Bottom Line: Nick Griffith, who recently joined KMBC-TV9 to replace Andy Fales who headed back to DesMoines for personal reasons, is waiting in the wings to be the next replacement for veteran Len Dawson. Dawson, a former pro football Hall of Famer and Kansas City icon, will turn 73 in June. Anyone who witnessed Dawson's bumbling report on Monday's 10 p.m. sports segment (Lara Moritz was visibly embarrassed) has to believe that Griffith will get his chance in the very near future. 02-13-2008
Griffith hits ground running at Channel 9 Jeffrey Flanagan, KC Star Anytime Channel 9 hires a sports reporter, the conversation inevitably turns toward whether or not that person can be the ultimate successor to Lenny Dawson. And it’s not always the most comfortable topic for that sports reporter to discuss. “I can honestly say it never came up during my interview, thankfully,” said Channel 9’s Nick Griffith, who was hired last month. “Obviously it’s something you think about in terms of your future. You hope that can be the case. But you have to worry about right now. Just do your job right now.” Griffith, 27, knows that in this town, Dawson’s shoes are pretty big to fill. “You think?” Griffith said, laughing. “But fortunately, Lenny has been so great to work with. I want to say the word ‘mentor.’ He’s just been fantastic. “And the way he moves around…he is Lenny the Cool. He still has it.” Griffith, who came here from Topeka’s ABC affiliate KTKA, also feels fortunate that having worked this close to Kansas City has allowed him to hit the ground running. “Knowing KU and Kansas State and knowing the people around those programs helps,” he said. “It’s made for a pretty seamless transition. Moving and starting a new job can be a scary process. But it hasn’t been that way for me.” Griffith, originally from Madison, Ind., is getting his shot at sports anchoring on Friday and Saturday nights. The rest of the time he is… “Paying some dues and working behind the scenes,” he said. “That’s what you should be doing in this position.”
