
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, June 29, 1995                   TAG: 9506290100
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

SIMMS JOINS TOP ANALYSTS AT NBC

On the day ESPN announced its replacement for Phil Simms on the network's studio show, NBC Sports named the former New York Giants quarterback as part of its No.1 NFL telecast team.

Simms will join fellow analyst Paul Maguire and play-by-play man Dick Enberg as NBC goes to a three-man booth. The shuffling demotes Bob Trumpy, NBC's top analyst and Enberg's partner for the past three NFL seasons and two consecutive Super Bowls, to what is the No.3 team with Tom Hammond.

Marv Albert, who worked on the second team with Maguire, will now be joined by analyst Cris Collinsworth, who had been Hammond's booth partner in recent years. Maguire, known for his on-air humor as well as sharp analysis, said, ``I've taught Marv everything, but he's very happy for me.''

NBC Sports President Dick Ebersol made the stunning announcement from Wimbledon, England, where NBC is televising the tennis championships at the All England club. He said the three-man concept was first presented to Enberg in April, then Maguire. He offered the top-team role to Simms two weeks ago while walking the Shinnecock Hills course with the ex-quarterback during NBC's airing of the U.S. Open golf championships.

At ESPN, former Green Bay All-Pro receiver Sterling Sharpe, who retired after suffering a neck injury late last season, will replace Simms on NFL GameDay and NFL Prime Monday slots. Simms left the cable network for NBC when he didn't have a 1995 contract and ``because I wanted to do games.''

Ebersol said of the three-man booth: ``This mix was too appealing to pass up.'' Enberg's new team will work a ``practice game'' not on the air Aug.6 while NBC airs a Giants-Cleveland preseason game. The trio's first on-air appearance will come one week later on a Green Bay-Pittsburgh exhibition telecast.

by CNB