Arguably the biggest star in the CNY Central sports department is neither an anchor nor a reporter. It’s a dog.

Jack the Sports Dog.

Jack, a brown-haired, 16-pound Dachshund, predicts the outcomes of Syracuse University athletic events each week on Syracuse’s Channel 3 NBC affiliate and Channel 5 CBS affiliate.

Jack is 7-5 so far this season with football, the same record as the SU football team. The process for picking games is simple: Put a Syracuse logo and the opponent’s logo on the floor, put a dog treat on each logo and see which one Jack runs to first.

“He loves doing what he does,” Jack’s owner and CNY Central sports anchor Niko Tamurian said. “He runs around and says hi to everybody here, and he loves making the pick.”

Jack has his own segment, “The Hot Pick from the Hot Dog,” which airs every Friday at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Tamurian estimates Jack’s picks are correct about 70 percent of the time.

When picking Syracuse’s next men’s basketball game, at the University of Arkansas on Friday, Jack didn’t hesitate before choosing the Orange.

The 4-year-old Jack’s first pick came in 2010, but he did not always have the accuracy Tamurian said he now possesses. His first pick came when he incorrectly picked the SU basketball team to reach the Final Four.

But his wrong pick in his rookie season didn’t deter fans. Viewers showed their support on CNY Central’s website to support Jack.

“People went nuts for it,” Tamurian said. “At our corporate level, people were saying, ‘You have to keep doing this, it’s great.’ The thing I get most in public is, ‘Where’s Jack?’”

Since Tamurian adopted Jack when he was eight weeks old, he has always been an SU sports fan. At first, he did not predict the games. His first shot at stardom came during a brainstorming session in 2010.

“We used to do this SU show and our two panelists’ guests every week were Mike Waters from The Post-Standard and Gerry McNamara. This particular Sunday, SU was on the road in Cincinnati,” Tamurian said. “So we were sitting around saying ‘Well, what are we going to do for the content?’ And kind of tongue and cheek I was like, ‘We’ll get my dog to make a pick.’”

With a constantly wagging tail longer than all of his legs combined, Jack is a celebrity at CNY Central. When Tamurian tells Jack they are going to the office, the dog fetches his leash and waits by the door, Tamurian said.

A sure sign of Jack’s celebrity status is his giving back to the community. Tamurian and Jack attend charity events every year, including CNY Central chief meteorologist Wayne Mahar’s Canine Carnival.

In the past two seasons, he has honed his skills as a sports picker. A year ago, Jack accurately predicted the Orange to get knocked out in the Elite Eight. This football season, he boldly predicted Syracuse’s upset victory against Louisville.

His success has done nothing but help his growing fame in the Syracuse community. Even some athletes, both current and former, watch to see Jack’s prediction in their upcoming games.

On one occasion, Tamurian wished former guard and current assistant coach Mike Hopkins good luck before a game, to which Hopkins answered, “Well if your dog picked us, then we’ve got to win.”

While he’s never been to an SU sporting event in person, Jack gets his sports from many of the same sources as Orange fans. He watches the live coverage of almost every Syracuse game.

When Tamurian is not at home, he leaves the TV on so that Jack can follow analysis of SU sports.

There are telltale signs developing that Jack is a true sports fan, coming from his game-watching habits. Jack put on weight during football season and needs to go on a diet before basketball season, Tamurian said. At least for now, Jack is restricted to diet dog treats when making his picks.

He has started embracing SU traditions, too. For Halloween, Jack put on a sweater and cowboy hat to emulate the famous Carrier Dome staple from the 1980s, the Dome Ranger. When Tamurian was asked what Jack thinks about man defense, Tamurian said “(Jack) doesn’t dare cross Jim Boeheim.”

A few weeks ago, Jack made his first trip to an SU sporting venue. He made his pick in Manley Field House with the cheerleading squad.

Tamurian says he wants to get Jack to the Carrier Dome before the end of the basketball season.

Said Tamurian: “He’s become a star and it’s just been a lot of fun, because how could you not like this guy?”

Published on November 27, 2012 at 1:59 am

Contact Boomer: egdangel@syr.edu