FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots announced their preseason broadcast team for 2003 along with their final preseason schedule today. This year, CBS analyst Randy Cross will join CBS play-by-play announcer Don Criqui to broadcast each of the locally-produced preseason games. They will be joined by WCVB principal sports anchor Mike Lynch, who will continue to provide sideline reports throughout each telecast. For the seventh consecutive year, Boston Bureau Productions will produce the games, which airs locally on WCVB TV-5 (ABC). After opening the 2003 preseason hosting the New York Giants in a nationally televised game on ESPN, Criqui and Cross will then call the action of the remaining three preseason games; at Washington (8/16), at Philadelphia (8/22) and home against the Chicago Bears on Aug. 27.
Cross, a 13-year NFL veteran (1976-88), was a three-time All-Pro (1981, 1983 and 1984) and Pro Bowler (1981, 1982 and 1984) as a center and guard for the San Francisco 49ers. He celebrated three Super Bowl championships with the 49ers (Super Bowls XVI, XIX and XXIII) and earned team honors as the Offensive Lineman of the Year for three consecutive seasons beginning in 1986.
Cross retired from the 49ers after helping San Francisco claim a 20-16 victory over Cincinnati in Super Bowl XXIII in 1989 and joined the CBS Sports broadcast team that fall. In 14 seasons as a football analyst, Cross has covered three Super Bowls and the 1995 Fiesta Bowl. He spent his first five seasons with CBS (1989-93) before joining NBC Sports in 1994. He returned to CBS as a game analyst in 1998 and spent three seasons as an in-studio analyst for the NFL Today on CBS from 1999 to 2001. Last season, he returned to the broadcast booth, teaming up with Kevin Harlan to form one of the CBS's top-ranked broadcast tandems.
Criqui, a network veteran of over 30 years, returns for his ninth preseason as the play-by-play announcer for the New England Patriots. He began his broadcasting career with CBS and has handled the play-by-play duties for CBS Sports' coverage of the NBA and college basketball, track and field, horse racing, figure skating, gymnastics, swimming and diving in addition to 18 seasons of NFL coverage.
From 1979-97, Criqui was one of NBC's most utilized broadcasters, handling the play-by-play responsibilities for the network's coverage of Notre Dame football, NBA, golf, auto racing and 14 Orange Bowls. Criqui has also hosted Wimbledon and World Cup soccer and called play-by-play for NBC Radio's coverage of the NFL for Super Bowls XX and XXI. In 1988, he called the swimming events for NBC's coverage of the Seoul Olympics. In 1992, he served as one of the hosts for the Summer Olympics from Barcelona.
The complete 2003 preseason and regular season schedule for the Patriots is **available here.**
