SEASON 3 EPISODE 14 | Chris Myers from Fox Sports

In this episode of Vetted Conversations, legendary Fox Sports broadcaster Chris Myers joins us from Radio Row to reflect on his decades-long career covering historic moments in sports and beyond. He shares stories from his new book That Deserves a Wow, discusses his father’s heroic World War II service in the U.S. Navy, and highlights the deep ties between sports, service, and civic responsibility. From NASCAR broadcasts honoring troops to firsthand military base visits, Myers emphasizes the importance of remembering and honoring those who sacrifice for our freedom.

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Transcript

Welcome to Vetted Conversations, where we delve into the foundations, workings, and current challenges facing our American experiment. In today's confusing world, it's more important than ever to understand what keeps our nation strong and how we, as patriotic citizens, can actively participate. 

Our mission is to ensure that you, the listener, gain the knowledge and insights alongside us, your veteran and military family member hosts, to become more informed and engaged citizens. 

 In a world of partisan noise, we lead with a bias of patriotism, cutting through the static with clarity, insight, and action. Join us as we learn together and help equip you with the tools to protect and preserve what matters most our shared American ideals. 

Hey everybody, this is Anil Nathan with Military 250 here on Radio Row in New Orleans, and I have the pleasure of being joined by legendary sports broadcaster Chris Myers. Chris, thank you so much for making the time to chat with us. 

Thank you. Always have time for our servicemen and women and the military, having had a little bit of that in my family, of course, and always in and around sports. So when the national anthem plays, you can't help but think of beyond your job responsibility at the time of a sporting event, but what our servicemen and service women have done and are continuing to do for our country. Absolutely. 

Love that. And I want to dig into your very storied family military history. We were just talking about it briefly before this, but maybe to start, you know, what brings you to New Orleans this week, obviously the game, but any other causes or things that you're here? 

Yeah, as part of the preparation of the book I wrote, that deserves a wow, which we can talk about encompassing a lot of wow moments in sports and with some great athletes who've handled adversity and success, but also just a reminder for men, testosterone levels, and women too, but especially if you're having trouble with weight loss or your energy level, get your T levels checked and we're not all created the same. And lowT.com, that's the place to go or Cinergenics.com, they'll test it for you through your healthcare provider to make sure if you need to increase, decrease, or if you meet it personalized, that's what they do. They've been doing it a long time, they customize it, so you're getting the right amount and they make it easy for you. That's one of the things that I'm at least honoring people about. Fantastic note. 

Really, really important message to get out there for everybody to pay attention to. Maybe actually, I would love to hear about the book and what the book's all about and how that came about. 

Yeah, I was approached, I think just because, you know, I've been at this awhile, I started at 16 doing a sports radio show and then local TV and then a decade at ESPN and 20 plus years at Fox and doing a number of things from interviews to calling games and covering Super Bowls and World Series. So I was approached about, you know, hey, can you put it all together? You've interviewed everybody from Montana to Mahomes, from Bonds to Mike Trout, L.A., Mike Tyson, Muhammad Ali, etc., etc. So it was a lot to put in there, but they wanted a little bit of my view of why we cover things and how we do the way we do. And there's some personal involvement in there, but there were some moments that were beyond sports, being at the World Series with the A's and Giants when the earthquake happened and I had to report on that, the bombing at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta, reporting on that. So things shift a little bit and I hope people are just, if they read it, it's obviously good for people in sports or broadcasting. I think they'll enjoy it. I did the audiobook, but I think it's, you'll relate to it in a number of different ways. So I hope they're moved by it, but most of all inspired because I got to live the American Dream as a kid and wanted to do this from the beginning, sports broadcasting, and I've really enjoyed the ride with some really cool people along the way. 

That's fantastic. And I can imagine, I mean, in some ways, every, the period of time that you just talked about in your career is covered in terms of sports. I mean, in some ways, this is a piece of American history, right? I mean, all of all those moments, both from the sporting side of things, but as well as the moments that occur kind of adjacent to those big sporting events. 

Yeah. And it's almost, if you were using a movie reference for the book, it's almost like a little bit of forest gump meets, you know, almost famous. The one about the young rock and roll journals. You combine those with a sports mode because I, you know, I'm there to cover one thing and something. So sometimes in the right place, right time, right or wrong place, if you want to look at it that way at the right time to still report on it. And I dress in there too a little bit of my upbringing, which has to do with my dad and the military a little bit of how it influenced me to be able to, you know, to do a job or at least hang in there and work at a profession that I wanted. 

Well, I would love to talk about that upbringing and talk about your father's service because pretty incredible stories. 

Yeah. We'd love to hear a little bit about that. Yeah. He was in the U.S. Navy, you joined, you know, again, growing up during the Depression era, but joined after Pearl Harbor and wanted to make a difference. It kind of wasn't honest about his age to get in. 

And but in the Navy worked in the engine room as a teenager and on an LST, I think people in the military would have it, but those they hit the shore during the Normandy invasion, among other responsibilities. And he was, he lived through that and saw that. And at first would not talk about it a lot with the family in our later years. He's since passed on, but was really proud of that time and always thought of the guys who didn't make it back. And when I took him to see the movie, Saving Private, Ryan, the beginning, that was so realistic. 

It really, it really hit home with him. But he would go back for reunions every year. He went back for the 50th. 

Obviously, since passed on, we just had, I think, the 80th reunion and the importance of that. And especially at a young age. So it made me grateful. And he instilled a lot of discipline and toughness in me growing up to make sure what I'm preaching. 

Because here I am at 19 doing radio and talking about sports when he was out there, along with so many others in that age range, doing things, fighting for freedom and protecting our country. So always a great, and when I do NASCAR, the pre-race show, we have a lot of military that come by, even if they're from overseas and they're visiting, we have them as guests. And we're always so grateful and appreciative because they, they and their families really do make, make sacrifices. So I'm glad you're celebrating the anniversary of this. It's, it's important to not lose sight of that. And I think now we're at a point in our country where we're back to appreciating and taking care of those and we should. Yeah. 

Well, I mean, you kind of referenced this, but I feel like it is a, when you think about the sacrifice that your father made, so many made at such a young age, you know, for, for their country and for, you know, a very, very turbulent time in the world, you know, it does, it does put things in perspective a little bit. You know, you think about, what did I do 

when I was 18 years old or 19 years old, you know? And he, it's funny because he, I, I didn't, he wasn't necessarily a big sports fan because of the way he grew up and he would always tell me, Hey, you should, you know, Sports is a luxury you had to do your homework it could grades be aware of your civic responsibility be aware of what's going on in the rest of that I'm ten, you know, okay, but but Eventually when I got into sports he was like oh he drove me to the radio station when I got my first job as a teenager So he he saw that it was my passion and I still consider those other things I they had to be very important along the way But but this was an outlet and and later he became in his retirement years a big sports fan, too So it's funny how things work out, but it's the right kind of approach to things 

now That's fantastic and as you mentioned right so our campaign military 250 Which is you know, we're starting to spread the work is a lot of people don't know across this country Next year is obviously the 250th birthday the country But a year before that in 1775 was the the original kind of formation of the Army Navy and Marine Corps And so, you know, we're using that celebration The concept of honoring the service of your father My father so many others who have served their country before As a platform to inspire a next generation To to think about service both in the way of military right of joining the military and kind of continuing that that cycle But also in smaller ways just ways to engage in your community That helped bring us together more as a country and really honor their service through your service 

That's a good thing and we and we need a strong military and some you some want to be in and make it a career for their life Others my dad served four plus years and then but you know went on and lived his life But that that impression that it made for him he got something out of it, too Obviously right but it and I think our military helps so many people whether you want to go on to become a commercial pilot or you want to you know Work work and in the boating industry or fishing industry, but you serve in the Navy I think it's really but in the meantime do something that you know it was life-changing I mean that was my father as difficult as was used to he called those some of the most before he had a family The most important of molding years of his life and say when a college You know you've served and learned to deal with people and difficult situations and structure and and so this is good because our Military today and I realize there's different generations in the world changes, but it's even more important now It's probably a little more about you would know technology than the actual boots on the ground You know sure face-to-face hand hand to hand combat type of thing, but whatever you can do and whatever your desire It's a pathway and it's an important contribution to to all of us living the life we live now. 

 Yeah, very very true words Well as you were thinking about your career and all the moments you you know as you kind of captured in your book Are there any moments that you reflect on or that you kind of captured that had? Intersections with the military or veterans I know there's so much connection between what Fox sports does For veterans in the military on duty the NFL has been an incredible partner to us Obviously NASCAR as you mentioned so any of those moments? 

 Yeah? I mean there's a feeling Roger Stalback Excuse me before I got in his his time as a great athlete and serving in the military there are other Others who have made the sacrifice and put their sports career on hold to do Serve serve our country Yeah, I would say Nothing comes to mind necessarily other than just the structure and and I got a shout out to Fox our network because they go out of their way We've we've had tours of military, you know with the end pendulum where we're in California, Southern California So whenever any comes through any branch of our of the service or they want to come in and see our studios And I volunteered to do that a few times that they've come by and watched our live show and and they're it's funny how they're like wow That's really amazing what you do and how they're works and I'm like hey We're amazing what you do when things are on the line for our country. 

So yeah Yeah, I mean in the book. I just you know I talk a lot about you know athletes who've been influenced Yeah, if they haven't served themselves by family members and a purpose Why they do things and how they are shaped the way they are to be loyal to their country and loyal to their profession 

100% well I can speak for personal experience when I was deployed in 2010 to Iraq You know, I think when I we were transiting through all you need Air Force Base in in Qatar Fox sports had like a like a setup there essentially for 

 yes broadcasting We're you ever I went yeah, they had me We brought an ask our rep and we flew out there to celebrate Thanksgiving and do a broadcast from there my goodness I'm trying to think of the year might have been ten years ago or maybe more and and to see this setup and right and It was quite an experience but very rewarding for me It was the least I could do at any time I could do it But but they were so gracious and to see the operation work and the end the people actually got to stay I think of one of the you know the general quarters guy. 

It wasn't that fancy I gotta be honest. You guys really you guys really do sacrifice. Yeah, even in the office, but yeah, yes, that was a great I should have mentioned that was a great experience. 

I had Jeff Hammond with me former crew chief Okay on Fox broadcast and we also had talked about I think we we sent our NFL crew over there too as well at different times But it was worth the trip. It was not it was not an imposition to be at all I mean it was great to a great experience. 

Yeah, well that to us that is very much a form of service, right? Because It means a ton in many different ways to feel that connection to home and and just see that people are willing to make the effort to come and And I appreciate that. 

Thank you for your service And I always whether I'm sitting on a plane or you know walking through and I see somebody who's I It's just it's nice for them to hear that because in their day-to-day commitment, you know Yeah, they focus on there and then they're not looking for credit or pat on the back Yeah, but everybody deserves an appreciation, you know, especially when you're landed on the line like like you guys you have and other people do Perfect. 

Well, thank you so much for making the time to chat with us and maybe Just one more plug or information about your book when it's coming out 

Yeah, it's and I had the I've had the first interview with OJ Simpson the live interview after both of his trials I talk about that in the book Anybody from will Chamberlain to Kobe Bryant some of the athletes I've interviewed Mike Tyson almost beat me up when I asked him about I was doing an interview at his house for the van I mean, I better hold the 

year Oh, yeah, he kind of came at me and thankfully, you know, somebody slowed him down or he would have pummeled me So the book is that deserves a wow Chris Myers Amazon. 

You can order it online Chris Myers sports.com or Barnes and Noble would have it and I did the audiobook as well in my own voice I tried to give McConaughey Matthew to do it, but he he was busy So they said they had to settle for me 

doing well I feel like your voice is a good voice for for recording audio. 

 I appreciate that. Thanks for mentioning that. Yeah