F O X N F L S U N D A Y
Interview} John Russo
Photographs by} John Russo
Location} FOX Sports Los Angeles
Grooming} Sole’ Waddell
Makeup} Lisa Ashley & J Ballejos
Styling} Victoria Trilling & Stacy Chavez
Video} Ken Waller Media
Digital Tech} Brett Erickson
Art Director } Tas Limur
Special thanks } Vernon Cheek, VP Media Relations, FOX Sports
Clothing} Suits by Michael Strahan brand
C U R T M E N E F E E
JR} Who inspired you to be in your chosen profession of a broadcaster?
CM} I never dreamed of being on television. It wasn’t in my world of reality at all. But I was a huge fan of local broadcasters growing up in Atlanta. Listening to Ernie Johnson, Sr. or Skip Carey on a Braves game was magical. I also watched each and every sportscaster on the local news by flipping the channels as quickly as I could when they would come on at the end of the nightly newscast. I guess I was a broadcasting nerd without realizing it. It was when I was a sophomore in college interning at KCRG-TV that another local sportscaster, John Campbell, suggested that I take the highlights that he did each night and put my own voice down on tape to see if I liked “reporting”. That one suggestion made me think about being on air rather than behind the scenes, so I owe the inspiration to John. He’s retired now, but we still keep in touch and connect when I’m back in Iowa.
JR} What is the most memorable moment of your career and why?
CM} Without a doubt, my most memorable moment was the announcement that Jimmy Johnson was going into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It happened live on-air at halftime of our playoff game on Fox. I was the only cast member aware that it was going to happen and just to see the pure joy on the faces of all of the guys was something I’ll never forget. The genuine happiness for Jimmy, and how much it meant to him was special. Not only is it my favorite moment, I think it’s the best moment in the history of Fox Sports.
JR} What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome during your career? How did you manage it?
CM: The biggest challenge of my career probably came at the end of 1990/start of 1991. I’d left being weekend sportscaster at WISC-TV in Madison in August to take a job at a national cable station Sports News Network (think ESPN News). Long story-short, the network went bankrupt and off air in December. I’d planned to look for another job in local television once the new year began, but the first Gulf War broke out in January and many local stations suspended hiring. I was unemployed until being hired in July by WTLV in Jacksonville. Since I was 25 years old with no savings, during those 8 months I had to figure out if I wanted to keep pursuing television as a career, or switch? Losing something makes you decide how badly you wanted it in the first place. It confirmed for me that being a broadcaster was what I wanted to do and nothing else, so it made me resolute in not only finding the next gig but never taking it for granted. It taught me to work hard to be the best that I can be so that should something like that ever happen again, my job loss wouldn’t be from lack of effort or work ethic.
JR} What changes do you foresee in your chosen profession’s future and what would you like to see happen in your area of expertise?
CM} I think there will always be technological changes in live sports coverage. Always has been, always will be. How we adapt to the unknown (at present) is in itself the great unknown. But adapt, we must.
JR} What advice would you give younger aspiring broadcasters?
CM} The first thing is advising aspiring broadcasters to leave your ego at the door. Be willing to do any job asked and take advantage of every opportunity possible. The more you can do, the more chances you get to show what you can do. Believe it or not, most people in this business are happy to see others succeed and are willing to help you out if you show a true desire to work at being better and not just being famous. Also, just be yourself. Sometimes the hardest thing to do is “be you” when you’re not even sure what “you” are, but you can’t be someone else—that gig is already taken. Whatever your style is: serious, humorous, opinionated, whatever, lean into it as only you can. And ask for help along the way…we’ve all been there.
T E R R Y B R A D S H A W
JR} Who inspired you to be in your chosen profession of a professional football player and then a broadcaster?
TB} I just always ALWAYS loved the sport.
JR} What is the most memorable moment of your career and why?
TB} My most memorable moment of my career was winning Super Bowl IX. We defeated the Minnesota Vikings 16-6 in Tulane Stadium in New Orleans. Not only was it my first Super Bowl win, but it was the first for our beloved owner, Art Rooney, Sr.
JR} What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome during your career? How did you manage it?
TB} My biggest challenge was maturing, as I wasn’t ready for the big world. I worked on using the pain and negativity I experienced as a rookie in the NFL to grow and mature. My focus then shifted to winning.
JR} What changes do you foresee in the NFL’s future and what would you like to see happen?
TB} I believe we will have more streaming for overall viewing of our sports programming. I believe there will be more respect between the players and not so much clowning around on the field with the after-play celebrations and such.
JR} What advice would you give younger aspiring NFL players? Broadcasters?
TB} Advice I would give to aspiring NFL players and broadcasters would be to work hard. Be sure to admit to your weaknesses and listen to those trying to help you.
H O W I E L O N G
JR} Who inspired you to be in your chosen profession of a professional football player?
HL} A number of Boston sports figures inspired me including Bobby Orr of the Boston Bruins, Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox, John Havlicek of the Boston Celtics, and while in college at Villanova, Joe Green of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
JR} What is the most memorable moment of your career and why?
HL} You would think it would be our Super Bowl XVIII win over the Washington Redskins or my Pro Football Hall of Fame induction in 2000. For me it was as a broadcaster covering our son Chris’ Super Bowl LI win against the Atlanta Falcons in 2017. Our pregame on the field, watching the Patriots go down 28 to 3 into the third quarter and then the amazing comeback and win. Here’s a kid who was on our FOX NFL SUNDAY set as a nine-year old, and then fast forward to him being on the set of our post-game coverage of a Super Bowl.
JR} What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome during your career? How did you manage it?
HL} My biggest challenge I had to overcome during my career was injuries, playing injured and subsequent surgeries. Then the coming back over and over again. In the moment you can’t consider anything but being in the moment, and getting it done.
JR} What changes do you foresee in the NFL’s future and what would you like to see happen?
HL} Somehow manage the regular season. We’re at 17 games over 18 weeks, probably go to 18. Need to add an additional bye, eliminate preseason, and come up with a realistic plan for teams playing three games in a short period of time. I’m not a fan of the new kickoff and I probably sound like Clint Eastwood in Grand Torino yelling “get off my lawn!” It’s a strange play in our game.
JR} What advice would you give younger aspiring NFL players?
HL} My advice would be to take a course in economics and money management. Everyone thinks they’re going to play forever. Statistically your odds of even getting to the NFL are so slim, but even if you get there, the average career is right at 3 ½ years. That being said, chase your dreams, exhaust every resource during your journey while trying to make it. What separates the average from the good, the good from the great, the great from the Hall of Fame player, is simple…….hard work!
M I C H A E L S T R A H A N
JR} Who inspired you to be in your chosen profession of a professional football player?
MS} My dad was the biggest champion of my life and inspired me. I loved watching Lawrence Taylor of the New York Giants and Bruce Smith of the Buffalo Bills who were two of my on-field idols!
JR} What is the most memorable moment of your career and why?
MS} Winning Super Bowl XLII was the most memorable moment because it was the one accomplishment we could share as a time in life that would be in the history books forever.
JR} What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome during your career? How did you manage it?
MS} Believing I belonged in the NFL coming from a HBCU (Texas Southern University) was the biggest challenge. I had to get over my own thoughts that where you went to school correlated to the success you’d have in the NFL. I managed to overcome that through hard work and consistency which showed me that I was as good or better than anyone else.
JR} What changes do you foresee in the NFL’s future and what would you like to see happen?
MS} I’m not sure what changes will come in the future of the NFL, but I would like to see the game continue to protect the players. The biggest thing for me is keeping it competitive and entertaining.
JR} What advice would you give younger aspiring NFL players?
MS} My advice would be don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Don’t value self-worth in terms of making the NFL because even if you make it, that’s just a very small part of your life. You must work extremely hard to make it and if you’re lucky enough to make it, work harder to stay in. Making it is one thing but being great requires another level of work and commitment!
J I M M Y J O H N S O N
JR} Who inspired you to be in your chosen profession of a head football coach and then a broadcaster?
JJ} Frank Broyles inspired me to coach when we won the National Championship at Arkansas in 1964. Visionary executive Ed Goren convinced me to become a broadcaster when I left the Dallas Cowboys.
JR}What is the most memorable moment of your career and why?
JJ} It’s hard to decide on my most memorable moment but these come to mind. Winning the National Championship at the University of Miami, my first Super Bowl victory in Dallas (XXVII) and celebrating going into the Pro Football Hall of Fame (2020) with my FOX Sports family.
JR} What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome during your career?
JJ} My most difficult time was going 1-15 in my first year as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys.
JR} What advice would you give to young aspiring coaches to reach the NFL?
JJ} My advice to aspiring young coaches is to think twice! Long hours and to do it right, there’s little time for your family. It’s very stressful. Be ready for brutal criticism BUT if successful, VERY rewarding.
R O B G R O N K O W S K I
JR} Who inspired you to be in your chosen profession of a professional football player?
RG} Being from Buffalo, I was a big Buffalo Bills fan growing up as a kid. I loved watching wide receiver Eric Moulds do his thing out on the field. He inspired me as a kid to go out and make plays in the receiving game. Looking up to my two older brothers who played football, I always wanted to be like them growing up and watching them play through out there high school career motivated me to get better and become a football player. And can’t forget about my favorite player throughout my teen years, tight end Jeremy Shockey was an absolute legend on the field and off the field who I admired big time!
JR} What is the most memorable moment of your career and why?
RG}Winning my 1st Super Bowl (XLIX) was the most memorable moment of my professional career. All that time and dedication you put into the game pays off big time when ya win it all! It makes it all worth it. It wasn’t just because it was my entry into the Super Bowl club that makes it so memorable, it was also one of the best Super Bowl games to be a part of ever!
JR} What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome during your career? How did you manage it?
RG}My biggest challenge in my career was coming back from an ACL/MCL injury. Tearing my ACL was the toughest and longest journey I ever had to deal with to get back on the football field. You start from ground zero after surgery and ya have to be patient every day and put the work in continuously to build yourself back up. I learned that if you specialize in your rehab, put the time in, do the rehab correctly, you can come back stronger than you were before and dominate like you never got hurt!!
JR} What changes do you foresee in the NFL’s future and what would you like to see happen?
RG} The changes I see in the NFL is the expansion of the game. Over the next 10 years I believe there will be a lot more games played overseas then there are now, which will be beneficial in many ways for the growth of the league! It’s the best sport in the world! I also see some slight rule changes just to keep player safety at an all-time high. Maybe implement a rule where a defenseless receiver is protected from getting hit low! I think that will prevent many season ending injuries to skill players!
JR} What advice would you give younger aspiring NFL players?
RG} I would tell young athletes that aspire to reach the NFL to first make sure you are on the right path with your journey. You must love the game of football to make it to the top. From there, learn everyday about the game, little details matter, every practice rep matters, and always build good habits and get rid of the bad ones! Training also plays a big part when building yourself up, get your core strong and always practice reps on what you will be doing on the football field as well!
J A Y G L A Z E R
JR} Who inspired you to be in your chosen profession of an NFL insider?
JG} Nobody. It was a means of survival for me. I was up to no good for a while in my life. I wanted to make something of myself and tried every area from standup comedy to producer to radio, tv print, anything. Covering the (New York) Giants was the first opportunity I got, and it fit ME immediately, but those first 11 years were brutal. I made an average of $9,450 a YEAR! I decided early on I’d be relentless and get knocked down a million times until that one time I wasn’t and finally got a full-time gig! Thank GOD! But I also decided to approach the job differently, to start relationships. Back then it was taboo to be friends with players and coaches, but I had more in common with them than I did my fellow reporters and knew more scoops would come with relationships than ever burning anyone.
JR} What is the most memorable moment of your career and why?
JG} Getting my hands on the SpyGate video and thus breaking the biggest scoop in NFL history. It was so big; Senator Arlen Spector called and threatened me with jail time if I didn’t give congress my copy. I refused. That was my second week in studio and validated me to my teammates. While I was reporting I’ve had two different iterations of a career within a career. I started the first MMA training program for pro athletes in America and got brought to several teams to coach the system over a 15-year span. Then, I started talking about mental health five years ago. Now, I’m brought in to talk to teams about that, and how to open up and lean into your teammates. I’ve tried to give mental health words to people having the tools to open up to each other, be vulnerable and lean into each other. I feel the MMA background gave me a good base to get people to be vulnerable because clearly nobody is questioning my manhood, so I can be totally vulnerable and open.
JR} What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome during your career? How did you manage it?
JG} It took me eleven years to get my first full time job. It was BRUTAL! Getting rejected for eleven years because I didn’t do the job like everyone else took a lot from my soul. I’m so incredibly glad I did it because I showed myself nothing could break me. I learned how to be relentless despite getting knocked down a thousand times.
JR} What changes do you foresee in your chosen profession’s future and what would you like to see happen in your area of expertise?
JG} Unfortunately, the business has changed from where it is now. It’s about who can tweet the fastest and then everyone tweets the same scoop as if they had it too. That’s not really being “inside.” Also, people value clicks more than accuracy and I have a major problem with that. I switched up from minute-by-minute news on X to busting my butt to make sure I have the most inside reports and valuable injury news every week when you tune into FOX NFL SUNDAY. I work tirelessly for that each week because I have an obligation to the viewers. I also feel an incredibly deep obligation to my teammates on set, in front of and behind the camera.
JR} What advice would you give younger aspiring NFL Insiders?
JG} Be different! Don’t be a face in the crowd. Be your own damn crowd. That’s advice I received from my father that got me to where I am. Be loyal and outwork the world! That’s the winning combination.
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