Under Review Guerrero's Gaffes--Clemson Legend Dies--Celebrating the Deuce

"[Lisa] Guerrero is quickly exposing herself to be the biggest
ditz to star in an ABC prime-time vehicle since Suzanne Somers
jiggled across the set of Three's Company." So said Denver Post
sports columnist Mark Kiszla, who tossed the sharpest of many
darts thrown at the Monday Night Football sideline reporter after
a debut performance on Sept. 4 that made Eric Dickerson, one of
her predecessors at ABC, look like Eric Sevareid. (Guerrero was
castigated for asking Redskins quarterback Patrick Ramsey about a
pregame conversation he had with "ex-teammate" Laveranues Coles.
A dumbfounded Ramsey graciously answered the question about his
current teammate.) Even fellow Disney colleagues have broken
ranks; SportsCenter anchor Trey Wingo gave Guerrero's debut a
thumbs down--"That's so far down, hell has a similar sign," he
said--on ESPN Radio last week. Guerrero was unavailable for
comment. "People are taking cheap shots at her," says network
spokesperson Mark Mandel. "She has the total support of ABC."

College football lost one of its distinctive voices last week
when Clemson play-by-play man Jim Phillips died at age 69 after
an aortic aneurysm. Phillips, who covered the Tigers in several
sports over 36 years--he called his 401st Clemson football game
on Sept. 6--had the longest tenure of any broadcaster in the ACC.
"When he got in that booth," said Tigers football color
commentator Will Merritt, "he was going to give the Clemson
family everything he had."

ESPN2, which debuted with Keith Olbermann's famous line--"Good
evening, and welcome to the end of our careers"--celebrates its
10th anniversary on Oct. 1. --R.D.