Ravens broadcaster deals with unfortunate name
Nov 11, 2011, 2:19 PM | Updated: 2:28 pm
By Michael Simeona
710 Sports.com
Gerry Sandusky will be in Seattle this Sunday.
No, not THAT Jerry Sandusky – the former Penn State coach who was accused of raping as many as 10 young boys in a span of 15 years.
THIS Gerry Sandusky is the play-by-play voice of the Baltimore Ravens, and has the misfortune of having to deal with possessing the same name as the disgraced Penn State coach.
 This is Ravens play-by-play man Gerry Sandusky, not disgraced Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky. (AP) |
“It’s like waking up in the middle of somebody elses nightmare and you’re wondering ‘what in the world is going on?'” Sandusky told the Bob & Groz Show Friday. “It’s been one of those crazy weeks of mixed emotions and I suspect it will get a whole lot worse before it gets better.”
While there is no relation between the two, many have assumed that Gerry is the man who committed the heinous crimes at Penn State based off the similarity of their names.
“I’ve had people say things to me, yell things at me, e-mail things to me, Tweet things to me and I understand. I completely understand why people would make the misconnection. He’s Jerry with a ‘J’, thank God my parents were wise enough to name me Gerry with a ‘G’,” Sandusky explained.
The similarities between the two Sandusky’s don’t just end there.
“Here’s what’s really bizarre – the twists in this thing keep multiplying,” Gerry explains. “[Jerry’s] son works in the NFL – he works for the Browns – his name is Jon. My father’s name is John and used to play for the Browns. So unless you know me personally it’s pretty easy to confuse these two things.”
Although Gerry says this week has been “a big old slice of hell,” he can take solace in knowing he has plenty of time to restore the meaning behind his own name.
“I’m just going to take it as my personal cause for the rest of my life and just live a good life and do good things so that I can reclaim my name.”
Sandusky will be in town as the Baltimore Ravens soar into CenturyLink Field to face the Seahawks this Sunday.
