Jess Settles...

[67CY]

I would like to know how he knows what play TJ has called

 

[isucy86]

Give me him over most others I've heard on the plus (especially McClure).

I like Settles more than King McClure. McClure really struggled early in his career (3-4 years ago), but he's progressed pretty well the last couple years. He's gone from cringeworthy to serviceable.

 

[4cy16]

He does a nice job. He gives Cyclone fans a bit of a homer attitude, but stays pretty neutral overall.

My guess is Jess is the designated home Cyclone announcer for ESPN games that Fran doesn't announce. It doesn't surprise me in the modern TV era. ESPN is very cost focused so having Jess drive up from from SE Iowa is a lot cheaper than putting King McClure on a plane.

Jess actually lives in Pella but helps out on the family farm in SE Iowa.

 

[dafarmer]

I would like to know how he knows what play TJ has called

Those #### ball boys and their listening devices, they sold us out !

 

[JohnnyFive]

Got to be honest here fellow Cyclone fans.

I really, really like Jess Settles; not quite as much as Fran, but he's now a close second for me. He clearly knows the game well and knows what to look for that non-experts like me miss. He's not afraid to be critical of players without being a complete d!ck about it. And perhaps most importantly he's not afraid to call out p!ss-poor officiating, like he did at least a couple of times tonight.

Plus (and I know he was a Hawkeye for 9 years or so) he just seems like a really solid dude; someone you could definitely have an adult beverage or two with on the front porch on a nice spring day. I hope he keeps on calling our games and I would be just fine with him replacing Larry Morgan during the ESPN+ games in the non-conference schedule.

**** Iowa.



But I agree he’s good

 

[Jer]

I typically watch both basketball and football games on mute with music/headphones on these days due to how bad the announcers are, but he's certainly tolerable. I hate to say it because he's such a perfect Hawk to hate, but he's in the right business.

 

[Pope]

Jess definitely has a future in being a color guy. I think it just depends on how badly he wants to pursue it.

 

[cyfanatic13]

I think he's been very solid. And funny/not afraid to poke fun at himself. A few games ago when they showed a list of all time ISU PG's spread out over a bunch of years. He made some comment about "I think I played against all those guys". Dude gets it and I enjoy when he's on the broadcast

 

[wgleason]

I would like to know how he knows what play TJ has called

Obviously Tang is texting him intel

 

[BCClone]

I actually like him better than Fran. He calls the games and doesn’t go over the top with gushing about any player or team. He calls it as he sees it with the missed fouls last night. He’s just a solid broadcaster and doesn’t resort to gimmicks or catchphrases. I hope he gets opportunities for bigger games in the future.

I think he’s fine but he is a little lacking on upfront homework. A example is When he called the first game of ours, his comments about Gilbert was that he didn’t force things. Hey, I like Gilbert, but he forces a lot of stuff.

 

[Helser 83]

He was always down to earth back in the day being from a neighboring town of about a thousand people. Was surprised to hear him doing an ISU game earlier this year as I had only heard him on the B1G network. I think he's doing great if he's trying to expand his career. Good people do good things.

 

[Cyinthenorth]

I like Settles more than King McClure. McClure really struggled early in his career (3-4 years ago), but he's progressed pretty well the last couple years. He's gone from cringeworthy to serviceable.

Speaking of McClure, I hardly remember him doing any of our games this season. Maybe one or two in the first half of Big 12 play, but doesn't seem like I've heard him much since January

 

[putsky]

I had to laugh during the BYU game. He was explaining how Gilbert draws so many fouls and how the pump fake is crucial to drawing contact. Before I left the dark side when I was young and dumb, I remember trying to play like Settles - standing on the block and repeatedly using a head fake a ridiculous amount of times.

 

[FerShizzle]

I would like to know how he knows what play TJ has called

I assume you are talking about when ISU went 4 low late in the game, with Curtis replacing Tamin up top when Lipsey drove? He called that play exactly and well in advance.

I would bet he has sat in on a couple practices and seen them go over that. The announcers also sit right across from the coaches. He may have seen TJ or an assistant holler at Curtis that he was replacing.

 

[FerShizzle]

I typically watch both basketball and football games on mute with music/headphones on these days due to how bad the announcers are, but he's certainly tolerable. I hate to say it because he's such a perfect Hawk to hate, but he's in the right business.

Ya. He’s good. He explains things in a way that both trained and untrained eyes can listen to and appreciate, which is really hard to do.

 

[Freebird]

Jess has pump faked his way into another year of eligibility to my heart. Glad he’s doing our games.

 

[Jaws73]

I like it when they are silent after a big play. Just hear the crowd for few seconds. Then they chime in. Something that Tony Romo needs to learn.

 

[blutarsky]

Give me him over most others I've heard on the plus (especially McClure).

No kidding! I haven't heard much from King this season. We've lucked out and missed his in depth PxP.

 

[Die4Cy]

The main characteristic you want from a color guy is enthusiasm for what's happening on the court and some insights that go beyond the obvious. For some reason it's harder than you'd think it would be.

 

[RoseClone]

I think he goes a great job. Also, there are times I think Troy Aikman is doing basketball games because he sounds just like him.