Brian Billick on Match Game

Discuss the NHL, NFL, CIS, NCAA, Lacrosse, Soccer, Baseball, Basketball, Motorsports, Golf, Rugby, Amateur Sport, Curling, Wrestling ... Whatever Sport or Leisure activity you like!

Moderator: Team Captains

Post Reply
User avatar
sj-roc
Hall of Famer
Posts: 7539
Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2004 2:39 pm
Location: Kerrisdale

Not sure how well known this is among regulars on this board, but right around the time current game analyst for Fox and former Baltimore Ravens head coach (1999-2007) Brian Billick gave up on his dream of playing in the NFL to embark on his coaching career (circa 1977), he concurrently appeared as a contestant on the game show Match Game hosted by Gene Rayburn.

Of course I wouldn't have bothered posting this without some video so here it is:

[video][/video]

It's interesting that in response to the second question — which really had nothing to do with football — so many of the celebrity panellists answered with then-MNF commentator Howard Cosell. I was too young at the time to have a good enough memory of this era so I'm not sure why this happened. Perhaps it was due to some sort of psychological priming upon hearing Billick discuss his football career, or maybe Cosell himself was simply such a larger-than-life personality at the time that his fame transcended mere sports fandom and penetrated into the greater, more general public consciousness. It might have been a combination of these or even some other reason. At any rate I don't think his name would come up as much as it did here if the question were posed today in 2013.
Sports can be a peculiar thing. When partaking in fiction, like a book or movie, we adopt a "Willing Suspension of Disbelief" for enjoyment's sake. There's a similar force at work in sports: "Willing Suspension of Rationality". If you doubt this, listen to any conversation between rival team fans. You even see it among fans of the same team. Fans argue over who's the better QB or goalie, and selectively cite stats that support their views while ignoring those that don't.
User avatar
KnowItAll
Hall of Famer
Posts: 7458
Joined: Mon Aug 16, 2004 6:32 pm
Location: Delta

Howie was the man :thup:
Every day that passes is one you can't get back
User avatar
Coast Mountain Lion
Legend
Posts: 1374
Joined: Sun Nov 16, 2008 4:52 pm
Location: Champlain Heights

Howard was a larger that life personality and was just about everywhere in the early-mid 70s, but tried to do some things he shouldn't have. I recall him briefly hosting a Saturday evening variety show which was supposed to be the new Ed Sullivan Show. The first show introduced the Bay City Rollers to America, in a rather blatant attempt to repeat what happened in 1963 with Ed and the Beatles, but Howard was no Ed Sullivan and the BCR were no Beatles (though they were a better band than their teenybopper image ever would indicate)
User avatar
Ravi
Legend
Posts: 1051
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2004 9:01 pm
Location: St Catharines, Ontario

Coast Mountain Lion wrote:Howard was a larger that life personality and was just about everywhere in the early-mid 70s, but tried to do some things he shouldn't have. I recall him briefly hosting a Saturday evening variety show which was supposed to be the new Ed Sullivan Show. The first show introduced the Bay City Rollers to America, in a rather blatant attempt to repeat what happened in 1963 with Ed and the Beatles, but Howard was no Ed Sullivan and the BCR were no Beatles (though they were a better band than their teenybopper image ever would indicate)
I seem to recall that Howard Cosell was a popular answer on Match Game on multiple occasions because, as you said, he was a larger than life figure. I doubt that the panelists had any idea who Brian Billick was and he wasn't well known at that time. I actually saw this episode about a decade ago on the Game Show Network. Kirstie Alley is a contestant on another episode before she hit it big.
Post Reply