CBS announcer Jim Nantz was criticized pretty heavily by viewers Monday evening for his reference to the TV show Walker, Texas Ranger. As the UConn-Butler game was going to commercial with 5:49 left, Nantz said “We have a break in the action. UConn, 5:49 from the title perhaps. They have defended. They have protected. They have Walker, Texas Ranger.”
Nantz was talking about UConn star Kemba Walker when he made the Texas Ranger reference, and it’s difficult to tell if it was planned or spontaneous. I give Nantz a break because as someone with plenty of broadcasting experience, I know it’s not easy to come up with the right words on an impromptu basis. Additionally, when you have an audience of millions, you’re not going to please every single one of them.
The masses on twitter found Nantz’s reference so strange they turned the phrase “Walker Texas Ranger” into a worldwide trending topic. Yes, Nantz’s reference was that odd and lame it prompted thousands of twitter users to write something about it — many of which were unkind. The reasoning is simple — Walker is from the Bronx, not Texas, and the TV show has been insignificant for years. Perhaps that’s why people were so frustrated with the reference — they felt it shows how out of touch with the real world Nantz is.
