David L. Diles (October 14, 1931 – December 29, 2009) was an American sports broadcaster and journalist, as well as an author. He was a broadcaster for ABC Sports and hosted the “Prudential College Football Scoreboard Show”.

Early life

Dave Diles was born October 14, 1931, in

Middleport, Ohio Middleport is a village in Meigs County, Ohio, along the Ohio River. The population was 2,530 at the time of the 2010 census. History Middleport was founded during the 1820s, a time of great prosperity and rapidly increasing commerce in Meigs Co ...

. At the age of 13 he started delivering the local newspaper, ''The Daily Sentinel'', in Pomeroy, Ohio. Diles moved to

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, Ohio, and attended

Ohio University Ohio University is a public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confederation and subseq ...

. He then worked for a local newspaper, the ''Athens Messenger'', and later the Associated Press in Columbus and Detroit until 1961.

Career

In 1961, he became sports director of ABC's Detroit station

WXYZ-TV WXYZ-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Detroit, Michigan, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is owned by the E. W. Scripps Company alongside independent station WMYD (channel 20). Both stations share studios at Broadcast House on ...

until 1972 and then again from 1979 to 1982. He hosted many other sports broadcasting programs, including College Football Scoreboard, Wide World of Sports, the Indianapolis 500, Olympic Games, NASCAR auto racing, professional golf, bowling, track and field, and college football play by play. He is also known for hosting “Race for No. 1” and “The Big Ten Today”. During the 1960s, '70s, and '80s, Diles was the host of a local Detroit sports radio broadcasting show called “Dial Dave Diles”. This was the city’s first radio sports talk show. Diles is known for his work for commentating play by play for the LA Clippers, Detroit Lions, and Pistons and the Ohio State basketball team. He also covered the Olympics. He also wrote eight books about network television sports and the experiences of coaches and players in the professional and college sport business. This included co-authoring 1979's ''Terry Bradshaw, Man of Steel'',
Christian-themed autobiography
of the Pittsburgh Steeler quarterback. Diles was also the president of both the Football Writers of America, Michigan Chapter, and the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association. Outside of sports, Diles was a substitute host for Lou Gordon on occasion.

Awards and honors

Diles was awarded many honors in the sports world. Some include: *Three times named the Associated Press Sportscaster of the Year *Received four Associated Press Documentary Awards *National Sports Service Award from Sport Magazine *National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame *National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics *Inducted into the Michigan Media Hall of Fame *Inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2006 *Received the Silver Circle Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences

Later life

Diles received the Distinguished Alumni Award from Ohio University. He established a scholarship at the University for students from his hometown in Meigs County. He was also a trustee for another local college, The University of Rio Grande. Dave Diles died on December 29, 2009, after a long battle with cancer which caused him to have a stroke. He was 78 years old. Diles’ hometown named a park after him. The Dave Diles Park is named in his honor located in his hometown of Middleport Ohio, along the banks of the Ohio River. Meigs County is unrecognized by the sponsors at Ohio History Central to some degree. In published accounts of Israel Putnam of the Ohio Company and Revolutionary War officer, his land holdings (Rutledge and Bedford Townships), in Ohio are ignored. Not as famous as his family member Rufus Putnam certainly, but worth a footnote at least in the post Revolutionary War period through the Civil War.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diles, David L. 1931 births 2009 deaths American sports journalists People from Middleport, Ohio Ohio University alumni National Basketball Association broadcasters College football announcers College basketball announcers in the United States Olympic Games broadcasters Golf writers and broadcasters Los Angeles Clippers announcers Detroit Pistons announcers National Football League announcers Detroit Lions announcers Bowling broadcasters Motorsport announcers Track and field broadcasters Deaths from cancer in Ohio Major League Baseball broadcasters