Following the Fire the Old Fashioned Way
Kevin Sedelmeier
Friday August 13, 2004
If you grew up in the Louisville area, odds are you listened to Marty Brennaman and Joe Nuxhall call the Cincinnati Reds games. The “This is the old lefthander rounding third and heading for home” and “…And this one belongs to the Reds” taglines became part of the Ohio Valley sports vernacular. In Louisville, many University of Louisville fans still listen to the radio when they watch the game, turning up Paul Rogers and Bob Valvano over their ESPN or CBS counterparts like Dick Vitale and Billy Packer. Can you really blame them? So, although play-by-play radio is not extinct, it often augments television commentary.
Unfortunately, the Louisville Fire playoff games are not televised in Louisville, not even last week’s thrilling 53-48 first round victory over the Quad City Steamwheelers. Although WAVE 3 had highlights and rumor had it Derrick Shepard’s stunning game-winning touchdown was shown on ESPN, to experience the Fire’s road games, fans must listen to 1080-AM WKJK. But here’s the good thing – it’s still a lot of fun.
Paul Wilman calls the action. He is both play-by-play man and color commentator. He does it all, and he does it well. He hosts the Tuesday coaches show on 790-WWKY; he knows this team, the staff, and the players. Better yet he seems to really care. Like myself, he is a long-suffering Minnesota Vikings fan. So, following a professional football team that actually wins a playoff game is cause for celebration. And celebrate is what Willman did at the end of last week’s classic against Quad City. The drama was increasing as the QB Matt Sauk-led Fire continued to counter the Wheelers’ scores. But after Danny Kight missed a PAT with a minute to play to make it 48-47, fans could only hope for the best, to get the ball back, to hold them to a field goal, for a miracle.
The game was already filled with more drama than was ever packed into an episode of the humorless teen angst show My So-Called Life. Former Fire kicker Marc Samuel, played extremely well for the Steamwheelers, hitting all PATs and both field goal attempts under 50 yards. Despite his fine leg and strong credentials, Kight had missed two PATs for the Fire. The game was back and forth, but would it be wrapped in a cruel dose of kicking roster-move irony?
Willman’s calls of Tony Stallings’ wrecking crew-like returns made you feel like you were on the field at The Mark in Moline. But it was his call of the final play that was the most memorable. Kight’s noble attempt – at redemption – was long enough and looked to be good, and when it wasn’t, Willman quickly realized the play and the game weren’t over. That’s when Shepard, the most unlikely of running backs, got the ball and used a couple of Demetrius Forney blocks, to scamper into the end zone. (Just because the ball carrier is 300 pounds doesn’t mean the only thing they can do is “lumber” or “stumble.”) And with a yell that became an jubilant hoarseness, Willman let it be known that the Fire had indeed won, as improbable as it seemed.
Maybe this week against the Tulsa Talons it won’t come down top the last play of the game. They are the defending ArenaCup champions, but perhaps their schedule hasn’t prepared them as well for the postseason as the Fire’s has. The winner will advance to the conference championship game.
So whether you’re listening with headphones and a Walkman as I did last week or listening with friends at Kern’s Korner, where they are holding a second straight Listen Party, just remember not to tune out until the final whistle blows or until Paul Willman’s voice goes out.
Kevin Sedelmeier is a native Louisvillian. A graduate of the University of Louisville with a B.A. in Communication and M.A. in English, he works as a technical writer and has written fifteen screenplays and numerous short
stories. He lives with his wife Elizabeth, son Lukas, and their dog Springsteen.