Former Bison player Phil Hansen begins busy new fall – Jamestown Sun

FARGO — The return of football season also means the return of the busiest time of year for Oakes, North Dakota native Phil Hansen.

The former North Dakota State University and Buffalo Bills standout returns for another year calling his alma mater’s games on the radio for WDAY while also officiating high school football and basketball games.

In addition to his work in sports, Hansen said he has stayed busy by working on various boards in and around Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, and tending to his farmland near Oakes.

“It’s a natural fit,” Hansen said of his role as the Bisons’ play-by-play announcer. “I played for the Bisons, followed them when I was in the NFL, and when I came back they were looking for someone, so it was a natural fit. I enjoy traveling with the team. I enjoy following Bisons football. I referee high school football and basketball in the fall and winter. But following the Bisons is also fun because they were really good for their first 10 years or so.”

During his early years as a Bisons play-by-play announcer, Hansen said he sought advice from those around him on how he could improve. Hansen said he thinks listeners appreciate the fact that he is critical when needed. He said he doesn’t single out players, but he does point out what the Bisons need to improve.

“Everybody knows I’m a Bisons fan, I’m passionate about the Bisons, I want them to do well,” Hansen said. “But I’m not going to say everything’s great when they’re not great either. So I think people maybe appreciate that. Sometimes there’s nothing to say, sometimes you shouldn’t say anything. If there’s nothing to say, don’t try to add something just for the sake of adding something.”

When preparing for a broadcast, Hansen said he receives a packet of information from NDSU sports information director Ryan Perreault.

“At the beginning of the season there is more preparation because I have to figure out who our young players are coming in and then I always have to do a little bit of preparation for the opponent,” Hansen said.

When he uses his headset to commentate a game, Hansen said he keeps in mind who the listeners are and tailors his stances to the Bisons fans.

“I give my analysis as someone who listens as a Bison,” Hansen said. “… If the offense is doing well, I’ll say, ‘Oh, the Bisons played really well.’ If the opponent is doing really well offensively, I’ll talk about the Bisons’ defense and what they need to improve.”

Hansen said he enjoys watching who wins field position battles. The former defensive end said he enjoys watching a highly skilled offensive tackle go up against an equally skilled defensive end.

This year, the Bisons will open their season on Aug. 29 at the University of Colorado, a place Hansen said he is looking forward to.

“It’s the only game,” Hansen said. “It’s the first game of the season for all of college football. So yeah, I’m excited, I’ve never been there… I think everybody’s going to be excited for this game.”

Hansen said he’s interested to see how new head coach Tim Polasek performs this season.

“I’m excited. I don’t think we had the talent that we had in the past, but that remains to be seen with some of the younger players,” Hansen said. “I really like the head coach and I’m really interested to see what his position coaches can do. I don’t think there was a lot of attrition once he got here. I think it’s a good thing that most of the guys on the team have stayed put. I’m especially excited to start against Colorado on a Thursday night, the only game of the night. It’s really cool to be center stage.”

Before being hired by WDAY to do Bisons play-by-play and tend his farmland, Hansen built a career with the Buffalo Bills that saw him inducted into the team’s Wall of Fame in 2011.

Hansen, who came from NCAA Division II State University of New York (NDSU), was selected 54th overall by the Buffalo Bills in 1991. He stated that he expected to be selected between the second and sixth rounds. However, prior to the draft, Hansen stated that he did not expect to be selected by the Bills.

“I didn’t know which ones were really interested,” Hansen said. “The (New York) Jets came three or four times and then they didn’t select me and didn’t hear from them again. The Bills, I think, came once. So when I look at it from a college standpoint, I think the teams that come the most are the teams that want me the most. That’s just not the case.”

Hansen said he watched the first round of the NFL draft in his apartment at NDSU, but then waited the rest of the day to hear his name called. Then the Bills called.

“I was excited,” Hansen said. “I didn’t know much about Buffalo, I thought I was going to New York. I thought, ‘New York, wow, this is a great place to go.’ I talked to the head coach, the defensive coordinator, it was so exciting and then they had to move on to the next pick in the draft, so I hung up the phone.”

During his 11-year NFL career, the Oakes High School product played in 156 regular-season games and 11 playoff games, totaling 657 tackles, 65 sacks, two interceptions for 17 yards, eight forced fumbles, 13 fumble recoveries and one defensive touchdown. Hansen said he was proud to have spent so much time in the NFL. Hansen was a part of three AFC championship teams as a Bill, from 1991-93.

“They asked me how I wanted to be remembered. I said I could be considered a consistent, reliable, responsible football player, and if that was the best, that would be good enough for me,” Hansen said. “I guess that’s true.”

Hansen said he stayed with the Bills his entire career because he felt the organization gave him what he wanted in his contracts and treated him well.

Hansen’s message to kids who want to make the NFL: Be the hardest-working player on the field.

“I would say first of all you can do it, you have to have some size or speed or both, that’s good,” Hansen said. “Cody Mauch is from Hankinson, he played, Carson Wentz is from Bismarck, he played. It’s not an impossible dream anymore because there’s a lot of kids who played professionally at North Dakota or North Dakota State or played Canadian football. There’s always been more talent than me on the Bills, especially on the defensive line, but I wasn’t going to let that happen, I work hard. That doesn’t mean you don’t have talent, but I’ll tell you one thing, after 11 years of playing, there’s always been someone more talented than me, always, always in my position group. I was never the most talented, but I showed up every day and gave it everything I had and I think the coaches appreciated that.”