I was the statistician for Thursday Night Lights from 2009 to 2016, and in the 5th year, Chuck was the color commentator. I also remember watching him on Fox 29 San Antonio as one of the sports anchors (Ernie Zuniga and Ed Suarez were the others, and I worked with Ernie for the first four…
Author: Mark Lieberman
First Sick Day
Well, we are 10 days into school, and Niko finally had his first sick day on Friday! I partially blame one of his classmates who sits across from him as a few days prior to Friday, he vomited near Niko and some of it got on another classmates Chromebook. Yeah, I know great and thanks…
GameCrafters – Jorge Rodriguez
I was the statistician for the Spanish radio broadcasts for UTSA football, and Jorge Rodriguez was doing the play-by-play. That was the first time I met him. We worked all the home games together in 2012, and connected through social media shortly after. I was so nervous that first game, but he and the rest…
Week 1
Niko survived the first week of school, and he is really enjoying it. His favorite subject is Math and for rotation (art, gym, and music), it’s gym. And, he likes his teacher, which is awesome! Our morning, afternoon, and evening routines are going well. Mornings, he eats, he uses the bathroom, and he gets dressed…
GameCrafters – Carlos Enrico
I met Coach Enrico in 2014 at a high school basketball game between the St. Anthony Yellow Jackets and the Central Catholic Buttons. I was covering the game from the Yellow Jackets perspective and their Head Coach, Kevin Smisek, introduced us. I knew of Carlos, and it wasn’t until a few years prior to our…
School Days
Tomorrow, Niko starts 3rd grade. Last week, we met his teacher, and he was organizing his school supplies at his desk. He is excited to resume his schooling! He’s got lots of new clothing from Lands End, Old Navy, and Primary. He has a new lunch bag and water bottle, and his backpack from last…
GameCrafters – Michael Considine
I first Mike at a St. Anthony football game I was covering as a freelance writer and photographer in 2013. He was in the visiting side press-box covering the game for the San Antonio Express News. We had connected prior to that on Social Media, so I knew what he looked like. It was nice…
Goodbye Summer and Hello Back To School
Next Monday, Niko goes back to school, and this year, his class will be on the 2nd floor! Some schools in the area start tomorrow. He has his school supplies, and a few days ago, we ordered new clothes for him. He still won’t wear shorts and a t-shirt! He wears a t-shirt and a…
GameCrafters – Jay Howard
In 2001, I was an unpaid Intern at The Ticket 760 in San Antonio. I worked with Jay Howard for his afternoon sports talk show. I am not even sure how I landed that job. It’s very possible that I was referred to him by parents who knew him. At that point in my life,…
The Tired Dad
Yesterday and today, Niko has woken up at 4:30 am. And, when that happens, I am awake with him. I have always allowed Nina a few extra bits of sleep as she isn’t the best sleeper. I don’t like the super early wake ups, but I am really hoping it’s a growth spurt or something…
GameCrafters – Rodney Wilson
Coach Wilson was my history teacher at Clark High School, and the freshman basketball coach. When I was a high school football statistician for the Texas Sports Radio Network and Thursday Night Lights, I would often see him on the Clark and Churchill sidelines as a coach. Later on, he moved up as an Assistant Athletic…
The Dad’s Business Trip
When I started at Health Equity on October 9, 2023, I had meeting invite emails for a Finance Conference for the following July. I accepted it and it blocked out those days for me on my outlook calendar. I didn’t think anything of it and didn’t even know if it was for me. In May,…
GameCrafters – Ed Suarez
I first saw Ed on TV doing sports for KABB Fox 29 San Antonio, alongside Ernie Zuniga and Chuck Miketinac. I never even thought that I would end up working with all three of them as a high school football statistician. Ed was with the Texas Sports Radio Network, and Ernie and Chuck were with…
GameCrafters – Jason Minnix
I have met Jason Minnix several times as a high school football statistician, as he was broadcasting those particular games for another company. Where are you from? Army brat. I was born in Frankfurt, Germany but basically grew up in Copperas Cove TX. What brought you to San Antonio? I moved here in 1993 after I…
IKEA
Yesterday, we ventured to IKEA mainly to get Niko a new art desk. His current one was found abandoned near my parent’s house about a year ago, and they rescued it and made it nice for him. When we got that old one, there was a date written and even though I don’t remember it,…
GameCrafters – Rick Hill
I have yet to meet Rick Hill, but his name is very familiar to me as he has had jobs with the San Antonio Riders, the San Antonio Missions, the San Antonio Spurs, and is currently the Vice President of Marketing and Communications for the Valero Alamo Bowl. We connected through LinkedIn. Where are you…
Seven Stops Saturday
Yesterday, and not planned, Niko and I went to 7 places. We had a wonderful time, and he is always great company. That morning, I had offered to take him to him to Rivercenter Mall or North Star Mall or to the movie theater for Inside Out 2 or the new Minions movie, but, he…
GameCrafters – Tod Caflisch
I worked for the San Antonio Spurs from October of 1999 through May of 2002, and one of my tasks was updating an email database. The only person who had access was Tod, so I would have to kick him out of his office for a few minutes while I replied to emails, updated email…
Urban Air (again)
Niko has been asking for the past several weeks to visit Urban Air, and finally, yesterday, we were able to go. It’s not my favorite place in the world, but for Niko, seeing his happy smile and seeing jumping around makes it much better for me. This time, I brought a ticket for me and…
Painting and Babysitting
On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we had our bathrooms and kitchen painted. The person we hired had already done some other work for us in the past, and I trusted him and knew he could paint as he is “a jack of all trades.” I was not expecting him to bring his 10-year-old daughter with…