Columnist Tim Graham: Rebels football broadcast crew a winner

TIM GRAHAM is a Las Vegas Sun sportswriter. His media column appears Wednesdays. He can be reached on the Internet at [email protected]

UNLV recently lost its top football announcer. But little did the Rebels know its broadcast crew would improve as a result.

When Dave McCann, the play-by-play man the past two seasons, announced he would be handling the same duties for Brigham Young, some wondered how UNLV would fill the void.

The Rebels didn't disappoint in their selections, promoting a current voice, bringing in an intriguing newcomer and welcoming back an old pro.

"We were able to keep it all within the family," said UNLV's Bill Townsend, who compiled the crew.

Radio coverage will feature Tony Cordasco on play-by-play and former Rebel all-everything Hunkie Cooper. Cordasco is familiar to UNLV listeners as a football and basketball announce, while Cooper will be making his broadcast booth debut.

Cooper played six different positions on both sides of the ball at UNLV in 1990 and '91. He plays for the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League, where he has been named league MVP.

"He's used to dealing with the media and microphones," Townsend said. "He'll represent the university and UNLV football in a positive light."

UNLV's select telecasts will mark the football return of Ken Korach. The longtime Rebels play-by-play voice was forced to leave the football booth when he joined the Oakland A's broadcast staff full-time.

Former Rebels quarterback Steve Stallworth will continue to offer TV color commentary, meaning Sam King will not be back. King, who preceded Stallworth under center, formerly worked radio color for TV games.

Townsend is uncertain how many football games will be televised this year. UNLV's contract with KFBT Channel 33 calls for a combined 10 football and basketball games for the 1998-99 season. Until national networks like ESPN and CBS finalize their basketball schedules, football remains up in the air.

But Townsend is counting on at least two telecasts. He is targeting UNLV's first two road games at Northwestern and Wisconsin. The major hurdle with both, however, is ABC, which owns TV rights to the Big Ten.

"ABC has an exclusive three-hour window (in the afternoon) that no Big Ten team can be televised anywhere without their permission," Townsend said.

"To do either game they probably would have to move the kickoff to 9:30 a.m. our time. It would be 'Breakfast with the Rebels,' I guess."

The Rebels coaches' shows will change slightly. While McCann will continue to host "Gametime with UNLV Football," KLAS weekend sports anchor Chris Maathuis will take over for McCann on "Gametime with UNLV Hoops."

Hoards of awards

UNLV garnered several awards at the College Sports Information Directors Association annual convention.

A video clip of Rebels defensive back Mark Hays received the hit of the year as part of the COMPAQ College Plays of the Year contest. Hays leveled Charles Tharp as soon as the Hawaii running back touched a pass in the flat. The ball popped into the air, and UNLV safety Randy Black returned it 29 yards.

But the true mission of the CoSIDA convention is to honor the people who help the media.

UNLV assistant sports information directors Mark Wallington and Andy Grossman and graphic arts manager Paul Palmer were honored for their work.

Wallington won first place for his preview story that appeared in the 1997 UNLV football media guide. His review of the 1996 season in the same guide took second place.

Grossman's golf media guide finished first in the Far West district, while his volleyball guide was third. Palmer also was feted for his work on the golf guide.

* STATIC: For future sportscaster reference (i.e. Andrew Smith of KVBC Channel 3), Mike Tyson's new promoter, Shelly Finkel, is a "he," not a "she." ... KSHP 1400-AM has beefed up its sports menu yet again. The station recently procured the rights to the Denver Broncos and seven college programs: Arizona State, Brigham Young, Hawaii, Kansas, Stanford, Washington and Washington State. ... ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" expands to one hour starting Saturday. ... ESPN's latest "Outside the Lines" will focus on the life of Babe Ruth. It debuts July 21 at 4:30 p.m.

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