Richie Zions
FOX NFL Lead Producer
Editor’s Note: Richie Zyontz has been FOX’s NFL Producer since 1994 and has been the lead producer for the past 20 seasons. He has over 40 years of experience covering the league and has produced six Super Bowls. Throughout his NFL season in 2022, he’ll take an inside look at his FOX new No. 1 NFL team as they travel to Super Bowl LVII.
For those interested in driving from Philadelphia to Santa Clara, California, it’s only 2,900 miles like a crow flies. If you’re in a hurry and have a lot of coffee, you can get there in 43 hours, assuming you’re adhering to speed limits.
And thanks to Ike at FOX Sports for that information.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Interstate Highway Act of 1956 helped build our nation’s major thoroughfares. For decades, it has made it possible for people and goods to move efficiently and quickly across this vast country, making it an entire nation.
One of the essential groups for our operations is a crew of truck drivers who spend a lot of time on the highway in Ike, piloting TV mobile units for each game. This week they were the ones cruising from the City of Brotherly Love to Santa Clara in the heart of Silicon Valley, California.
king of the lord
Our lead driver is Jim Gove, a golf enthusiast from New Hampshire who now lives in Lens, Georgia, 30 miles west of Augusta. He oversees his unit of three large mobiles, working with his team of five other drivers. Jim works for Game Creek Video and has been part of the crew for eight years.
Game Creek Video’s Jim Gove is one of the people responsible for driving the FOX Sports truck between games.
Covering FOX’s top games is an honor for most of us, but schedules often have no geographic meaning. I often find myself on the East Coast one week and the West Coast the next. We usually follow the best team and collect frequent his flyer miles in the process.
Schedules can be a burden for those who carry these big rigs.
One truck has two drivers, 10 hours on, 10 hours off, and the off hours are spent in a small bed in the back of the cab. The accommodations aren’t exactly up to Ritz-Carlton standards, and sleeping isn’t easy. This is no easy task. As someone who can’t parallel park, I’m in awe that anyone can handle this giant car.
Accommodation in the track, complete with proud emblems from the past October.
But as usual, our truck arrived safely in California by Wednesday afternoon and was up and running by Friday.
Jim and his crew have taken the first steps in the process of getting this game on the air.
I do not take their roles for granted!
going home
Tom Brady grew up in San Mateo, California. The Levis in Santa Clara is 30 minutes drive from his stadium and just a stone’s throw from his park at Candlestick where he cheered on his beloved 49ers.
This was Brady’s second visit to play in the San Francisco area, with all the glory he has achieved in his legendary 23-year career. And after a video chat with him, it was clear that it had a special meaning.
Speaking from the training room at the Bucks practice facility where personal trainer Alex Guerrero massaged the Hall of Famer’s arm, Brady recounted his childhood playing soccer on the streets, the love of his parents and his hero Joe Montana. I talked nostalgically that I was rooting for.
This conversation revealed that Brady was down-to-earth, funny, and profane—all admirable qualities, in my mind. did.
A tale of two quarterbacks
Unfortunately, the public Brady on display at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday suffered an unfortunate homecoming. Playing in front of his 100 guests, including his parents, he was constantly flustered by San Francisco’s stout defense.
Our cameras caught Brady slamming his hand into the defender’s helmet on a pass attempt, causing visible discomfort.
The Great Brady plotline spotlighted San Francisco’s rookie quarterback in red named Brock Purdy.
Purdy, who made action last week after suffering an injury to starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, made his first career start. He opposed Brady, who was leading the group.
I was told by head coach Kyle Shanahan that this young quarterback has Moxie.
A video call with Purdy showed it. He seemed confident and almost cocky, but in a good way. did—a Sunset Boulevard reference for your kids).
‘There’s a lot of help around’: Brock Purdy says after 49ers win over Bucks
Brock Purdy talks to Erin Andrews about how the San Francisco 49ers veteran helped him after his first career start and loss to Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
And what a game he played!
Purdy, who played like a seasoned pro, led the 49ers to four touchdowns in the first half, turning the game into a rout. Our camera crew got a timely response from the Purdy family watching from the stands, our low his end his zone his camera maestro Andy his Mitchell crying tears of joy His father Sean caught his Purdy while drifting free. This was today’s shot!
The game was never in doubt as San Francisco won 35-7. But at least one storyline played out perfectly when a kid defeated a legend.
Oh yeah, another storyline didn’t work out either.
After completing the 2,900-mile drive to the West Coast last week, Jim and his truck driver will have to cross the country back to Jacksonville, Florida, where the Jaguars will host the Cowboys next week.
So if you’re driving down Interstate 10 in the next few days and see a Game Creek truck zipping down the highway, wave to the boys.
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