I hear you

Growing up in the late '50s and '60s, we always had the radio on to listen to our favorite music on a Spokane Top 40 radio station. Whether it was after we got out of bed, getting ready for school, riding in the car or working in the shop, we were enjoying our favorite disc jockey's bantering, joking and introducing music the world was enjoying.

Yes, we knew the names of the bands and songs, and we could sing along with the music and for the most part we were close to reciting the words. Sure, we heard the song a certain way and thought we heard a word but were mistaken a little. We also got to listen to college football games on a Saturday afternoon. WSU was usually who we tuned into and Bob Robertson made us feel like we were in the stadium.

I think that today's youth are missing out. With so many games on TV and with satellite radio, we don't have that great voice of the Cougs like we had back in the day. I know things change, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to not only listen to college football games but also Major League baseball games from around the country.

But it was the voice of the team that keeps a fan involved.

Some of the really good ones have passed on, like Dave Niehaus from the Mariners and Dodger's announcer Vin Scully. I think I respected them most when they were announcing a blowout game in the third inning and in order to bring it some excitement they would tell baseball stories. It was fun to hear some of those stories.

On Sunday night as I was buzzing through channels, I tuned into the SEC channel and was watching a program on the radio voices of SEC sports announcers from now and in the past and some of the highlights were great and of course brought out the excitement of a true fan.

The people that were being interviewed were former players that played professionally or would become announcers themselves.

They spent a lot of time listening to games that brought out the very best in the man behind the mic that showed his true love for a great game and brought excitement to the ears of the fans that were working on their car in a garage, out fishing, picnicking with family, cruising down the highway or any number of things that didn't allow the fan to attend the game in person.

Some of the announcers talked about the Vanderbilt announcer and said he unfortunately didn't get to see a lot of football victories but did get to announce a couple of Commodore National Championships in baseball and he was just as excited as if they had beaten Georgia or Alabama in football.

These announcers have a true passion for sports and oftentimes do more than one sport. But they also need to have a sense of humor and when things go south, go to Plan B.

One of the funniest things I heard was when after a very poor performance by the home team one announcer summed it all up when he focused on the drive of the game which would usually be when the team would go on a game winning drive to score late in the game. After a terrible showing the announcer said that the drive of the game would be the one he would be using on the way home because that would be the only good thing to happen all day.

The football season will be starting and if you like to watch your favorite team on TV and catch the broadcast on the radio to get the perspective from the people that actually know the players and coaches you are not alone.

So to all of those announcers that bring the game to our ears just know we hear you and keep up the good work.