Eric Montross at his Father’s Day Camp last weekend. Now in its 13th year, the camp raises money for special projects for the N.C. Children’s Hospital. Photo by Brian Strickland
Catching up with Eric Montross
By Kirk Ross
Staff Writer
When you think of Eric Montross, the words “high-performance liquid chromatographer†probably aren’t the first to pop into your head. “Really tall,†maybe, or “National Championship.â€
Last Friday and Saturday you may have noticed several dozen people around town in Carolina Blue jerseys with “Montross†and a double-zero emblazoned on the back. They’re the 13th graduating class of Montross’ annual Father’s Day Basketball Camp — a fundraiser for the N.C. Childrens’ Hospital. Like their predecessors, the 140 or so campers spent two days on the hardwood at the Smith Center working on their moves with Montross and a few of his buddies. And like each class of campers before them, they helped raise thousands for the Children’s Hospital.
A foundation Montross set up with his wife, Laura, has raised more than $670,000 over the years. The Montross’ personally work with a team of doctors and nurses and patient advocates to steer the money. Thus the chromatographer — a genetics diagnostic tool that would help free up doctors and turn around test results much faster.
“The turnaround time went from four to five hours to five minutes,†Montross said in a recent interview. “Families are able to find out results faster.â€
The instrument, he said, is the result of the foundation’s unique set-up, which put together what Montross calls an “honest network†of health professionals and young patients and their parents. The network has helped the Montross’ cut to the chase and direct the foundation’s money in ways that most directly help the kids and their families. It’s based on an idea he got from a friend. In addition to research gear, they’ve helped set up the Jason Clark Teen Activities Center, a children’s dialysis center, wall murals and a special pediatric infusion room. An eight-bed-overnight-stay unit is in the works as well.
Jason’s List
In 1993, Montross was volunteering at the Children’s Hospital, where he befriended Jason Clark, a 15-year-old patient and an ardent Carolina fan.
Clark, stricken with Burkitt’s lymphoma, was an inspiration, Montross said.
“We really hit it off. We would just spend time playing games and being kids,†he said. “He was a wonderful person. He had a tremendous outlook.â€
Within nine months, he was gone. But during the time they spent together, Clark passed along to Montross his views of the hospital. The young patient eventually produced a three-page list of the ways the hospital could improve life for kids.
“It was the hospital seen through a child’s eye,†Montross said. “It said, ‘Here are things kids need.’†The list, he said, included everything from getting rid of the drab color on the walls to an activities room and “places where they could just get away from the doctors and just be kids.
“My wife and I adopted that as an idea we wanted to take on. Our response was to work on the list.â€
The camp, he said, seemed like a natural way to go — a perfect way to return to the Smith Center.
“It’s a chance to give back, and that’s important to me. I have a lot of great memories there.â€
And probably a lot more to come, given that he’s seemed to settle in nicely to his new role as a radio voice of the Tar Heels.
Off Season
Apart from the camp and the occasional speaking engagement, this is pretty much the off-season for Montross, who makes his home in southwestern Orange County. Radio eats up the winter, he said, but this time of year the schedule is “fairly flexible,†allowing for some quality time with Laura and their two children.
“It gives me a chance to just be a Dad. It’s nice to just be home and sleep in my own bed.â€
But come fall, he’ll be back on the radio with 30-year broadcast veteran Woody Durham. And, just as he was as a player, he’s determined to get better.
“It’s fun and challenging. You want to get better with each broadcast.â€
Montross started with the Tar Heel radio network three seasons ago, doing pre-game and halftime interviews and commentary. When the Carolina Panthers snatched up longtime color announcer Mick Mixon, Montross got the call.
He spent his first full year behind the mic last season, where his often-deadpan humor and Midwestern flair for the understatement have added a new element to the broadcasts.
Last season, after a particularly brutal foul early in a game against Duke, he uttered: “There will be no niceties exchanged tonight.â€
Working the color job means being ready to jump in.
“We have to play off each other,†he said. “But you have to make sure you’re not stepping on the other guy’s tongue.â€
It’s not always easy. “There’s no, ‘Oh, darn it’ button’ in radio. If you say something stupid, you have to own up to it.â€
Montross says he’s learning a lot from Durham, Mixon and fellow color-man Jones Angell. Durham, who’s been broadcasting Tar Heel sports for 30 years, has made it easier for Montross to slide into the new role.
“The abilities of the guy are amazing,†Montross said, although they don’t always see eye-to-eye on what’s happening. “Sometimes we’re polar opposites in how we’d describe a situation.â€
His passion for the Tar Heels and his history on the court have occasionally caused him to flair up a bit. He has politely asked Durham to stop jinxing players at the free throw line by stating how accurate they are before the shot, and in the second half of last year’s NCAA tournament loss the former All-American center bemoaned eschewing the inside game for a flurry of errant three-pointers. “Woody, if they put up another [three-pointer], you’re going to have to console me,†he said, then added quietly, “Mercy.â€
There’s no doubt, he said, that the network is partisan; but the crew works to not be too over the top. He’s not shy about criticism, but tries, he said, to keep it constructive: “It’s the responsibility of a broadcaster.†And besides, some very good coaches have given him a few insights into the sport.
“It would be very easy to keep everything positive,†Montross said, “but that’s not the game of basketball.â€