‘An emotional roller coaster’ of a run
Vandermeer on the call and along for season’s wild ride
Given the nadir of the previous three seasons, it’d be understandable if Texans fans viewed this year as a magic carpet ride of sorts.
There’s been C.J. Stroud putting together a rookie season for the ages and giving Houston a franchise quarterback again, the team in playoff contention under first-year coach DeMeco Ryans, and arguably the most memorable stretch of games in recent franchise history.
What’s it been like for the man who’s called each of those games?
“I’m floating,” said radio playby-play broadcaster Marc Vandermeer, who’s called every game in the franchise’s 22 seasons with analyst Andre Ware. “I don’t even need the team plane — I can float to New York. I can float to Nashville next week. Win or lose, I can do it because we’re in a place where we wanted to be.
“I hoped to be here, but you never know, and now we know. You’re here, and you’re here in year one of the Ryans/Stroud era. That’s incredible and I’m really feeling the joy like everyone else.”
The Texans visit the New York Jets on Sunday afternoon having played eight straight games decided in the final 30 seconds. Those games have ended in a variety of ways. There have been three walk-off field
goals, with one in the Texans’ favor, and a 58-yard attempt to tie that doinked off the crossbar to seal a Week 12 loss to Jacksonville. There have also been three games decided by late defensive stands and the most thrilling of all, the 37-35 win over the Buccaneers in Week 9 decided on a touchdown pass from Stroud to fellow rookie Tank Dell with six seconds remaining to cap a 75yard drive in 40 seconds.
That Tampa Bay game was arguably the one that brought the Texans back to national relevance, with Stroud throwing for a single-game rookie-record 480 yards and five touchdowns to emerge as the frontrunner for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Vandermeer called it his favorite win in the current stretch.
“Tampa Bay was the one where I really jumped out of my seat, because C.J. Stroud pulled that out of a hat — he and Dell,” Vandermeer said. “He hits Dell on the sidelines, and then they set up the final touchdown. That was unreal. He delivered in the biggest possible way.
“It’s an emotional roller coaster, but you’ve got to keep the emotions in check (because) you’re trying to describe the action. You have to remember the first thing is you are the eyes of the listener . ... But these games have been so intense and so emotional that sometimes as an announcer you feel like it’s difficult
to just stay with it sometimes because I get really caught up in the explosive moments and I just want to jump out of my seat like a regular fan.”
The previous three seasons, over which the Texans won just 11 games, churned through four coaches and endured off-field distractions, saw the franchise arguably become the NFL’s epitome of dysfunction. But at 7-5 entering Week 14, the Texans already have doubled last season’s win total with five games to go.
Vandermeer said the optimism currently surrounding the organization started to be felt in the months leading up to this season. It’s manifested itself with the season-long performances
of rookies like Stroud, Dell and Will Anderson Jr. and the recent emergence of last year’s top pick, cornerback Derek Stingley Jr.
“There’s so much that’s packed into it because it all started with the hiring of DeMeco,” Vandermeer said. “Which felt like 10 playoff wins with the jubilation and joy of the fan base of a beloved former player coming home to coach. And then the draft-night drama, which was phenomenal — we’ve never had a draft like that. On the night, it felt that great.
“And then to see layer after layer of games transpire and to see that the draft was backed up by on-field performance instantly. We’re not waiting years for this — it’s happening in real time. … I’m so happy because I know what the organization has been through and what the fans have been through. I share in this ecstasy we feel when the team does these wild and fantastic things. Big-time. I feel that but you’ve got to keep it together and call these plays.”
With five games left, the Texans hold the final AFC wildcard berth, thanks to Pittsburgh’s loss to New England on Thursday night. Things can often turn on a dime in the NFL, so Vandermeer is rooted in the present.
“It’s hard not to think ahead, but just enjoy the moment because that’s what it’s all about,” he said. “We’ve got five left, and the final chapters have yet to be written. If they continue to win … it still is a remarkable story, no matter what happens from here. We’re not even in the final arc of the movie. But the best part is yet to come.”