Irv Cross, pioneer Black analyst, dies at 81
PHILADELPHIA » Irv Cross, the former NFL defensive back who became the first Black man to work full-time as a sports analyst on national television, died Sunday. He was 81.
The Philadelphia Eagles, the team Cross spent six of his nine NFL seasons with, said Cross’ son, Matthew, confirmed his father died near his home in Roseville, Minnesota. The cause of death was not provided.
“All of us at CBS Sports are saddened by the news of Irv Cross’ passing,” CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus said in a statement. “Irv was a pioneer who made significant contributions
to the storied history and tradition of CBS Sports and, along with Phyllis George and Brent Musburger, set the standard for NFL pregame shows with ‘The NFL Today.’ He was a true gentleman and a trail blazer in the sports television industry and will be remembered for his accomplishments and the paths he paved for those who followed.”
From Hammond, Indiana, Cross starred in football and track and field at Northwestern. He was drafted in the seventh round by Philadelphia in 1961, was traded to the Los Angeles Rams in 1966 and returned to the Eagles in 1969 as a player coach for his final season.
The two-time Pro Bowl cornerback had 22 interceptions, 14 fumble recoveries, eight forced fumbles and a pair of defensive touchdowns. He also averaged 27.9 yards on kickoff returns and returned punts.
Cross joined CBS in 1971, becoming the first Black network sports show anchor. He left the network in 1994, and later served as athletic director at Idaho State and Macalester College in Minnesota. In 2009, he received the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award.
“Irv was one of the finest gentleman I’ve been with,” Musburger tweeted. “We met at Northwestern where Irv played both ways for Coach (Ara) Parseghian, He later became my go-to mainstay on the NFL TODAY. No one ever had a bad thing to say about Irv. He led the way for African Americans to host NFL and other sports shows. Rest in peace my friend.”
Binghamton University announced Monday that men’s basketball coach Tommy Dempsey is out and assistant Levell Sanders has been named interim coach for next season.
Athletic director Patrick Elliott said in a news release that Dempsey’s contract would not be renewed after his nine years at the helm. Sanders, a former star at Seton Hall, joined Dempsey’s staff in June 2019. The school said a search for a permanent replacement would be conducted next year.
Dempsey finishes with a 71-194 record at Binghamton in nine seasons. He was the second America East Conference coach to find out Monday that his contract would not be renewed, joining Albany’s Will Brown.
Binghamton (4-14) started the season 1-12, its win coming against eventual regular-season champion UMBC on the road, and finished 4-10 in the conference, ahead of only Maine. The Bearcats closed their season Saturday with a loss at Hartford in the opening round of the conference tournament.
Dempsey arrived at Binghamton in 2012 after seven years at Rider, where he led the Broncs to an average of 19 wins and three national postseason berths. He took over in a crucial moment but could never resurrect a program that had been beset by a recruiting scandal under former coach Kevin
Broadus.
Michigan leaps to No. 2
Michigan finally broke the stranglehold of Gonzaga and Baylor atop The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll, taking advantage of the Bears’ loss at Kansas to leap into the No. 2 spot behind the Bulldogs.
Gonzaga continued to hold down the top spot in the Top 25, just as it has all season, receiving 59 of 63 first-place votes among national media members. But the Wolverines picked up the other four to climb into second while the Bears, whose unbeaten season was foiled by the Jayhawks on Saturday night, dropped back to third place.
Illinois climbed one spot to fourth and Iowa gave the Big Ten three teams in the top five.
NIT to be played in Texas
The NIT is moving the entire 2021 event to Texas, taking the semifinals and championship game out of New York’s Madison Square Garden for the first time in the 83-year history of college basketball’s oldest postseason tournament.
The pandemic is also reducing the field to 16 teams from the usual 32, and all games are set for the Dallas area. The two venues are the University of North Texas in Denton and an arena in Frisco that is home to a G League team affiliated with the Dallas Mavericks.
The NSJIAA’s much-delayed and long-awaited plans for the this year’s high school wrestling season were finally unveiled Monday.
Following four weeks of dual matches that will get underway March 16, the state announced it plans to have an individual tournament with the state championships set for April 2425.
Unlike past years, the individual portion of the season will not start with districts.
Apparently, the thinking was it would be difficult to find 32 schools willing to host districts and it would only add to the chances of wrestlers contracting COVID.
Instead, a committee will select the top three wrestlers in each district from each weight and advance them to a regional tournament. The eight regions this year will be combined into four, which is much like the old “super region” format.
The regions will take place on April 17-18 with some weights being contested the first day and the others on the second.
Four wrestlers will advance out of each regional weight to make a total of 16 wrestlers in each weight class at the state tournament.
The sites for the regionals and states have not yet been announced. This is also true as to where the girls tournaments will take place. The girls state finals are scheduled for April 10.
It’s unclear if spectators will be allowed at the individual tournaments. According to the NJSIAA, it will wait see what the New Jersey government mandates are at the time to determine if fans will be allowed in the buildings.