THE OFFICIAL E-NEWSLETTER OF
VOL. 1, NO. 3 – APRIL 2012
Q&A:
NFL NETWORK’S
RICH EISEN
The face of NFL Network holds the
’92 Champs in high regard BY JAN HUBBARD
R
ich Eisen remembers
those Sunday afternoons
watching TV in the
basement of his parents’ New
York home, being impressed
but frustrated while watching
a great Dallas Cowboys team
trample opponents.
“I remember how dynastic
they were,” Eisen said recently.
“I remember how brash they
were and I remember how
much fun it was, being a New
Yorker, to hate them. But I also
had respect for them because
they were self-made and
unstoppable.”
When the Cowboys won
their first of three Super Bowls
in the 1990s, Eisen was a
fledgling news reporter at the
Staten Island Advance, wishing
he could cover sports but content to simply be a huge football fan.
Twenty years later – after a newspaper stint in Chicago and TV gigs in
California, Washington D.C. and on ESPN – he has advanced to the top of his
profession as the lead announcer for the NFL Network.
And on May 11, he will do something he never dreamed of doing as a New
York Giants fan. He will host the 20th-anniversary celebration of the Cowboys
1992 Super Bowl Championship at The Westin Stonebriar in Frisco, TX, as part of
the Emmitt Smith Celebrity Invitational weekend. In a phone interview recently, he
talked about how special the event will be.
What does it mean to you to be the master of
ceremonies for this event?
EISEN: “It’s big because the Cowboys have such a great tradition. I grew up
watching the Coach Landry Cowboys and I understand what that star on the side
of the helmet means. I respect what it means to be a Cowboy. The ‘92 team was
just an incredible story and one that I cannot believe is 20 years old. I’m honored
to be the MC of the event that’s commemorating it.”
What stands out about the’92 Cowboys?
EISEN: “The major thing is everyone remembers the triplets. They were
the envy of every team at the time and even in future years. I can’t recall another
team that’s had three Hall of Fame players at the crucial offensive positions like
those Cowboys did. Plus an offensive line to protect one long enough to find
THIS JUST IN…
With the Emmitt Smith Celebrity Invitational only
weeks away (May 11-12), the roster of celebrities
and athletes is filling up.
PURCHASE REUNION DINNER TICKETS
Here are just a few of the latest confirmations to
the weekend’s roster:
» Troy Aikman
» Dennis Haysbert
» Marcus Allen
» Michael Irvin
» Tim Brown
» Jason Terry
» Franco Harris
» And many more!
TEAM EFFORT
Joining Rich Eisen throughout
the weekend will be many
other familiar faces to
help emcee the 2012
Emmitt Smith Celebrity
Invitational.
DEION SANDERS
A Super Bowl Champion with the San Francisco 49ers
and Dallas Cowboys, Deion Sanders was an eight-time
Pro Bowler over his 14-year NFL career. Sanders, who
also starred on the diamond as a major league baseball
player, was inducted into the Pro-Football Hall of Fame and
College Football Hall of Fame in 2011. He is currently an
analyst for NFL Network.
BRAD SHAM
The ³Voice of the Dallas Cowboys,² Brad Sham broadcasts
Cowboys games on the Dallas Cowboys Radio Network,
including flagship stations 1080 AM KRLD and 105.3 The
Fan. He started with the Cowboys in 1977 and has also
called games for Texas Longhorns¹ football and basketball,
Texas Rangers, Major League Soccer and several Cotton
Bowl Classics.
NEWY SCRUGGS
Newy Scruggs is the Sports Director at NBC 5 in Dallas/Ft.
Worth, appearing weeknights at 6 PM and 10 PM. He also
hosts the Emmy Award winning Out of Bounds at 10:30 PM
on Sundays. Scruggs has been in broadcasting since 1992,
making stops along the way in Florence/Myrtle Beach,
Austin, Cleveland, Los Angeles and since April 2000 in the
Metroplex.
SCOTT MURRAY
From the Olympics to the US Open, the World Series to the
World Cup, Presidential Inaugurations to 30 straight Super
Bowls, Scott Murray has covered them all. For close to a
quarter of a century, he was the Emmy Award-winning
Sports Director and Anchor at NBC 5, Dallas/Ft. Worth.
Along with his son Doug, Murray now owns and operates
Murray Media.
Q&A: NFL NETWORK’S RICH EISEN, Cont.
another down the field and when not doing
that, opening up enough holes for the third to
do some considerable damage on the way to
setting all-time records.”
Their offense was second
in points scored, but they
were also fifth in points allowed.
Did the defense get enough
credit?
EISEN: “Obviously you are always going to
focus on the triplets. They’re the most
recognizable Hall of Fame players. All of
them, offense and defense alike, survived the
crucible of a 1-win season and then Emmitt
[Smith] came in and helped transport the
team to another level. Obviously, people
forget what the defense did and could do.
They were pretty much the last dynasty
before the salary cap and free agency area
changed football. I don’t know in the current
construct if a team like the Cowboys could
exist. That was the last of the great pre-free
agency, pre-salary cap teams that we’ll
ever see.”
They lost three games in
the regular season, but then
in the playoffs they outscored
opponents 116-47 and then won
the Super Bowl by 35 points.
Does that put them in the
discussion for greatest team,
even though they had three
losses?
EISEN: “There’s no doubt about it. Look at
the number of Hall of Famers on the team at
the time and how they dominated. It’s just a
different era. There were a lot of good teams
and playing in the NFC East, you’re bound to
get beat. The fact they didn’t have an
undefeated team or a one loss season or
anything like that – to me it just really doesn’t
matter. It’s the rings. They have three.”
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT
How does your organization
like to stay involved within the
community?
CRAIG SUNDELL
GENERAL MANAGER
With a red carpet entrance and
attendees that will include
several celebrities and athletes,
how exciting is this event for
the Westin Stonebriar?
Here at The Westin Stonebriar, we are
extremely excited and honored to partner
and host Pat & Emmitt Smith Charities
events for our 2nd year. We share the
same passion for helping children reach
their potential as Pat and Emmitt do and
feel this is the perfect partnership.
Why is it important for your
organization to be involved
with charitable causes, especially those that help youth?
A. We have all benefited from adult role
models in our lives. Today, there is a
great need for positive role models in the
lives of our youth. The Westin Stonebriar
is proud to partner with Pat and Emmitt
to help influence the lives of children in
our community.
J. TODD HARBOUR
GENERAL MANAGER/DIRECTOR
OF GOLF
What does it mean to host
the Emmitt Smith Celebrity
Invitational for the third
straight year?
We are very honored to host the Emmitt
Smith Celebrity Invitational for the third
straight year. The PGA TOUR, TPC
Network and the TPC Craig Ranch have
a history of delivering excellence just
as Emmitt Smith has done in both his
career and also his invitational. It is a
great opportunity for us to showcase the
incredible design, natural beauty, and
quality of the course to the many that
come and play in the tournament. We
are very much looking forward to another
wonderful year hosting the event.
The PGA TOUR, TPC Network and TPC
Craig Ranch continue to be the leaders
in all of professional sports of giving
back to charity. Each year we host the
Birdies for the Brave event along with
all of our other TPC properties that
support our troops and their families that
have been injured or killed while serving.
Additionally we support The Collin
County Children’s Advocacy Center for
abused children tournament called
“Healing Hearts.” The club also donates
over 200 rounds of golf to 501(c)(3)
charities for their fund-raisers each year
which they are able to auction off during
their event. Our ability to help these
organizations raise funds and help many
people is our connection to both people
and the community. LANCE CROSBY
CEO
As a local business, what
does it mean to be a part
of the 20th reunion of the
1992 Cowboys Super Bowl
Championship?
The 1992 Cowboys are arguably one of
the best teams ever assembled in
professional football. SoftLayer is
honored to be part of this reunion.
Brushing shoulders with hall of famers
such as Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and
Emmitt Smith gives us a chance to
support a great cause while reliving
some wonderful memories.
Your organization is always
looking to give back to the
community. Why is service
such an important part of your
business?
Customer relationships are based
on trust. We help run mission critical
Information Technology (IT) systems
for our clients and great service can’t
be an afterthought. Today, we support
25,000 customers, in 140 countries
through our global network 13 data
centers 24/7 and 365 days a year. With
each interaction and along every step of
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Without great service and support we
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enjoying.