GHSF Daily is expanding its Four Questions feature this season beyond head coaches to other voices in high school football. Today's interviewee is Brian Jordan, sports analyst for Fox Sports South and former two-sport star with the Braves and Falcons. This season, Jordan is a game analyst for Georgia Public Broadcasting's Football Fridays game of the week.
Brian Jordan, Fox Sports and GPB analyst
1. How and why did you get involved with the GPB broadcasts? "I got a call from Eric Burns [GPB vice president for production] early this year. I'd been doing a couple of football games for Fox, and before then, I used to call college football for CSS, if you remember that channel. I used to call Conference USA and did a lot of games for East Carolina and Rice and those schools. I really enjoy calling football games. It's just as intense for me as when I played. Football to me is the ultimate competition, the ultimate battle. I just enjoy seeing that great athlete doing great things. For example, watching the Marietta game [Oct. 5] where Arik Gilbert had 15 catches for 294 yards, like a man among boys. It's just fun to watch these talented athletes perform."
2. What were your own best memories of playing high school sports, and were you known more for football or baseball in those days? "It was really both sports as far as my identity, but as far as my favorite, it was football. Baseball was the smarter choice when you look at the injuries and concussions, but football was my favorite. My best memory was making it to the states in football. That was the ultimate goal my senior year. My No. 1 college as far as recruiting was Maryland, and we played the state final at the University of Maryland. To have that opportunity to win a championship at the university where I really wanted to go to college was special. We didn't get the result I wanted in that game. I still blame my high school coach because he decided to start me on offense and not defense, which I normally did [both]. He was promoting me at Maryland. I wish I'd played defense. It was a blowout. But it was an exciting time for me to have that opportunity." [Jordan starred in football, baseball and basketball at Milford High in Baltimore. He was a football running back and defensive back. He would go on to play football and baseball at the University of Richmond before playing in the NFL and the major leagues.]
3. What has been your impression of high school football after getting to see it up close again? "The fun part for me has been talking to these coaches and understanding their mindset. I get to see what they go through and their ultimate plan for these kids. For the most part, I've been impressed. I remember talking with the Carrollton coach [Sean Calhoun] and hearing some of the great coaches he's worked under. I haven't called a game yet where I talked with a coach who had an undisciplined team and was just interested in winning. It's such a night-and-day difference between that and what I'm seeing in youth leagues today, where there's too much yelling and screaming and not enough teaching the players. What I've seen with the high school coaches is it's about building character and discipline in these kids."
4. Are there any trends that you see in football today that concern you? "You see so many dominant teams that get the best athletes moving into their district. It's like college or the NBA. Private schools are the same [in terms of dominance]. These guys are developing those kids from the sixth grade on up, playing in that same system. The good coaches will get the good players because the parents want their kids to play for the best organizations. If I'm a parent, I'm looking at it the same way. I want them to be well-coached and have that opportunity to play at the next level."
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