Mike Patrick, longtime ESPN play-by-play announcer who worked at WJLA-TV, dies at 80

Mike Patrick, the play-by-play announcer who called NFL games and ACC basketball contests during his 36 years at ESPN, died at 80.

Patrick died of natural causes in Fairfax, Virginia, officials from his hometown of Clarksburg, West Virginia, announced

A post on The Hollywood Reporter stated that Patrick started out at ESPN in 1982 and was the voice of its Sunday Night Football package, working mostly alongside Joe Theismann and Paul Maguire, from 1987-2005 (he called the network’s first NFL game). He retired two months after leading the Liberty Bowl telecast on Dec. 30, 2017.

He called more than 30 ACC basketball championships, working alongside analyst Dick Vitale for so many historic matchups between Duke and the University of North Carolina, and anchored the Women’s Final Four from 1996-2009.

He warmly opened each telecast with, “It’s great to have you with us.”

“Mike Patrick called countless significant events over decades at ESPN and is one of the most influential on-air voices in our history,” Burke Magnus, president of content for ESPN, said in a statement.

Patrick also did play-by-play for college football games on Thursday and Saturday nights for ESPN and for the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, from 2003-14, and he worked the British Open golf tournament for a couple of years as well.

Patrick began his career at the college radio station WRGW at George Washington University, where he received a bachelor of arts degree in speech, then landed a radio job in 1966 at WVSC in Somerset, Pennsylvania.

In 1970, he was hired as sports director at WJXT-TV in Jacksonville, Florida, and he did play-by-play for Jacksonville Sharks’ World Football League telecasts and Jacksonville University basketball games.

Five years later, he jumped to WJLA-TV in Washington as a sports reporter and weekend anchor and called University of Maryland football and basketball until he moved to ESPN.

He also worked NFL preseason games for Washington and Cleveland during his career.

Patrick’s final call came on Dec. 30, 2017 for Iowa State’s 21-20 win over Memphis in the Liberty Bowl.