As his legendary career calling the Final Four comes to a close, Jim Nantz was once again emotional in CBS’s pregame show ahead of his final NCAA men's Final Four.
Nantz, who has been overcome with emotions whenever discussing his final run at the Final Four, clearly has a lot of attachment to the event he’s called for decades.
On Saturday, Nantz shared the names of those who were part of his journey both on set as well behind the scenes.
The longtime play-by-play announcer discussed the impacts of the voices he got to work with: Grant Hill, Bill Raftery, Tracy Wolfson, Steve Kerr, Greg Anthony, Clark Kellogg as well as most notably the late Billy Packer, who passed away in January.
“I got to be with Billy for 18 years,” Nantz said. “I was in awe of being next to Billy and I got to call 18 Final Fours and hundreds of games with him. I was in awe of him as a little boy, never imagining I could sit next to him. I have Billy in my heart.
“I have Pat McGrath, my stats guy, who suffered a fatal heart attack on the eve of this tournament after 30 years by my side, I am going to miss them. I wish they could be here in so many ways, to be part of this celebration.”
"I've always wanted the fan to feel like they had a seat at the table" ❤️
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) April 1, 2023
Jim Nantz reflects on the feeling of calling his last #MFinalFour pic.twitter.com/FsH0WKaS8G
Nantz didn’t stop there, also paying tribute to Curt Gowdy, Dick Enberg, Brent Musburger as well as Gary Bender.
The renowned broadcaster, who has been behind the mic for 32 championship contests, has become as iconic as the yearly rendition of “One Shining Moment” simply became of this focal point: “I’ve always wanted to make sure fans felt like they had a seat at the table.”
