Last Saturday University of Georgia fans finally got their chance to formally salute Larry Munson, 86, the long-time voice of UGA football who retired this season after 43 years of covering the Bulldogs.
I first heard Munson’s raspy drawl when I lived in Atlanta in the ‘90s. His reputation had preceded him, so I checked him out – even though I was hardly a UGA fan.
I was disappointed. Granted, he was colorful, down-home and knowledgeable, but I had never heard an announcer describe the home team as “we” before. As in “‘We’ were stopped just inches short of the goal.” Or “‘We’ just burned our second time out.” Or “‘We’ score! ‘We’ score!”
I understand home team announcing and, as a fan, I’m all for it. It’s part of the collective rooting experience. It’s part of identifying with your team. But the “we” stuff is just over the top.
And, yes, that’s also the style of Gene Deckerhoff, the voice of Florida State football and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But whether it’s the other team’s guy or it’s our own, homers in the booth is bush league. It just is.