Nantz’s CBS life becomes a series of major events

In the mid-1970s, it seemed as if NBC’s Curt Gowdy was everywhere, doing the play-by-play for, among other things, the Rose Bowl game, the Super Bowl, the NCAA Final Four and the World Series.

No one at the time could imagine any other announcer coming close to that kind of run.

But CBS’ Jim Nantz will this year.

It starts Sunday, when he and commentator Phil Simms will be in San Diego to handle the Chargers’ playoff game against New England.

It is one of four conference semifinal games this weekend. CBS has two of them and Fox has the other two.

The following Sunday, Nantz and Simms will work the AFC championship game, and if the Chargers win this weekend, that means back in San Diego.

And if that happens, Nantz may take up temporary residence in the city because the week after the AFC title game he has the Buick Invitational golf tournament at Torrey Pines.

The following Sunday, Feb. 4, he and Simms will announce the Super Bowl in Miami.

Nantz has served as the pregame host for two Super Bowls, but this will be his first as the play-by-play announcer.

And it marks the start of an amazing 63-day run that includes the NCAA men’s Final Four and the Masters. He could write a book, which he actually might do. When he called Wednesday in response to an interview request, he had just come from a meeting at IMG, the agency that represents him, where a book possibility was discussed.

“Nothing may come of it,” Nantz said, “but a book would be a great vehicle to take readers behind the scenes and see the personalties involved in three of this country’s biggest sports events -- the Super Bowl, the Final Four and the Masters.

“It would give me a chance to reminisce and reflect on my experiences at these events.”

Only Gowdy and Dick Enberg have called a Super Bowl and a Final Four in the same year. And only Brent Musburger has done what Nantz has already done -- serve as the host of the Super Bowl coverage, then announce the Final Four and the Masters.

During his 63-day run, Nantz will also be in Pebble Beach for the AT&T; Pro-Am the week after the Super Bowl and then at Riviera for the Nissan Open the week after that.

The Final Four takes place March 31 and April 2 in Atlanta. From there, he’ll take a leisurely two-hour drive across Georgia to Augusta to complete the run.

Nantz, switching roles with Greg Gumbel in 2004, went from the host of “The NFL Today” to CBS’ lead NFL play-by-play announcer. Gumbel has since gone back to play-by-play to make room for James Brown on “The NFL Today” set.

Nantz said it didn’t take him long after getting his new assignment in 2004 to figure out this run was coming.

“I’m pretty good at cataloging data in my head,” he said. “It was pretty instantaneous.”

And what does Nantz, who is only 47, think about all this?

“I’m not one to hide my appreciation,” he said. “I realize I have been given a special gift, and I am just so grateful for it.”

Enberg also will be at San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium on Sunday, making the short trip there from his home in La Jolla. Enberg, along with commentator Bob Trumpy, will be announcing the Chargers-Patriots game for the Westwood One radio network, carried by KFWB 980 here.

Enberg will be completing his first year of announcing NFL games for Westwood One. The job marked a return to radio football play-by-play after 30 years. In the mid-1970s, Enberg and Don Drysdale, in addition to the Angels, also announced Rams games for KMPC 710.

“Calling games on radio is the ultimate challenge,” Enberg said. “You have to paint the entire canvas.”

You can also have some fun along the way. Enberg got off a corny but clever line last Sunday. After reading a promotional ad for NBC’s NHL coverage, which begins Saturday, Enberg asked Trumpy a question about the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sidney Crosby: “If he hits one off the post, is that a Bing Crosby?”

Enberg said he enjoyed everything about the job except the travel, particularly toward the end of the season when he was working two games a week.

As if he isn’t already tired of flying, Enberg on Monday will make a 19-hour trip to Melbourne, where he will work the Australian Open for ESPN.

Enberg, Cliff Drysdale and on-site host Chris Fowler will call the tennis matches on ESPN and ESPN2, with Mary Carillo, Mary Joe Fernandez, Patrick McEnroe and Pam Shriver handling the commentary.

The two networks will provide at least 120 hours of coverage through Jan. 28, with 79 hours being live. That means a lot of weird start times, because 7:30 p.m. in Melbourne is 12:30 a.m. in Los Angeles.

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larry.stewart@latimes.com