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The Quarterback in the Radio Booth
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Charla Batey
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October, 13 2007
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John Elway and Mike Shanahan. Joe Montana and Bill Walsh. Dan Marino and Don Shula. Brett Farve and Mike Holmgren. Peyton Manning and Tony Dungy.
Some of the best NFL quarterbacks of all time would not be who they are without their head coaches behind them. While the quarterback’s on the field being cheered on for his performance, the coach is doing all that he can to inspire the best performance possible.
Take that relationship and move it into a radio booth where they cover sports – and you’ve got the glue that bonds radio broadcaster Greg Papa and producer Ron Fell. |
Greg Papa at Work
John Elway and Mike Shanahan. Joe Montana and Bill Walsh. Dan Marino and Don Shula. Brett Farve and Mike Holmgren. Peyton Manning and Tony Dungy.
Some of the best NFL quarterbacks of all time would not be who they are without their head coaches behind them. While the quarterback’s on the field being cheered on for his performance, the coach is doing all that he can to inspire the best performance possible.
Take that relationship and move it into a radio booth where they cover sports – and you’ve got the glue that bonds radio broadcaster Greg Papa and producer Ron Fell.
“We spend a lot of time talking and emailing. We talk up to three times a day, so when we get in the booth on Sunday, everything is pretty much done. It’s definitely a lot of collaboration. We have a very creative and collaborative relationship,” says Mr. Papa.
For Mr. Papa and Mr. Fell, their game is played in the radio booth in McAfee Coliseum every Oakland Raider’s home game. The team that Mr. Papa and Mr. Fell play for is Raiders Radio on KSFO 560 out of San Francisco. Mr. Fell has worked for KSFO as a producer for 21 years with the last 4 alongside Mr. Papa. The channel holds the exclusive broadcast rights to Raiders Football, and for Mr. Papa and Mr. Fell, this counts as an automatic first down.
Leaning on Each Other: Ron Fell and Greg Papa
Mr. Papa, who is originally from Buffalo, New York, is one of the few members of the media allowed on field before the game starts. Privileges likes these can only come with the kind of impressive career that Mr. Papa, a father of five, has had.
After studying broadcast journalism at Syracuse University, Mr. Papa started his career working for the NBA. He called games for the Indiana Pacers for a couple of years before moving to the Bay Area in 1986 to work with the Golden State Warriors. He was with the Warriors for 12 years and the moved on to doing on-air coverage for the Oakland Athletics for the next 14 years. In 1997, he landed his current job as the exclusive on-air voice of the Raiders.
Despite the exclusivity, he still has to deal with the occasional fumble. A few weeks ago, it came in the form of a misplaced interview with Raiders' Defensive End Jay Richardson. It meant the prescript that Mr. Fell had drafted for Mr. Papa had to be altered.
It was still warm-up time, so Mr. Fell changed some of the plays around, and Mr. Papa ran them with the intensity a coach hopes to see during regulated game time. The intensity carried Mr. Papa and his coach through to the Raiders kickoff against the Cleveland Browns.
“1 minute,” said Mr. Fell as the Ohio Players' Love Rollercoaster echoed in the earphones.
“Was the first Great America in Sandusky, Ohio?” asked Mr. Papa.
Mr. Fell nodded as the technician’s voice from the station overtook the chorus, “Ten seconds. You’re on.”
The music faded out, and Mr. Papa’s voice gracefully took over without missing a second. Mr. Fell began shuffling through a stack of cards with advertisements on them for the broadcast as Mr. Papa moved from the Great America in Sandusky to the Cleveland team about to receive the opening kickoff. Mr. Fell stood to the side and looked on as Mr. Papa followed through on his first throw.
The game may not match up to Mr. Papa’s most memorable in 2002 -- when the Raiders won the AFC Championship, but the same time-honored techniques of a great coach and gifted quarterback were in play.
For Mr. Papa and Mr. Fell, it was just another day in the radio booth. |
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RECOMMEND
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OAKLAND
SPORTS
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Sports
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