NFL players not a big fan of Collinsworth's work, but he was a media star for UF's Carlson
Tuesday, December 20, 2011 | Football, Scott Carter
Did you see the NFL players' poll in the latest issue of Sports Illustrated?
If not, the magazine asked players to name their least favorite NFL commentator?
Once the votes were counted from the 237 players who responded to SI's survey, former Gators receiver Cris Collinsworth was the winner – err, loser.
Collinsworth received 11 percent of the vote, followed by ESPN's Chris Berman (8 percent), Warren Sapp of the NFL Network (6 percent), FOX's Troy Aikman (5 percent) and Ron Jaworski of ESPN (4 percent).
I'm pretty sure that if SI asked viewers the same question, there is no way Collinsworth would have won.
In my view, he has always been one of the best. Collinsworth is articulate, insightful, knowledgeable and opinionated. Of course, that also means he is at times critical, hence perhaps the players' dislike of him.
I first saw the poll this morning when I stopped into the office of UF historian Norm Carlson, who was UF's sports information director when Collinsworth played for the Gators from 1977-80.
As he looked at the magazine on his office desk, Carlson was surprised by the poll results -- until he realized it was a players' poll.
He then shared a story that shed some light on Collinsworth's career path after football.
As a junior in 1979, Collinsworth was one of the Gators' best players. By the end of the season, he was the only player who would talk to the media.
“Nobody else would come out and talk. He was the only one who I could get to do it,'' Carlson said. “He was a special guy.''
The reason the players were media shy was because the Gators limped to a 0-10-1 record in Charley Pell's first season in Gainesville. Collinsworth, who started his career as a quarterback under Doug Dickey, was moved to receiver once Pell took over.
Despite the frustration of a winless season – the 1979 Gators remain the last Florida team to finish with a losing record – Collinsworth continued to answer questions and perform at a high level.
After his career at UF finished, Collinsworth spent eight seasons in the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals before starting a career in sports broadcasting.
