Father’s Day doesn’t get the same marketing push as Mother’s Day, but let’s be honest, Dads are just as important. Without dads, we wouldn’t have moms and without both, there wouldn’t be us.
Perhaps more than anyone else, the influence of a father shapes the music we listen to, the cars we drive, the food we eat and the teams we cheer for. The McCanns’ lifelong BYU loyalties were shaped by our dad — and so were our feelings about the team up north.
As a result, I have compassion for Utah fans, including those who live in the comments below, because a lot of the inner fervor they radiate just isn’t their fault. I blame their father — and I hope he also passed down his sense of humor!
Special Collector’s Issue: “1984: The Year BYU was Second to None”
Get an inclusive look inside BYU Football’s 1984 National Championship season.
There are always exceptions. In the case of my kids, despite their blue and white upbringing, Courtney, Paige, Madison, Andrew and Lauren all chose to attend and cheer for Utah State. The family joke is that “BYU money” paid for their Aggie educations (mostly true). In the spirit of my dad’s sense of humor — at least they kept the color.
Everything starts somewhere, and when it comes to sports, so much of who we are goes right back to dad. While our mom’s side of the family (from Indiana) introduced us to the Cubs, everything else is linked to dad, mostly because of the people he became attached to at BYU through his job as executive director of the Cougar Club.
Dad knew LaVell Edwards, so we were linked to LaVell. Dad knew Danny Ainge, so we cheered for the Celtics. Dad knew Steve Young, so we pulled for the Buccaneers (even in their creamsicle uniforms) and then the 49ers.
Dad didn’t yell for the Utes, so neither did we.
Working a career in sports, with much of it covering the Cougars for the Deseret News, BYUtv and Y’s Guys, I have been surrounded by hard-working dads who deserve a Father’s Day shoutout. Here are a few of the many that I am grateful for.
On-air Dads: Blaine Fowler, David Nixon, Austin Collie, Harvey Langi, Brian Logan, Spencer Linton, Jarom Jordan, Jason Shepard, Greg Wrubell, Hans Olsen, Mark Durrant, Gary Sheide, Michael Smith, Scott Higgins, Chris Maathuis, Mike Headrick, Kevin Eubank and Charles Gibson (“Good Morning America”).
Behind-the-scenes Dads: Jeff Simpson, Elder Clark G. Gilbert, Elder Michael A. Dunn, Derek Marquis, Mikel Minor, Russ Merrill, David Phillips, Ben Bagley, Hema Heimuli, Harrisson Collier, Colton Potter (brand new dad), Tom Holmoe, Brian Santiago, David Almodova, Mark Wallington, Duff Tittle, Brett Pyne, Kenny Cox and Tyson Jex.
Deseret News Dads: Doug Wilks, Burke Olsen, Kent Condon, Dick Harmon and Jay Drew.
Y’s Guy’s Dads: Blaine, Jack Hadley, Steve Myers (Cougarboard), Travis Brady (BradyPlus), Travis Hansen (Eddy), Jared Price (Eddy), and Nathan Anderson (Mountain American Credit Union).
Coaching Dads: Kalani Sitake, Jay Hill, Fesi Sitake, Harvey Unga, Genaro Gilford, Aaron Roderick, Kelly Poppinga, Kevin Young, Chris Burgess, Gordon Eakin, Trent Pratt, Ed Eyestone, Shawn Olmstead, Bruce Brockbank, Lee Cummard, John Wardenburg, LaVell Edwards, Bronco Mendenhall, Gary Crowton, Dave Rose, Steve Cleveland, Quincy Lewis, Tim Lacomb, Dave Rice, Roger Reid, Frank Arnold, John Robinson, Jeff Horton, Lon Kruger, Jeff Judkins, and Brad Pearce.
Star-story Dads: Danny Ainge, Ty Detmer, Travis Hansen, Taysom Hill, Steve Young, Jimmer Fredette, Devin Durrant, Andy Reid, Kyle Van Noy, Dan Forsman, Jim McMahon, Brandon Doman, John Beck, Max Hall, Dennis Pitta, Riley Nelson, Dane Iorg, Jonny Harline, Marc Wilson, Wally Joyner, Robbie Bosco, Elder S. Gifford Nielsen and Elder Vai Sikahema.
Personal Dads: Brothers and brother-in-law Dads: Dale, Darin, Deven, Marc, Greg, Todd, Scott, Shay, Kenny, Josh, Mark and Aaron. Nephew Dads: Jantzen, Tanner, Jaxon, Austin, Jacen, Justin, Braden, and Dallin — each was raised playing Wiffle Ball in the back yard. Father-in-law Dad: Clyne Long.
Dad of Dads: Dale McCann. For me, it literally starts with him. He has been gone for 28 years, but he remains alive in our memories and in our plans for the future. Rarely does much time pass without someone telling me, “I loved your dad.”
If there is truth to the saying, “An apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” then the McCanns are a fortunate, but far-from-perfect group of hopefuls. It is on us to maximize such a gift. No one likes to find spoiled fruit underneath a plentiful tree.
It’s also never too late for a dad to become better, and for those who long to have had a better one to begin with, the perfect season to kick off a new trend is now. Father’s Day is a tribute to those who came before us, it’s a pep rally for those currently in the game, and it can also be a day of preparation for the dads of the future.
In some ways, every day is Father’s Day for the McCann family and that includes Oct. 18 when BYU and Utah reunite at LaVell Edwards Stadium. The offspring of our parents has grown to over 100 strong and everybody will be locked in, wearing blue and cheering for the Cougars because we had a dad who showed us the way.
Happy Father’s Day!
Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com
