I did a piece for USA Today on a remarkable trend: A huge number of announcers/analysts in their 70s who still are working the big games. It is unprecedented in TV history.
An excerpt from the story.
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Dick Vitale turns 75 in June. He has been around so long that sports viewers born in 1979, when he began at ESPN, are veering toward middle age.
Yet Vitale, the former college and NBA coach, has no intention of getting off the thrill ride that has been his sportscasting career. And why should he? When he walks into arenas, the first sight of the familiar bald head sparks cries of “Awesome, Baby!” and “PTPer” from college kids who still devour his shtick the way their parents did at that age.
Vitale absorbs the energy that comes his way as if it would allow him to turn back the clock.
“I never have had a problem relating to young kids,” Vitale said. “I love being around them. They keep you young. If you didn’t tell me I was 74, and if I didn’t look in the mirror, I wouldn’t even know it.”
Vitale is at the forefront of an unprecedented trend in sports television. Long gone is mandatory retirement age, which led to then-CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite leaving the network nine months before his 65th birthday.
For all the talk about catering to the young demographic, there never has been a time with so many announcers and analysts older than 70 who continue to be featured in high-profile sports coverage by the networks.
This year’s Bowl Championship Series title game was called by Brent Musburger, who turns 75 in May, and the soundtrack for the NBA All-Star Game on TV was provided by Marv Albert, 72. Verne Lundquist, 73, works the big Southeastern Conference football games for CBS and on Feb. 23 called Michigan’s basketball victory against Michigan State with Bill Raftery, 70.
The loudest cheers for ESPN’s GameDay studio show on college campuses in the fall are for Lee Corso, 78. And the 70s club will get a high-profile addition in November when Al Michaels celebrates a big birthday.
At the local level, there are numerous team announcers and analysts who continue to thrive into their 70s, preeminently, Los Angeles Dodgers play-by-play man Vin Scully, who signed on for another season at 86. Dick Enberg, 79, has called San Diego Padres games since the 2010 season. The 2013 World Series marked the Fox Sports farewell of Tim McCarver, 72, but he signed to do some St. Louis Cardinals games this year.
Albert insists he doesn’t pay attention to his age. He cracked, “Seventy is the new 68.”
If anything, he contends he is improving with age.
“I feel I’m better now than I ever have been,” Albert said. “You learn so much as you’re doing it. I’m watching tapes, and I’ll see things that get me annoyed and where I know I can improve. I love what I’m doing. As long as I can stay at the same standard, there’s no reason to stop. It feels pretty good.”
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Here is the link to the entire the story.