crossing paths

with the nfl draft kicking off tomorrow, i figured it was a good time to share another card that i keep in my "meaningful and just because" collection.

that's a 1989 pro set irv cross announcers card. here's the back

which is a better representation of how i knew cross. his playing days, even though they included time with the rams, were over before my fandom began.

to me, cross was one of the people on tv before, during, and after nfl games providing insight and analysis. this was back when cbs had the nfc and nbc had the afc, so i paid close attention to cross and his cbs cohorts, including jimmy the greek, phylis george, jayne kennedy, and, of course, brent musberger, as they discussed the rams but more often they talked about the cowboys.

i believe it was april of 2004 - maybe 2005 - but definitely april as the nfl draft was happening the following week. i was in washington dc for work and was at reagan national waiting to return to the twin cities. as i was standing near the gate, i noticed a man who looked familiar walk up and stand next to me. it was irv cross. 

at this time, cross was the athletic director at macalester college in saint paul, so i wasn't wondering why he was heading to msp. before boarding began, there was an announcement of some short delay, and so i took the opportunity to turn to cross and ask "so, what are the vikings going to do in the draft?" he lit up and we had a short chat about defense and the overall outlook for the vikings. it was surreal to have this man who talked to me through the television screen for so many years be talking to me in person.

after cross passed away last year, i made it a point to add one of his cards to my collection to remember my encounter by. he was very friendly - i later saw him on the plane chatting with other passengers - and it really felt like i was catching up with an old acquaintance.