EMRICK, LEY, KING, KORNHEISER ELECTED TO NSMA HALL OF FAME
BURKE, WOJNAROWSKI WIN NATIONAL AWARDS
DAVENPORT, WEBER, REXRODE WIN IN TENNESSEE
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (January 14, 2019) – Mike “Doc” Emrick, Bob Ley, Peter King, and Tony Kornheiser have been voted into the National Sports Media Association Hall of Fame and will be inducted this June, NSMA executive director Dave Goren announced. Goren also said that NSMA members voted Doris Burke as the 2018 National Sportscaster of the Year, Adrian Wojnarowski as the 2018 National Sportswriter of the Year; and members in each state elected 109 state Sportscasters and Sportswriters of the Year from 49 states, plus the District of Columbia. They will be honored during the 60th annual NSMA Awards Weekend, June 22-24, 2019 in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Dawn Davenport of WGFX-FM in Nashville, and Pete Weber, the radio voice of the Nashville Predators on the Predators’ Radio Network, were voted the 2018 Tennessee co-Sportscasters of the Year. It’s Davenport’s first win, Weber’s sixth. Joe Rexrode of The Tennessean, went back-to-back as the Tennessee Sportswriter of the Year. He also won the Michigan Sportswriter of the Year one time.
Emrick has served as the lead play-by-play voice for National Hockey League telecasts on NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network since 2011, just the latest stint in a hockey broadcasting career that began in 1973, as the voice of the Port Huron Flags. He has won the prestigious Foster Hewitt Award from the Hockey Hall of Fame and is enshrined in the United States Hockey Hall of Fame. He is a three-time winner of the NSMA’s National Sportscaster of the Year Award.
Ley is synonymous with ESPN, beginning as a SportsCenter anchor on the network’s third day of operation. A longtime fixture on the SportsCenter desk, Ley has spent the better part of the last 28 years as the host of ESPN’s award-winning Outside the Lines program, which examines issues of the day in the sports world that go beyond the playing field and arena.
After getting his start in the newspaper business, King spent 29 years covering pro football at Sports Illustrated. His last 20 years at SI, he became known for his weekly Monday Morning Quarterback column, which frequently ran 6,000-to-8,000 words and covered everything NFL. Last July, King moved to NBCSports.com, where his Football Morning in America column runs each Monday.
Kornheiser spent 35 years as a sportswriter at the Washington Post, becoming a sports columnist for one of the nation’s premier sports sections in 1984. He branched out into radio, with The Tony Kornhesier Show in 1992. The show is now available as a podcast. And since 1992, Kornheiser and former Washington Post co-worker Michael Wilbon have co-hosted ESPN’s popular Pardon the Interruption.
Burke first female National winner
No stranger to firsts, Burke becomes the first woman to win one of the NSMA’s National Awards. The former Providence College basketball player began her broadcasting career calling games for her alma mater in 1990. A succession of steps up the ladder included turns as a college basketball analyst for the Big East and Atlantic 10, before she landed at ESPN. Since 1991, Burke has served as an analyst and sideline reporter covering college basketball, the WNBA and NBA. She became a full-time ESPN NBA game analyst before the 2017-2018 season and serves as the lead NBA sideline reporter for the NBA Playoffs on ESPN and NBA Finals on ABC. The winner of several awards, Burke was named the 2018 winner of the Curt Gowdy Award from the Basketball Hall of Fame, for her outstanding contributions to basketball.
Wojnarowski has now won back-to-back NSMA National Sportswriter of the Year Awards, becoming the tenth person to do so. Known for his NBA scoops, or “Woj Bombs,” ESPN’s Senior NBA Insider left Yahoo Sports after nearly ten years,
and on July 1, 2017, returned to his hometown of Bristol, Conn. to work at ESPN. Before Yahoo, Wojnarowski wrote for
The Record (Bergen County, NJ), Fresno Bee and Waterbury Republican-American. He is a two-time winner of the Associated Press Spots Editors’ “Columnist of the Year” award.
Notable among the state winners
- Indiana University radio play-by-play announcer Don Fischer was voted Indiana Sportscaster of the Year for the 26th
- Kevin Calabro, the Portland Trailblazers’ TV play-by-play announcer is the Oregon Sportscaster of the Year for the first time. He won the Washington Sportscaster of the Year Award nine times.
- Calabro (Trailblazers TV), Ralph Lawler (Clippers TV), Steve Buckhantz (Wizards TV), Eric Reid (Heat TV), Steve Holman (Hawks radio), Mike Gorman (Celtics TV), Ian Eagle (Nets TV), Marc Zumoff (Sixers TV), Mark Followill (Mavs TV).
There were 41 first-time winners of the state awards; two more than in 2017.
Below is a list of all of the Hall of Fame inductees, National and State winners, with number of times won in parentheses.
2019 NSMA Hall of Fame Inductees
HALL OF FAME SPORTSCASTERS
Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick, NBC Sports, et al
Bob Ley, ESPN
HALL OF FAME SPORTSWRITER
Peter King, NBCSports.com, Sports Illustrated, et al
Tony Kornheiser, Washington Post
2018 NSMA NATIONAL WINNERS
NATIONAL SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Doris Burke, ESPN/ABC (1)
NATIONAL SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN (2)
2018 NSMA STATE WINNERS
ALABAMA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Lauren Sisler, AL.com/ESPN, Birmingham (2)
ALABAMA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Cecil Hurt, Tuscaloosa News, TideSports.com, Tuscaloosa (2)
ARIZONA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Jeff Munn, ASU Women’s Basketball, Tempe (2)
ARIZONA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Nick Piecoro, Arizona Republic, Phoenix (1)
ARKANSAS SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Phil Elson, Razorback IMG Sports Network/ESPN Arkansas, Little Rock (3)
ARKANSAS SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Paul Boyd, NW Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Fayetteville (1)
CALIFORNIA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Ralph Lawler, Los Angeles Clippers TV/FOX Sports West, Prime Ticket, Los Angeles (1)
CALIFORNIA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Ann Killion, San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco (3)
Susan Slusser, San Francisco Chronicle (1)
COLORADO SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Vic Lombardi, Altitude TV/KSE Radio, Denver (2)
COLORADO SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, Denver (1)
CONNECTICUT SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Rich Coppola, WTIC-TV, Hartford (9)
CONNECTICUT SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, Hartford (5)
DELAWARE SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Matt Janus, Wilmington Blue Rocks, Wilmington (3)
DELAWARE SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Andy Walter, Delaware State News, Dover (4)
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Steve Buckhantz, Wizards/NBC Sports Washington (1)
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Barry Svrluga, Washington Post, Washington (3)
FLORIDA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Eric Reid, Miami Heat/FOX Sports Sun (2)
FLORIDA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Marc Topkin, Tampa Bay Times, St. Petersburg (2)
GEORGIA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Steve Holman Atlanta Hawks Radio Network, Atlanta (3)
Zach Klein, WSB-TV, Atlanta (1)
GEORGIA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Steve Hummer, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Atlanta (10)
HAWAII SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Kanoa Leahey, Spectrum Sports/ESPN 900, Honolulu (2)
HAWAII SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Stephen Tsai, Honolulu Star Advertiser, Honolulu (6)
IDAHO SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Paul J. Schneider, KBOI Radio, Boise (1)
IDAHO SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
- J. Rains, Idaho Press, Nampa (2)
ILLINOIS SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Pat Hughes, Chicago Cubs Radio Network/670 The Score, Chicago (*9)
ILLINOIS SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Rick Morrissey, Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago (1)
INDIANA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Don Fischer, Indiana Hoosier Radio Network/Learfield (26)
INDIANA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
**Terry Hutchens, CNHI Sports, Anderson (6)
IOWA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Keith Murphy, WHO-TV, Des Moines (4)
IOWA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Tommy Birch, Des Moines Register, Des Moines (1)
KANSAS SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Wyatt Thompson, K-State Radio Network/Learfield (4)
KANSAS SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Tom Keegan, Lawrence Journal-World, Lawrence (3)
KENTUCKY SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Kent Spencer, WHAS-TV, Louisville (2)
Kent Taylor, WAVE-TV, Louisville (2)
KENTUCKY SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
John Clay, Lexington Herald-Leader, Lexington (6)
LOUISIANA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Ed Daniels, WGNO-TV, New Orleans (2)
LOUISIANA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Brett Martel, The Associated Press, New Orleans (1)
Nick Underhill, The Advocate, New Orleans (1)
MAINE SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Jessica Gagne, WCSH-TV, Portland (1)
MAINE SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Mike Lowe, Portland Press-Herald, Portland (3)
MARYLAND SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Johnny Holliday, Terrapin Sports Network/MASN, College Park (2)
MARYLAND SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Jamison Hensley, ESPN.com, Baltimore (1)
MASSACHUSETTS SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Mike Gorman, Celtics TV/NBCSports Boston, Boston (2)
MASSACHUSETTS SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Dan Shaughnessy, Boston Globe, Boston (13)
MICHIGAN SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Brad Galli, WXYZ-TV, Detroit (1)
MICHIGAN SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Angelique Chengelis, Detroit News, Detroit (1)
MINNESOTA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Mark Rosen, WCCO-TV, Minneapolis (2)
MINNESOTA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Jon Krawczynski, The Athletic, Minneapolis (1)
MISSISSIPPI SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Richard Cross , Supertalk Mississippi/Ole Miss Radio Network/SEC Network , Oxford (1)
MISSISSIPPI SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Rick Cleveland, Syndicated Columnist, Jackson (11)
MISSOURI SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Mike Kelly, Missouri Tiger Radio Network, Columbia (6)
MISSOURI SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Derrick Goold, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, St. Louis (1)
MONTANA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Riley Corcoran, Grizzly Sports Properties/Learfield, Missoula (1)
MONTANA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Greg Rachac, 406MTSports.com, Billings (4)
NEBRASKA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Gary Sharp, KOZN 1620 the Zone, Omaha (1)
NEBRASKA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Tom Shatel, Omaha World-Herald, Omaha (4)
NEVADA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Kevin Bolinger, KVVU-TV, Las Vegas (1)
NEVADA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Ed Graney, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Las Vegas (6)
NEW HAMPSHIRE SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Justin McIsaac, UNH Wildcats Sports Network/Learfield, Dover (1)
NEW HAMPSHIRE SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Mike Whaley, Seacoast Media Group, Portsmouth (2)
NEW JERSEY SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Matt Loughlin, Devils/WFAN/The One Jersey Network, Newark (2)
NEW JERSEY SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Gregg Lerner, Shore Sports Network, Toms River (3)
NEW MEXICO SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Jack Nixon, New Mexico State Radio Network/Learfield, Las Cruces (4)
NEW MEXICO SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Jason Groves, Las Cruces Sun-News, Las Cruces (2)
NEW YORK SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Ian Eagle, Brooklyn Nets/YES Network, New York City (4)
NEW YORK SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Mike Waters, Syracuse.com/Post-Standard, Syracuse (1)
NORTH CAROLINA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
John Forslund, Carolina Hurricanes TV/FOX Sports Carolinas, Raleigh (1)
NORTH CAROLINA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Ed Hardin, News & Record, Greensboro (2)
NORTH DAKOTA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Jack Michaels, KFGO-AM, Fargo (1)
NORTH DAKOTA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Chris Murphy, The Forum, Fargo (1)
OHIO SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Marty Brennaman, Reds/700 WLW Radio Network, Cincinnati (***16)
OHIO SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Paul Daugherty, Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati (1)
OKLAHOMA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Nathan Thompson, KOKI-TV, Tulsa (1)
OKLAHOMA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Eric Bailey, Tulsa World, Tulsa (1)
OREGON SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Kevin Calabro, Trailblazers/NBC Sports NW, Portland (****12)
OREGON SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Kerry Eggers, Portland Tribune, Portland (2)
PENNSYLVANIA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Marc Zumoff, 76ers/NBC Sports Philadelphia, Philadelphia (2)
PENNSYLVANIA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Zach Berman, Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News, Philadelphia (1)
Matt Gelb, The Athletic, Philadelphia
RHODE ISLAND SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Nick Coit, WLNE-TV, Providence (2)
RHODE ISLAND SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
William Geoghegan, South County Independent, Wakefield (1)
SOUTH CAROLINA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Rick Henry, WIS-TV, Columbia (2)
SOUTH CAROLINA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Grace Raynor, Post & Courier, Charleston (2)
Manie Robinson, Greenville News, Greenville (1)
SOUTH DAKOTA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Al Decker, KDSJ Radio, Deadwood (3)
SOUTH DAKOTA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Ryan Deal, Daily Republic, Mitchell (2)
TENNESSEE SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Dawn Davenport, WGFX-FM, SEC Network, Nashville (1)
Pete Weber, Predators Radio Network (102.5 The Game), Nashville (6)
TENNESSEE SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Joe Rexrode, The Tennessean (*****2)
TEXAS SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Mark Followill, Mavs/FOX Sports SW & FC Dallas/TXA21, Dallas (1)
TEXAS SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Kirk Bohls, Austin American-Statesman, Austin (4)
Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, Dallas (3)
UTAH SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
David James, KUTV-TV/KZNS Radio, Salt Lake City (2)
UTAH SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Kurt Kragthorpe, Salt Lake Tribune, Salt Lake City (6)
VERMONT SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Mike McCune, WCAX-TV, Burlington (2)
VERMONT SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Alex Abrami, Burlington Free Press, Burlington (2)
VIRGINIA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Andrew Allegretta, VT IMG Sports Network, Virginia (1)
VIRGINIA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
David Teel, Daily Press, Newport News (13)
WASHINGTON SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Dave Sims, Mariners/ROOT Sports, Seattle (1)
WASHINGTON SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Gregg Bell, The News Tribune, Tacoma (1)
WEST VIRGINIA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR (TIE)
Tony Caridi, Mountaineer IMG Sports Network, Morgantown (4)
Steve Cotton, Marshall IMG Sports Network, Huntington (12)
WEST VIRGINIA SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Chuck McGill, Thundering Herd Illustrated/HerdZone, Huntington (7)
WISCONSIN SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Matt Lepay, Badgers Sports Network/Learfield & FOX Sports Wisconsin, Madison (9)
WISCONSIN SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee (2)
WYOMING SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR
Erick Pauley, Wind River Radio Network, Riverton (1)
WYOMING SPORTSWRITER OF THE YEAR
Robert Gagliardi, Wyoming Tribune Eagle/WyoSports.net, Cheyenne (4)
* – won Wisconsin Sportscaster of Year award 3 times
** – deceased
*** – won Virginia Sportscaster of Year award 4 times
**** – won Washington Sportscaster of Year award 9 times
***** – won Michigan Sportswriter of Year award 1 time
* * *
About the Voting
From mid-October to mid-November, NSMA members provide up to three nominations each for their state’s sportscaster of the year and sportswriter of the year, as well as the National Sportscaster of the Year and National Sportswriter of the Year.
The top two vote-getters in state races and top ten vote-getters in national races are then placed on the final ballot, along with ten sportscaster finalists and ten sportswriter finalists for the Hall of Fame.
Final ballots are emailed to members for voting throughout the month of December. Winners are notified by phone individually during the first week of January.
About the National Sports Media Association
The National Sports Media Association, Inc.is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which seeks to develop educational opportunities for those who are interested in pursuing a career in sports media, through networking, interning, mentoring and scholarship programs.
The NSMA also honors, preserves and celebrates the diverse legacy of sports media in the United States.
Founded in 1959 as the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association in Salisbury, N.C., the NSSA added its Hall of Fame in 1962, with Grantland Rice as its first member. The organization rebranded to the National Sports Media Association in 2016 and moved to Winston-Salem, N.C. one year later.
For sponsorship and membership information, contact Dave Goren at [email protected].
For more information on NSMA, go to nationalsportsmedia.org.
