Revisiting Super Bowl VI

Posted on February 13, 2022 by Jim Tunney Ed.D

Super Bowl VI Jim Tunney RefereeOn the TunneySide of Sports February 13, 2022 #887 Up next… Revisiting Super Bowl VI

After further review… Super Bowl XVI (56) takes place today, February 13, 2022, just 50 years and a little more than one month after I had the pleasure of being the referee in Super Bowl VI (6). Oh my gosh – a full ½ century has gone by. Many social and other media are bringing that history to the forefront. May I?

The phone call from the Supervisor of NFL officials, Art McNally, came about 10:30 AM Pacific Time with his words still ringing in my ears: “You got it!!” I didn’t want to guess what “it” meant so I countered with “Got what?” McNally continued “You are assigned as Referee in Super Bowl VI to be played January 9, 1972, in New Orleans.” Then he said, “You need to be in New Orleans on Wednesday, January 8th” at a hotel (which is no longer there) across the street from the Superdome, which hadn’t been built yet!

Further, McNally said, “You can’t tell anyone outside your family! Commissioner Pete Rozelle will announce the officials at his Friday press conference which you cannot attend!”

It was an exciting week. I had been an NFL Field Judge since 1960 moving to the Referee position in 1967 so receiving the Super Bowl assignment coincided with my time in that position. It was an exacting week albeit confidential.

Crew meetings took place in New Orleans the balance of the week. We did not view or inspect Tulane Stadium, where Super Bowl VI was scheduled to be played. The crew was a good one with some officials who had come through the ranks in the AFL/NFL merger that had only taken place a couple of years earlier.

As we departed from our rental cars in the parking lot of Tulane Stadium on Sunday, January 9th, the view was unlike what the Super Bowl LVI crew will face walking into the SoFi Stadium today. Tulane Stadium was packed to its capacity of 30,000! I had officiated Saints games several times in my career, so I knew what I was facing — grass field tore up with many areas just dirt and no crowds in the parking lot prior to game time. The two combatants were the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins – both of whom were there for the first time.

Roger Staubach guided the ‘Boys to a 24-3 victory over the Bob Griese-led Dolphins. Perhaps for me and our crew, the cold weather was a factor with the temperature at 29 degrees at kickoff. Al Hirt, the renowned New Orleans trumpeter tossed the coin. He had our crew as his guests for dinner that night in The French Quarter!

One congratulatory note:  I have just been informed that Art McNally, father of modern NFL officiating, is the first official in the Pro Football Hall of Fame!

Will you enjoy Super Bowl LVI from the beautiful SoFi Stadium in Southern California today?

To contact Jim, go to www.jimtunney.com or email jim@jimtunney.com. “Impartial Judgment” is now out of print but is available for $20 with free shipping from the website or contact Jim at 2962 Club Rd. Ste #32 Pebble Beach, CA. 93953. It includes Jim’s autograph. 

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Jim’s books include many messages about rules and regulations (remember he was a referee). His bobblehead on your desk or shelf will be a treasure in your office or home. Jim’s Bobblehead includes no tax and comes with free shipping. Use PayPal or mail check to 2962 Club Rd, Ste 32, Pebble Beach, CA 93953. Enjoy your Holidays!

Shop here.

To contact Jim, go to www.jimtunney.com  or email jim@jimtunney.com.

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7 For The G.O.A.T.

Posted on February 7, 2022 by Jim Tunney Ed.D

On the TunneySide of Sports February 7, 2022 #886 Up next… 7 For The G.O.A.T.

After further review… All-pro quarterback Tom Brady has retired from the National Football League after 22 years of leading the New England Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to Super Bowl victories. He led those two teams to seven Super Bowl championships while earning five (MVP) Most Valuable Player awards. Most likely both records will stand for a long time, perhaps forever! Records, they say, are there to be broken and perhaps Brady’s will.

There is one NFL record that the TunneySide guarantees will always stand. That is the one head coach Don Shula formerly of the Baltimore Colts and Miami Dolphins achieved. Shula had 347 victories in his 31-year career. It seems impossible for any head coach to last that long in the NFL today or in the future.

Brady vacillated, perhaps with some sleepless nights, in making his final decision. Almost every NFL player, coach, and or game official has that tough decision to make. I know I did after 31 NFL seasons. The opportunity to be on the field with some of the finest athletes in the world is something beyond special that one wants to maintain. So many players I have known have that difficulty in deciding when to retire and, in fact, may move to another team to continue playing.

Joe Namath of the New York Jets moved on the Los Angeles Rams. Johnny Unitas, after an illustrious career with the Baltimore Colts, was traded to the San Diego Chargers. Joe Montana, Ronnie Lott, Jerry Rice, and many, many more – all Hall of Famers – could have just retired but wanted to remain in the NFL. Will Tom Brady follow in those footsteps? It doesn’t seem he likely will. Other players have been recruited by television to serve as game analyses to explain the game to the viewers. Brady may well be interested in that. However, in today’s NFL salary cap the enormous amount of money that players and coaches can retain is enough to sustain a financial lifestyle. Stay tuned.

One more note about the title G.O.A.T. The TunneySide does not accept that title in a T*E*A*M sport. No QB or running back can achieve that level of success without a strong protective offensive line of seven blockers/protective linemen. If you want to use that G.O.A.T. term for competitive swimmer Michael Phelps or gymnast Simone Biles, then we can accept that.

Will you log in with your thought about the G.O.A.T. theory?

To contact Jim, go to www.jimtunney.com or email jim@jimtunney.com. “Impartial Judgment” is now out of print but is available for $20 with free shipping from the website or contact Jim at 2962 Club Rd. Ste #32 Pebble Beach, CA. 93953. It includes Jim’s autograph. 

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Jim’s books include many messages about rules and regulations (remember he was a referee). His bobblehead on your desk or shelf will be a treasure in your office or home. Jim’s Bobblehead includes no tax and comes with free shipping. Use PayPal or mail check to 2962 Club Rd, Ste 32, Pebble Beach, CA 93953. Enjoy your Holidays!

Shop here.

To contact Jim, go to www.jimtunney.com  or email jim@jimtunney.com.

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It’s Not Too Early To Talk About Golf

Posted on January 30, 2022 by Jim Tunney Ed.D

pebble beach golfOn the TunneySide of Sports January 31, 2022 #885 Up next… It’s Not Too Early To Talk About Golf

After further review… The PGA tour is underway now with the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am scheduled for Feb 3-6 and the PGA Championship taking place MAY 19 – 22, 2022 at Southern Hills CC,  Tulsa, OK. Eager golf fans are ready to be a part of the game be it live on the course or watching via streaming apps.

I have long been a Pebble Beach resident and have spent many enjoyable days on the course with friends and well-known sports names. My dear friend the late actor James Garner and I were regular players there and he really wasn’t someone you wanted to make much noise around when he was concentrating! As you know, Pebble Beach isn’t just the No. 1 public course in America. Pebble Beach is the No. 1 Golf Resort in America. Reminiscing about old friends and neighbors and a stunningly beautiful course led me to revisit the change in months for the PGA Championship.

Not all that long ago, the PGA Championship was always in August. Why is it now in May?

The PGA Championship is one of the PGA Tour’s 4 annual major championships. Each major is put on by a different entity. This major is put on by the PGA of America, the teaching arm of professional golf. It had traditionally been put on in the fall for many years, but now has moved to May to help with the Tour’s wraparound scheduling and to get it out of the way of the Olympics, the FedEx Cup run to the Tour Championship. And let’s not forget that by August, MLB is in full swing and the NFL is playing preseason games which takes away some interest in golf.

Back to the original question… why was the tournament moved to May?

In August of 2017 Pete Bevacqua, CEO of the PGA of America announced that the PGA Championship would be moving from August to May and that they had been discussing it for four years at that point.

From Golf Digest:

Our analysis quickly proved to us that with a late May date:

  • We would be able to continue to conduct the PGA Championship at many of the great historic courses in the Northeast with the likelihood of more temperate weather and certainly healthier turf conditions.
  • Some of our more Southern venues would be even more appealing with less heat and more challenging playing conditions.
  • Other great areas and sites around the country suddenly become far more attractive in May as opposed to August.
  • Television and media consumption are as healthy or healthier during that time of year.
  • We would welcome the opportunity to be the second of the four majors in the annual major golf chronology.
  • It makes sense for an organization whose members serve as the tangible connection between the game and just about all of us who play it here in the United States, to have our major championship occur earlier in the golf season so we can more effectively promote along with our broadcast partners our grow-the-game initiatives that our members bring to life.

I believe we can all agree that golf is a recreational force of nature, played in some of the most beautiful locations in the world no matter what season.

Will you login with your favorite course and your favorite professional golf tournaments?

To contact Jim, go to www.jimtunney.com or email jim@jimtunney.com. “Impartial Judgment” is now out of print but is available for $20 with free shipping from the website or contact Jim at 2962 Club Rd. Ste #32 Pebble Beach, CA. 93953. It includes Jim’s autograph. 

—————

Jim’s books include many messages about rules and regulations (remember he was a referee). His bobblehead on your desk or shelf will be a treasure in your office or home. Jim’s Bobblehead includes no tax and comes with free shipping. Use PayPal or mail check to 2962 Club Rd, Ste 32, Pebble Beach, CA 93953. Enjoy your Holidays!

Shop here.

To contact Jim, go to www.jimtunney.com  or email jim@jimtunney.com.

Posted in Sports, Tunney Side of Sports Columns | Tagged | 1 Comment