Gill and Gino have to go

If you ever get a chance to listen to other team's radio broadcast, you will hear how outstanding Gil and Geno are at calling a game. Most other local radio pbp duos are homers, screaming at officials and whooping up big plays. Think of having two Tommy Heinson's calling Celtics games. That is what you get when you put on other teams' radio broadcasts.

Yeah, Gil and Geno mess up, but they are calling it live and often have to watch an awful lot more than just the ball. Plus, they have people talking into their ear, background noise in the stadium and the announce booth, and a spotter who, if he makes an error, will make Gil and Geno look to be the bad guys.

Besides, it is radio, most of the people listening can't see the game and would have no clue if they are right or wrong most of the time.

I never listen to them during away games, like others do (who mute their tv and listen to the broadcast)... But its a tradition for me to go to every home game and make sure i have my headset on so I can listen to them. Its crazy to say they need to be replaced. Have you ever heard of some of the other announcers.. They are brutual.. I take in a Jets and Tampa game each year (family) and its just BRUTAL to hear those radio guys..

This thread sucks. Gil & Geno are the escape from hearing it on TV.

I love these two guys, yes there are a few blunders on names and numbers from time to time but they have great insight and notice things we would not. I love listening while sitting in sec. 134 as well as my lazyboy, what would the season be without someone "careening offsides". These two legends of the field and broadcast studios should go out on there own terms.
Gino for the hall of fame!!!

During the lean years when we were blacked out on Sunday's, amidst all the Jets fans in their bile green jackets and the Miami Fans in their puke green jerseys, Gil and Gino provided a much needed relief...

I used to have to work ever sunday, and even though the TV was on they Pats never were.. I used to listen to my walkman in one ear.. people could not believe that I was not a gambler and would just want to listen to the pats...

For this I am for endebted, and once and a while when on the road they provide great commentary.. they are not sexy nor are they pretty, but they are consummate homers who do a great job at announcing the Pats Games..

I shudder to think of the heir apparent.. Gresch(bombasity and idiocy personified), Zo ( who tries to be "edgy" but he is in epic fail), Tanguay (pretty boy) or any one else.. my hope for the future is that someone like Rodney, Bruschi can step up to do the color.. not sure who the announcer might be.. but whoever it is will always remember fondly Gil and Gino...

kinda like Curt Gowdy and the Red Sox...

What you have to appreciate here is that the game is the message, not the announcers...

Razor's Edge said:

Gil and Gino, on their death beds would be better than 90 % of all the anouncers on radio or TV, I only wish they did the tv anouncing as I can never get the tv and radio in sinc.
I love those two!

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That. Messing with Gil and Gino's like messing with Johnny Most Announcers like these are as much a part of the team as the team!

Yo Markey Mark! Feelin' the love?

The looming question remains, just what duo will be inflicted on us once they carry Gil and Geno off to the Home, which I see as most any day now? All the likely alternatives are, well, excerable. I have little faith that the Krafts will somehow come up with someone good as they've acquiesed to the putrid pre and post game Patriots radio coverage announcers for years with no concerted effort to find decent commentators.

'Pissah's right, Kraft has shown no ability, or will, (or could it simply be a $$$ thing??) to find some outstanding voices for their pre and post game shows, and that concerns me. Would Kraft finding anyone superior to Gil and Gino - who have been slipping for years but aren't quite so far gone they need replacing? But the day is coming...

One of the low lights last Thursday came right off when Gino was doing the starting line-ups just before kick off and badly stumbled over Ayodele's name and had to ask Gil how to say it. Santos, BTW, had it at the tip of his tongue. But, I like their style and will live them missing the down and distance, mixing up names, forgetting penalties, etc. If the alternative really would be Meter' or Gresh, ugh, then lets get the old guys more Geritol. Or how about another crack (silent) spotter/stats dude in the booth with them? Maybe Kraft could offer the person free parking as an incentive....

The OP is right that Gil and Geno are losing it. They misidentify the defenders on EVERY PLAY. Not just sometimes. I love the guys too and I don't want them to go, but some of you clearly haven't listened and watched the game simultaneously to see the sheer number of gaffes they make at this point.

AllstonPatsFan said:

The OP is right that Gil and Geno are losing it. They misidentify the defenders on EVERY PLAY. Not just sometimes. I love the guys too and I don't want them to go, but some of you clearly haven't listened and watched the game simultaneously to see the sheer number of gaffes they make at this point.

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Curious what you think of Criqui and Cross on TV?? I find them beyond painful.

Mark Morse said:

I'm surprised nobody has posted this yet. I listened to the game as I watched it live at the stadium. I don't know what game Gill and Gino were watching, but they constantly misidentified players. Gino's voice was very weak. It's time for them to be replaced. and lets not let the pre-season duo of Don Criqui and Randy Cross off either. They were brutal on the Kraft produced telecast.

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ARE YOU NUTS???!!!!

I LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!

As a matter of fact, if I am watching from home, I often mute the Plasma, and blast the radio broadcast.

So what. They mis-identified some players. Big whoop. It's pre-season for them too. Honestly, anyone who does not appreciate this Patriots broadcast team ought to be very, very, very ashamed of themselves.

Don Criqui needs to retire immediately. Sandy Cross is - um - barely tolerable.

I love Gil and Geno too, but Markey Mark is right. Face the facts, they're well past their shelf date. Each season they're worse and get more and more confused. Now, where was I? Oh yeah, to everyone's point, yes the heir apparents would be worse. That's the real problem. We all love hearing Gil & Geno's voices; they bring back decades of great memories. But nothing lasts forever. People do get past the point where they can execute the requirements of the job. Our problem is that the younger alternatives are simply awfull. Meta & co...I'd never listen to the radio. Cannot stand the dweebs.

Mark Morse said:

I'm surprised nobody has posted this yet. I listened to the game as I watched it live at the stadium. I don't know what game Gill and Gino were watching, but they constantly misidentified players. Gino's voice was very weak. It's time for them to be replaced. and lets not let the pre-season duo of Don Criqui and Randy Cross off either. They were brutal on the Kraft produced telecast.

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i think gill and gino are the best. i hope they hang around as long as they can.

I wish Gil would at least stop saying two things all the time:

"Direct snap to Brady," and, "Shoots it long and deep." Direct snap as opposed to what? And he doesn't shoot the ball, he throws the ball.

Mark Morse said:

I'm surprised nobody has posted this yet. I listened to the game as I watched it live at the stadium. I don't know what game Gill and Gino were watching, but they constantly misidentified players. Gino's voice was very weak. It's time for them to be replaced. and lets not let the pre-season duo of Don Criqui and Randy Cross off either. They were brutal on the Kraft produced telecast.

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I agree and I almost agree. I've tried to watch games while listening to Gill and Gino, but they are getting worse and worse. You're right, they mis-identify players at an alarming rate. I, like you, say "what game are they watching?", when doing this.

As for Criqui and Cross, Criqui wasn't on top of his game (he once referred to Randy Moss as Randy Cross), but I love Randy Cross. He's usually very good, IMHO.

Tunescribe said:

I wish Gil would at least stop saying two things all the time:

"Direct snap to Brady," and, "Shoots it long and deep." Direct snap as opposed to what? And he doesn't shoot the ball, he throws the ball.

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Hahahahahaha...some people just can't help but have to complain about something....but this is pretty ridiculous right here.

Guys, Gill and Gino do have fantastic radio voices but unfortunately for them that's not why I'm listening. I agree they are an institution but so is John Sterling for the Yankees and that doesn't make him any less of a clown. The bottom line remains that if your listening to Pats broadcast for the sole reason of hearing the game these guys are at the point where they are routinely missing calls. Granted at one time they were great but I think we've reached the expiration point. It could only be worse if they replaced them with Gresh and Zoe.

If you want to understand how good we have it, do yourself this favor:

The NFL Network has two sets of highlight videos, one which is just their in-studio recap, the other is a video of all the highlights featuring the radio broadcast calls. Do yourself a favor and over the course of a few weeks, listen to the difference between hearing Gil and Gino and most other teams' announcers.

I wish I could listen to Gil and Gino for each Pats game. I tried that NFL Season Pass thing one year, where you can listen to your team's announcers over the Internet, but due to the delay the radio is several seconds behind the TV and I didn't think it was worth paying for. (I further got irritated when I called to cancel and had to talk to some guy in India, who spoke English well but had such a strong accent I still had trouble understanding him... but I digress.)

As long as we're on the subject, who is Gil anyway? I know Gino is a former Pats player (I have two of his throwback jerseys ) but I don't know anything about Gil.

PatsWickedPissah said:

I love Gil and Geno too, but Markey Mark is right. Face the facts, they're well past their shelf date. Each season they're worse and get more and more confused. Now, where was I? Oh yeah, to everyone's point, yes the heir apparents would be worse. That's the real problem. We all love hearing Gil & Geno's voices; they bring back decades of great memories. But nothing lasts forever. People do get past the point where they can execute the requirements of the job. Our problem is that the younger alternatives are simply awfull. Meta & co...I'd never listen to the radio. Cannot stand the dweebs.

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That's exactly the problem, who'd replace the G's? And fwiw radio game announcing must be kinda tough. On TV a play-by-play exact recount really isn't necessary but radio has to not only get the players right (lol it helps) but follow the lineup,plays,etcetc and paint that picture for their listeners. There's just nobody else I can think of who could do it.