Alabama's Radio Play-By-Play Guy Was So Salty When Texas A&M Won: TRAINA THOUGHTS

Alabama radios Eli Gold went silent when the Crimson Tide lost to Texas A&M

1. Every local announcer in every sport is a homer. Obviously, though, there are different levels of being a homer, and Alabama radio broadcaster Eli Gold seems to be at the highest one.

Gold decided not to call Texas A&M’s game-winning field goal that gave the Aggies a 41–38 victory over the Crimson Tide on Saturday night. He finished a thought that ended with the words “what happens” right before the play, and then he went silent as the kick took place.

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOL pic.twitter.com/yGgTdx7yOT

— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) October 10, 2021

To make matters worse, Gold’s first words after the 28-yard field goal were about a potential fine Texas A&M would have to pay because fans stormed the field.

Gold tried to explain his bizarre approach to AL.com, telling the outlet, “That’s part of what makes radio the medium that it is. It’s the sound. There is no picture. I just know [to do it] justice—as huge as a moment as it was—I said to myself, ‘You know what? Just let the crowd tell the story.’

“And I think the fans would understand if they heard crickets or nothing, then I was gonna jump right in, but if they heard that massive roar, they would’ve known the Aggies would’ve kicked the game-winning field goal.”

First off, if you’re calling a potential game-winning field goal on radio, it’s your duty to let listeners know about the snap, hold and kick. It’s not just about “It’s good” or “It’s no good” on the radio. Imagine being in your car listening and getting NO details on the single biggest play of the week in college football. You can do this on TV, not radio. On radio, you’re just leaving your listeners completely in the dark.

Secondly, it’s hard to believe this was a planned out move instead of just salty behavior when the only thought Gold had about the top team in the nation losing to an unranked opponent in Nick Saban’s first loss to one of his former assistant coaches in Jimbo Fisher was about how much money Texas A&M would have to pay because Aggies fans ran onto the field.

Lastly, the country was already thrilled to see Alabama go down. Something tells me Gold’s no-call made the Crimson Tide’s loss even sweeter.

2. Sometimes in life, things work out beautifully. That was the case at 4:25 p.m. on Sunday when Kevin Harlan was in the booth for the wild Browns-Chargers game. 

This was the right man for the right job, and here were some of his most memorable calls from the 47–42 shootout.

3. This was by far the best moment of Drew Brees’s young broadcasting career. 

The correct answer to Brees’s important questions are simple: strawberry or even raspberry jelly only. Grape jelly is gross. And all the sandwiches should be cut diagonally. Only bad people cut a sandwich down the middle.

4. The single best clip from Sunday's NFL action came from Bengals kickers Evan McPherson, who celebrated a missed field goal. The moment McPherson realizes his kick sailed wide left at the end of the video below is priceless.

5. The fine line between fan and fanatic ...

6. The latest SI Media Podcast features a conversation with Good Morning Football’s Kyle Brandt. 

Brandt takes us behind the scenes of his audition with Peyton and Eli Manning for the host role of their Monday Night Football telecast. Brandt also talks about the void left by Nate Burleson, who left Good Morning Football for CBS This Morning, how he and Peter Schrager put together GMFB’s “Wall Streeters” bit, why he doesn’t think Good Will Hunting holds up, the most prolific sports movie actor and much more.

Following the conversation with Brandt, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV in New York joins the podcast for the weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. The big topic discussed this week is The Many Saints of Newark.

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Stitcher.

You can also watch the SI Media Podcast on YouTube.

7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: If you missed it over the weekend, Kim Kardashian’s Saturday Night Live monologue was actually very, very good thanks to the show’s writers.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Stitcher. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter and Instagram.