Ron Barr and Sports Byline USA LIVE from Iraq

Talking sports is a wonderful communications vehicle. As I’ve found from the nearly 20 years of hosting Sports Byline USA, you can talk, debate, analyze and argue sports in a passionate way that reflects the joy, frustration and excitement of sports and the athletes who play them. It’s the one thing most of us enjoy and aren’t afraid to voice our opinion about. As I mentioned earlier, the young soldier in Mosul said, our broadcasting and talking sports made him feel like he was back home. That’s the whole purpose of bringing Sports Byline to the troops. Continue Story...

I’m deeply appreciative of the sports friendships I’ve developed over the years. I admire these men and women who have made a commitment to playing their game to the best of their ability. Some have won championships, and some have played so well they’ve been inducted into the Hall of Fame. But, win or lose, Hall of Fame or not, many have gone on to become friends that when I called upon them to join me for our broadcasts from Iraq and Afghanistan they’ve eagerly done so. Randy Cross, Spencer Tillman and Brian Billick didn’t hesitate to say “yes” when I asked them to travel halfway around the world to spend time with our troops and to share the microphone with me. And, when I asked former 49ers owner Ed DeBartolo Jr., ESPN’s Chris Berman and coaches and athletes like Tiki Barber, Pete Carroll, Tony Dungy, Barry Zito and Jerry Rice, as well as Hall of Famers John Riggins, Jim Brown, Coach K, Tommy LaSorda, Joe Morgan, future Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, along with NBA Commissioner David Stern, NHRA’s Kenny and Brandon Bernstein, to join me on the broadcasts, they all said, “Count me in.”

It’s always a roll of the dice when you have “guest” co-hosts. Fans and listeners think it’s easy to talk sports and interview athletes, but usually if they get the chance to do so, many get dry throated, stammer and can’t tell you whether the ball is stuffed or blown up. Also, talking to big name sports stars can be very intimidating. That certainly was not the case with my soldier co-hosts. These guys were zeroed in and when it came to questioning our star athletes and coaches, they were on top of their game. I smiled and laughed several times as I thought, “They don’t need me.” The same professionalism they show in their soldiering duties, they also showed in co-hosting Sports Byline. From my perspective, it gave me a wonderful feeling to be able to give them the chance to talk with our sports guests, to let them be on air, and most importantly, to let their friends and family hear that they’re well. Seeing them having a good time, laughing and interacting with Brian, Randy and Spencer, and giving them a memory and a story to share with others, made it all worthwhile.

--Ron Barr