Do you have a friend that you share the same blind spot with?
For the last 20 years, I have been working with someone I also consider a friend, Tom Tolbert. We discuss football every week, first on his show aired on KNBR Radio that he hosted for this entire century plus a few years, and this season, after he completed his time with the San Francisco radio station on his podcast, “The Tom Tolbert Show.”
Tom is as popular in Bay Area sports as Mickey Mouse is in Disneyland. His humor and bright banter is anchored by an appreciation for both his guests and sports in general and a knowledge gained from both as a player and from the sidelines. He was a member of the Arizona Wildcats Final Four team in 1988, where he played with his longtime friend and current head coach of the Golden State Warriors, Steve Kerr.
Next week, on Thursday, November 13, Tom is supporting me by attending the Sweet Thursday author series at the Lafayette Library. I have been invited to discuss my recently published book on my time with Al Davis and the Oakland Raiders. Everyone is invited, and I will offer a free copy of “Al Davis to Win” to the person in attendance who traveled the longest distance.
But back to our shared blind spot. The advantage of working on air with Tolbert is he is very knowledgeable and we have fun. Having worked in professional football for more than 50 years I have clocked a lot of radio time with hosts not nearly as informed or entertaining as Tolbert. In many ways, we think alike about handicapping football. His experience as an athlete, after college he played eight seasons in the NBA, gives him firsthand knowledge of the rigors of playing sports and how athletes and teams can be up or down given the circumstances entering a contest.
His knowledge blends well with my studies on what drives teams to play above or below their perceived talent level on a given day. Which brings us to the New England Patriots.