Pat Tillman died on April 22, 2004…
Later this month, the 20th anniversary of his death will be a talking point, but I’m more of the belief the subject should be his life. April 22, 2004, I received a 4:30 am phone call from the assignment desk at Channel 3. “There’s a report that Pat Tillman has been killed in Afghanistan.” A short time later, I was at the Arizona Cardinals facility in Tempe, on the air, as a memorial started 
to grow from fans stopping by to pay their respects. What happened in the weeks and months after was gut-wrenching. This Saturday, the annual Pat’s Run will take place in Tempe. I’ve covered and participated in it. Running over the Mill Avenue bridge for the first time brought back good memories and moments of covering him. If you haven’t done the Tillman run, you should try it. I’ll be there Saturday morning. Tillman and current Casteel head football coach Bobby Newcombe were teammates with the Arizona Cardinals in 2001. It was Newcombe’s rookie season, and after practice, he worked on his punt return skills with his wife Rachel’s assistance. Tillman offered to run the juggs machine and help Bobby. “He didn’t have to do that. I was a rookie, Pat was a veteran, but he was so down to earth, Newcombe recalled. “Pat loved to run on the treadmill, and I could talk to him there. He was always available to me for advice; he was great.”…
There is not much buzz about the Suns having a long playoff run(why should there be?). What a difference a year makes. You can fire the coach or the GM, but you can’t fire the players. If the Suns flame out, who goes? Does Mat Ishbia handle losing in a fashion that creates massive change? Be really interesting to see how he handles adversity with the basketball team. Never say never when making changes to a roster or finding draft capital. Deals can happen…
The renowned Bob Bowman leaves Arizona State Swim as head coach and bolts for Texas. This huge story barely caused a ripple in our sports media market. SMH…
I love the Steve Martin documentary on Apple TV+. My better half and I watched part one earlier this week.
Hometown Nine is 6-7 without one of its starting outfielders, starting shortstop, closer, and two starting pitchers. It’s a long season. Please walk away from the panic button and enjoy the process…
Bob Brenly sounds better than ever…
The pitch clock chopped to eighteen seconds with no runners on base feels too rushed. Twenty seconds felt right…
Non-breaking news. The Coyotes may leave the Valley. I love having the four major sports here, but once again, the hockey team is asking for a new facility and not getting one. The names and faces of owners, presidents, etc. change out on the turnstile, but the FACT is that the franchise has been here since 1996, and except for a few seasons of stability on the building and business side, the Coyotes are never on solid ground. My circles are beyond fatigued…
Only two more weeks of “Will the Cardinals sit at four and take Marvin Harrison Jr., or will they trade down?” What will talking heads have to fill segments just to get to their next endorsement reads?…
I played Starr Pass in Tucson this week with my better half. It’s $69 bucks for one of the most beautiful golf courses in the state. The Palmer nine-hole course is so tranquil.
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Brad Cesmat
Media personality Brad Cesmat first rose to fame in Southern California with the launching of "The Mighty 690" all-sports radio station in the late 1980's and early 90's. Brad came to Arizona in 1993 to begin a 10-year run at KTAR Radio followed by nine years at KTVK-TV in Phoenix. Brad is the Founder/ CEO of Sports360AZ.com. His vision of multi platform content marketing through sports began in September of 2011. Cesmat has served on the Advisory Board for the Salvation Army for the last 18 years. He and his wife Chris have four children.