems generally enthused to be at any UFC event after all these years — he first started working with the promotion in 1997 — more than compensates for his sporadic (and often hilarious) cluelessness.

However, the NY Post’s Marc Raimondi broke the news yesterday that the announcing team for the UFC’s Fox Sports 1:1 debut in August would not feature Goldberg at all:

Now, while this pairing could be largely based on the fact that both Rogan and Anik have a long history with Massachusetts (Anik was born in Boston, where Rogan also grew up), it could also represent the UFC pulling out all the stops to ensure that their first event on the new FOX Sports 1 channel goes as smoothly as possible. The fact that Rogan and Goldberg were booked as the announcing duo for the UFC’s initial debut on FOX — an arguably bigger deal for the promotion — back in November of 2011 should detract from this theory, but on the other hand, Anik had only joined the UFC’s broadcast team a couple weeks prior to that event.

Anik and Kenny Florian have been holding down the UFC’s FUEL and FX cards ever since, and it appears that the UFC has been more than impressed with his abilities to grant him this opportunity. With Goldberg nearing the big 5-0, perhaps the UFC just wants to mix things up with a couple of fresh faces. You know, to appeal to us yoots.

In addition, Anik’s FUEL broadcast partner and Boston College alumni, Kenny Florian, has been confirmed for a studio role on the evening of the Boston card. Florian will be holding things down alongside UFC Tonight co-host Chael Sonnen, so we can pretty much put to rest any rumors that Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva will be meeting at that event now.

What do you guys think? Is the Rogan/Anik pairing a simple matter of locals getting preference, or is the UFC sending a bigger message here?

One thing’s for sure, Anik better learn to handle Rogan’s “Purple Power Pregame Bud” a little better this time around. Shit nearly killed him in their last outing…

–J. Jones