⚾ 🥎 SEC Storied: “Summer of ’83: Texas vs. Tide” sets SEC Network premiere date, April 15 - Southeastern Conference

[SEC Sports]

SEC Storied: “Summer of ’83: Texas vs. Tide” sets SEC Network premiere date, April 15 - Southeastern Conference

SEC fans can delve into the remarkable story of the 1983 College World Series in the latest SEC Storied, “Summer of ’83: Texas vs. Tide,” debuting Wednesday, April 15 at 8 p.m. ET on SEC Network.

www.secsports.com

SEC fans can delve into the remarkable story of the 1983 College World Series in the latest SEC Storied, “Summer of ’83: Texas vs. Tide,” debuting Wednesday, April 15 at 8 p.m. ET on SEC Network.

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For many, the names Clemens, Larkin, Bonds, Magadan and more are synonymous with Major League Baseball. But in 1983, they were college players with a dream. SEC fans can delve into the remarkable story of the 1983 College World Series in the latest SEC Storied. The film – “Summer of ’83: Texas vs. Tide” – is directed by Gaspar González and Castor Fernandez and debuts Wednesday, April 15 at 8 p.m. ET on SEC Network.

“Baseball might be America’s most romanticized sport, and everyone who’s ever played has talked about the game of their life,” said Fernandez. “Summer of ’83 is a version of that conversation — told by some of the greatest college players ever assembled, in some cases just months away from Major League superstardom.”

With a field that included future major leaguers Roger Clemens, Calvin Schiraldi, Barry Larkin, Barry Bonds and David Magadan, the 1983 College World Series was one for the ages. The Texas Longhorns, favored to win it all, were powered by the pitching of Clemens and Schiraldi. Standing in their way was the Alabama Crimson Tide, a freewheeling, free-swinging band of overachievers led by Magadan, college baseball’s best hitter. Could the Tide take Texas? For some of baseball’s biggest names, this was the time of their lives.

“The inspiration for telling the story of the 1983 College World Series (Summer of ’83) dates back to the summer of the title, when I was a baseball-obsessed 14-year-old growing up in Miami,” said González. “I was no stranger to college baseball — the University of Miami had won the national championship the year before — but there was something about the ’83 series that stood out. The players were not just good, but historically good.”

In the fall, the documentary was showcased in the Rockport Film Festival and the Key West Film Festival, taking home the Audience Award for Best Documentary (Short) at Rockport.

“Summer of ’83 captures that rare moment when these young athletes didn’t yet know who they would become, were unaware that the games they played in that College World Series would become the ones they — and we — would talk about forever,” said Fernandez.

As part of the film, González and Fernandez interviewed former Texas Longhorn, MLB player and coach Mike Brumley. He was later tragically killed in an automobile accident. Summer of ‘83 is a way to experience his voice and energy again following his shocking and untimely loss.

Director Bio – Gaspar González
Gaspar González has produced and directed documentary programming for PBS, the BBC, and ESPN, among others. His credits include the national PBS release Muhammad Ali: Made in Miami, the Grantland short doc Gay Talese’s Address Book, and the award-winning A Long Way from Home: The Untold Story of Baseball’s Desegregation.

Director Bio – Castor Fernandez
Castor Fernandez is an Emmy-winning filmmaker and the producer of ESPN’s Brothers in Exile and director of the Apple TV+ documentary series Cowboy Cartel. In 2014, he received the Emmy Award for Outstanding Sports Documentary Series for his work on ESPN’s 30 for 30.

About SEC Network
The Southeastern Conference and ESPN launched SEC Network on August 14, 2014. The network televises hundreds of games across the SEC’s 22 sports annually. Programming includes in-depth analysis and storytelling in studio shows such as SEC Nation, Marty & McGee, Read & React and Rally Cap, daily news and information with The Paul Finebaum Show and SEC Now, original content such as the Emmy Award-winning TrueSouth, SEC Storied and SEC Inside, and more. Hundreds of additional live events are available for streaming exclusively on SEC Network’s digital companion, SEC Network+, via the ESPN App and SECNetwork.com. Follow SEC Network on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and Twitter/X.

 

[TerryP]

Over the years here, every once in awhile someone will mention watching TV as a kid and how few options they had growing up. My contribution has been what Huntsville had in the '70's through mid-80's.

Something dawned on me when I read this release. I can tell you what the channel numbers were for TV stations at the time; I can't remember any radio stations. I listened to Alabama baseball on the radio.

When this series was played it was broadcast on ESPN. Think about ESPN in 1983. They were still known as the cable station that broadcasted events that were, uh, unique? We saw softball (fast and slow pitch) for the first time. CFL football. PBA events. Ping-pong. And...the CWS games: often tape delayed.

I didn't see any of this series. Hell, we didn't have cable, satellite, or anything of the sort. I had antennas made from wire from Radio Shack kits.

I'm looking forward to watching this. Setting aside a guy like Magaden, Clemons was on that Texas squad. A LOT of big baseball names.

 

[Rolltide24]

Don’t forget, Chris Sabo was with Larkin at Michigan. The Rec Spec wonder! Clemons mowed down 12 Bama hitters in the final. He must have come out of the womb throwing K’s.

 

[UAgrad93]

My cousin and former HS baseball coach was the bullpen catcher for Bama on that ‘83 team.