tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post3888678674262521825..comments2023-11-02T03:56:06.817-04:00Comments on FeinsteinOnTheBrink: On the passing of my longtime mentor and closest of friends, Bill BrillJohnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10418812412651310398noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-68523685888275565352011-04-13T22:14:46.433-04:002011-04-13T22:14:46.433-04:00Wonderful essay John... thank you! I grew up in Ro...Wonderful essay John... thank you! I grew up in Roanoke reading Bill Brill... Jane taught me in high school English... and I am a Virginia Tech fan who loved to hate Brill... and I will miss him.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-32204145987054030912011-04-12T16:52:17.932-04:002011-04-12T16:52:17.932-04:00It must have been a long 7 years for Mr. Brill... ...It must have been a long 7 years for Mr. Brill... to watch the Hokies dominate the ACC in football.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-30097016312020291332011-04-12T16:46:50.227-04:002011-04-12T16:46:50.227-04:00John,
Sorry for your loss. Did you leave Augusta...John,<br /><br />Sorry for your loss. Did you leave Augusta early on Sunday when Bill died? I was surprised not to see you on Golf Channel that night, or did I just miss that part of the coverage.Mr. Xhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14569678172337776306noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-90578574600449243772011-04-12T15:06:43.090-04:002011-04-12T15:06:43.090-04:00John- Thank you for the touching column on the &qu...John- Thank you for the touching column on the "meaning of Brill". I sat next to him in the Wade Stadium pressbox for the past 15 years. He loved football! He hated football! Duke had the dumbest coaches in play-calling history, but he loved Coach Cut and believed that The Dukies are FINALLY heading in the right direction on the gridiron. Yes, he could be a little snarky with the commentary, but we who knew him,knew that. Games at Wade just won't be the same next year.Len Spunginnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-46605087967114870272011-04-12T14:29:47.829-04:002011-04-12T14:29:47.829-04:00Just as "Brill" was a term of endearment...Just as "Brill" was a term of endearment for you, so has "Feinstein" long been one to me...and it remains so.Rankinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-39105069646536275682011-04-12T11:45:20.451-04:002011-04-12T11:45:20.451-04:00It was always fun to get your I beat Brill bumper ...It was always fun to get your I beat Brill bumper sticker as a kid from the Roanoke Times when you beat Brill in Football picks...Great Tribute to a funny writer and as a Carolina Fan..I understood your thought...RIP BRILL...rives colemannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-29450250049976982142011-04-12T11:43:51.586-04:002011-04-12T11:43:51.586-04:00John,
Thanks for putting together such a nice mem...John,<br /><br />Thanks for putting together such a nice memorial piece about Brill. My first job interview for a professional sports reporting job was with Brill at the Roanoke Times. I thought I had a good chance at the job, until he noticed that I went to school at NC State, which we all know he had Virginia Tech-like feelings about. But I always enjoyed talking with him, even during the times we disagreed vehemently. It might have had something to do with the fact I was covering Carolina for the Durham Herald-Sun and he was mostly writing about Duke. Will never forget his dislike of the Mahktar Ndiaye era of Tar Heel basketball. Anyway, Brill could be an ascerbic old bastard to all of us at times. But that was part of the charm. How I will remember him is this: watching him beat around in the woods for his golf ball, pulling a spare out of his pocket and dropping it on the ground and yelling, "You won't believe this. I found my ball. And I've got a shot." Wherever Brill lands from here -- and there are a lot of people who have strong opinions about where that should be -- I hope he always has a shot.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16226066447953589420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-91154067017231300862011-04-12T11:27:32.656-04:002011-04-12T11:27:32.656-04:00I don't know John. I respect that he was your...I don't know John. I respect that he was your friend, and you knew him better than others, but isn't it kind of bizarre that the sportswriter in Roanoke would HATE the hometown school? Why alienate (and really create no goodwill) to all of your local readers? I can understand a passive professional non-rooting interest, but to actually hate the hometown college seems weird and just angry to me. Can you imagine the sportswriters in Omaha hating the Cornhuskers???? And then to retire the day he is eligible and quickly leave town just indicates to me that maybe he wasn't the happiest guy during his time in Roanoke. Any thoughts on all of this.<br /><br />Rest in Peace.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-36282563558109139442011-04-12T00:58:51.381-04:002011-04-12T00:58:51.381-04:00Well said John. Thanks for sharing all those great...Well said John. Thanks for sharing all those great anecdotes. I only covered ACC sports for a couple of years in the late '80s, but Brill was hands-down one of the most colorful characters I've ever met in this business. <br /><br />As a young kid fresh out of college, it was a treat to sit in the back of the bus on the ACC Football Tour and listen to Brill hold court. Those bus rides could be long ones, but it always seemed to me like they were too short ... because that meant Brill didn't have time to tell another story. <br /><br />He was irreverent, biting and opinionated, but he was also brilliant and genuinely funny. I remember those "hostility room" discussions and Brill's bracket unveilings. It was quite an experience just to be in the room.<br /><br />The most vivid image I have of him combines the self-deprecation and political incorrectness that made Brill one of a kind: On the bus one day he was wearing a t-shirt that may have fit him a little snugly. As he opened a beer, I could read the front of his shirt that was inching up slightly over his belly. It was a stick figure with a red slash through it that said, "I whipped anorexia." That was classic Brill.<br /><br />Steve Gardner<br />USA TODAYAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04741196384265522285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-27409666337332044842011-04-11T22:36:54.654-04:002011-04-11T22:36:54.654-04:00As a Hokie, all I can say is .... Well better let...As a Hokie, all I can say is .... Well better let it go unsaid.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-63180815197566814972011-04-11T21:04:36.398-04:002011-04-11T21:04:36.398-04:00I moved from Northern Pennsylvania to Roanoke, Vir...I moved from Northern Pennsylvania to Roanoke, Virginia in 1982 and was a student in Jane Brill's Advanced Placement English class my senior year at William Fleming High School. One night Miss Brill held a small party at her home for all of her AP English students. During the party I got distracted by what sounded like play-by-play from a college basketball game coming from the Brill basement. Being a hoops junkie I snuck away from the party and down the stairs to find Bill Brill sitting in front of a television set watching an ACC basketball game. Hoping to strike up a conversation I coyly asked Brill if he knew the score of the Syracuse game. What followed was a 30 minute lecture on the merits of ACC Basketball and why the Big East would always play second fiddle!! Intimidated, I slunk back upstairs to the party with my tail between my legs! Come to think of it, I never did get that score! May he rest in peace...Ron Hallnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-57636611283351352922011-04-11T18:46:03.206-04:002011-04-11T18:46:03.206-04:00My husband, Geoff, and I lived in Treyburn from 19...My husband, Geoff, and I lived in Treyburn from 1996-2003. I don't recall anyone who lived there who wasn't a Duke fan.<br /><br />Geoff got to be very good friends with Bill through golf, the Men's Club and the Blue Devil's Club. <br /><br />I was organizing a couples golf tournament to Litchfield at Myrtle Beach and asked Bill if he would like to go. Bill replied "Teri, I would love to go and if you can get Jane to agree, we'll be there and I will never forget it". I contacted Jane and asked if she would consider going and shared with her what Bill had said, without hesitation, she said "Sure!". Needless to say, with the Brills in company, fun was had by all.<br /><br />Bill will be sorely missed. I know Jane will be well looked after by the Treyburn community and all of their other friends.<br /><br />Teri HamiltonTerihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07884489864186526063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-44787291292798996912011-04-11T16:01:31.188-04:002011-04-11T16:01:31.188-04:00Very well said, John. It truly is a sad day.
I re...Very well said, John. It truly is a sad day.<br /><br />I remember as a college student in the early-80's getting interested in the subkuect of BB recruiting. This was before the days of recruiting magaizines, websites, blogs, daily/hourly twitter updates, multiple All-Star games, etc. I couldn't find much published material, so a friend of mine at the college paper suggested that I write to a sports writer at the Roanoke paper who I had barely heard of before. I was just hoping for maybe a 1-line response with a reference to a good source I could go look up. Imagine my surprise when Bill responded with an almost full-page hand-written note explaining the recruiting scene, the best sources for recruiting info, a copy of an article he'd recently written on the subject, and hand-written notes on some of the prominent players my school was recruiting. I was flabbergasted, and very, very grateful. It spurred a "hobby" in me than has lasted almost 30 years.<br /><br />Bill will certainly be missed by many. <br /><br />-Brian H.Brian H. (Northern VA)noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-53511450575737128142011-04-11T14:54:11.016-04:002011-04-11T14:54:11.016-04:00John,
As usual, you have centered on the essence ...John, <br />As usual, you have centered on the essence of your subject. Brill was a great friend to so many. I'm just proud to be numbered among them. I was his bridge partner (the dummy most of the time!) for 23 years on the ACC Football Tour. We only lost 2 of those years. Both times it was a 3-No-Trump bid that he didn't make. As I said yesterday when I left his room about 9am, 3 No Trump, my friend.<br />Bob Harris<br />Voice of Bill Brill's Blue DevilsBobnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-4354863007102289132011-04-11T14:37:15.101-04:002011-04-11T14:37:15.101-04:00I met Brill through Duke Club (Alumni Association)...I met Brill through Duke Club (Alumni Association). He was the first fan I met who seemed to care as much as I did about Duke winning, while still respecting so much about what the ACC means - especially the lighter blue color down the road. I was shaken the last few weeks, and emotional last night - but your post brought a smile to my face and tears to my eyes John. <br /><br />Thanks.Chrisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-23224624954258904182011-04-11T13:33:43.973-04:002011-04-11T13:33:43.973-04:00"A lot of people have disliked me through the..."A lot of people have disliked me through the years but I never rated an airplane."<br /><br />There's time, John, you're still young.<br /><br />In all seriousness, please accept my condolences on the loss of your friend.Rorynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-980010523927297374.post-24804950971080459422011-04-11T13:33:08.436-04:002011-04-11T13:33:08.436-04:00John, a wonderful piece about a great person. Than...John, a wonderful piece about a great person. Thanks, John, and thank you, Mr. Brill!<br /><br />Walter Manley II<br />Duke Law '72Walter Manley IInoreply@blogger.com