Meeting Joe Buck

Tonight I was fortunate enough to attend a private dinner at Nick's with Joe Buck. Now, just in case you are scratching your head saying, "Ummm....that's great, but who is Joe Buck?" let me refresh your memory. (This post will be sprinkled with pictures from tonight's event. Click on them for a larger version).

Have you ever watched an MLB World Series game in the last 12 years? Do you ever watch the NFL games on Fox? If so, chances are you've heard Joe Buck. He is a six-time Emmy winning sports broadcaster who is just 40 years old. The coolest thing about him? He went to IU back in the late 80s/early 90s. He didn't graduate from IU because he was presented with the opportunity to call games for the St. Louis Cardinals and jumped on it. He said he's about 30 credits shy of graduating. In most cases I would say, "Never drop out of school!" but in his case it turned out pretty well.

Anyway, I went to Nick's with two of my colleagues, Dae Hee and Galen, and we were able to talk to him for a little bit. I have met a decent number of celebrities in my day (probably more than the average person), and I must say that I think Joe Buck is just about as down-to-earth as they come. He cracked jokes about himself and made sure to let everyone know he didn't graduate college when the person who introduced him failed to mention that. His self-deprecating humor was refreshing in an age when so many celebrities are all "high and mighty" on themselves. Additionally, he was willing to get to know Galen, Dae Hee, and myself as well as he possibly could during our brief interaction.

Dae Hee, Joe Buck, me, and Galen.

After the event at Nick's we all walked down the street to the Buskirk-Chumley Theater, where he spoke to a packed crowd for an hour and a half, answering audience questions during much of the time. I was very impressed with Mr. Buck - he wasn't pushing any agendas or trying to be politically correct in everything he said. Instead, he was brutally honest. To give an example, when one student asked for advice on getting into the sports broadcasting field, Buck's reply was, "Have a famous dad." In case you didn't know, his dad was the late Jack Buck, another sports broadcasting legend. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he got where he is today in large part because of his father and connections.

Finally, there were about four students left in line who wanted to ask questions. The host of the event clearly wanted to wrap things up and tried to say they would only take one more question. Joe Buck stepped up and said, "No, no, no, stay in line. I'll answer your questions, let's just make them brief." That was a class act move in my book. There was no need to cut those last three students off, and he recognized that and acted on it.

Thanks, Joe Buck, for coming back to IU to speak, and thanks for being a shining example of the type of person we want our students to become.