ESPN’s Everett comes
full circle, returns
to ‘big stage’

The former KGMB sports director
views Hawaii as well above "Triple-A"
in the broadcast world

LAHAINA, Maui » For reasons no one has been quite able to explain, Hawaii has served as a springboard for a number of nationally noted sports announcers over the years. Harry Kallas worked here. So did Al Michaels. The General, Les Keiter, was based out of Hawaii. Larry Beil got his start here, as well.

By his own admission, the most unlikely of the lot is Neil Everett, who not too long ago was toiling in relative obscurity as the sports information director at Hawaii Pacific University. Since then, he's gone from weekend work on several Honolulu television stations, to sports director at KGMB-9, to an anchor job on ESPN's SportsCenter.

It's in that capacity that Everett will be working from Lahaina today for the state paddling regatta at Hanaka'o'o Beach, serving as the on-site anchor for the latest installment of the network's "50 States in 50 Days Tour." A fitting assignment for a guy who opens his SportsCenter appearances with a local-style "Howzit!"

"Let's draw a line here," Everett said this week from Bristol, Conn. "Those guys are in a whole other league. I can only hope to someday carry their duffle bags.

"I don't know why so many have gotten their start in Hawaii," Everett added. "It might be that life is so good there that you don't feel any pressure. Once you've made it in Hawaii, you feel as if you've arrived. So, I went to ESPN. It was something I couldn't pass up. But don't tell me Hawaii is Triple-A. Hawaii was a big stage for me."

Everett describes his return to Maui as coming full circle. Shortly after graduating from the University of Oregon, he accepted a radio job at KMVI, where he worked for several months before accepting the sports information position at HPU.

His big break -- the one that landed him a job on ESPN -- came out of the blue, according to Everett.

"One day, (an agent) called me from New York and said, 'I want to represent you,' and I said, 'Hey, brah, I live in Hawaii. You can't do anything for me unless you can get me an interview with ESPN. That's the only thing that would pull me out of the state,"' Everett recounted. "And he did."

Everett recalls his initial audition as being an unmitigated disaster.

"I was awful, absolutely horrible," Everett said. "So I went back to Hawaii pretty much with my tail between my legs. I had disappointed myself and I was embarrassed because I really hadn't done well. If I'd been on a basketball court I would have shot an airball."

But the story wasn't over. In fact, it was only beginning. A year later, a representative from ESPN called Everett back and asked him to return for another audition.

"This time, I nailed it," Everett said. "I was patting myself on the back, wondering, 'When do I start?' Well, it was another whole year until they called from ESPN and told me I had a job. This is a very subjective business. Why they chose me over somebody else is not really definable."

That was five years ago. Everett broke in as an anchor on ESPN News and eventually moved up to ESPN.

"I got the call-up, so to speak," Everett said.

Now, he shares the ESPN set with some of the top sports broadcasting personalities in the country. And, in typical SportsCenter fashion, he's created a niche with a couple of patented catch phrases.

"When I left Hawaii, one of my goals was to introduce 'Howzit' to the masses," Everett said. "It took a while, but I had Tony Kornheiser call me about it. And a young man from a school in Buffalo e-mailed me and said that's the way all his frat brothers greet each other. When I'm walking around ESPN, people are always greeting me with a 'Howzit," so I feel pretty proud that it's caught on.

"As far as catch phrases go, my favorite -- the one people attach to me most -- is when there's a home run and I say, 'Bartender, Jack!' It's a throwback to my college days when I used to drink a lot of Jack Daniels, which I don't do now, but. ...

"I think catch phrases can be overused," Everett added, "but -- at the same time -- they are kind of fun. And if you're not having fun at your job, you better to go on to something else."

This much is obvious: Neil Everett is having fun. And he's not planning to go anywhere anytime soon.