Hillgrove Retires (Sort of), and Other Pittsburgh Play by Play Guys

A seismic change in Pittsburgh sports broadcasting occurred recent days with the announcement that after 30 years on the job and at the age of 83, Bill Hillgrove will be retiring as the radio play-by-play voice of the Pittsburgh Steelers.  Bartenders throughout NFL cities visited by the Steelers are in mourning, but mixologists throughout ACC cities are still secure, because Billy will remain on the job as play-by-play man for Pitt football and basketball.   Bill has been on the job at Pitt since 1969, and let me reiterate, that he is 83 years old.

My thoughts on Hillgrove have been oft expressed, and I am not going to repeat them now, but I do have a couple of questions.  

In all of the glowing tribute pieces that have been written about Hillgrove in recent days, which I have not bothered to read, were either of these two facts mentioned?

1. Was it mentioned that Hillgrove has been, shall we say, pretty much incompetent as a broadcaster for the last 15 or so years, and that he should have given up the microphone at least that long ago? ("Ben throws to Mike Wallace who crosses midfield and is  brought down by a guy in the Bengals secondary.  Check that, that was Antonio Brown, not Mike Wallace.  Oh, and the pass was incomplete.")
2. Was any mention made of Billy's escapade of a few years back when he, while drunk, went to pick up a prescription, plowed into a plate glass window, went in to the store, got his Rx, then backed his car out of the display window and drove home again while still drunk?

Just curious.

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This prompted me to wonder who have been the best play-by-play guys on the Pittsburgh sports scene in all of history?  (Ashamed to admit that I got this idea from listening to Mark Madden, God help me.)

Anyway, here are my top five, listed alphabetically:

• Jack Fleming
• Lanny Frattare
• Mike Lange
• Bob Prince
• Joe Tucker

Maybe Bill Hillgrove would have been on this list had he retired fifteen or twenty years before slipping into what he has become. 

I recognize that no one reading this younger than me will know who Joe Tucker was (I'm sure that Mark Madden doesn't).   I also think that a guy like Steve Mears could earn his place on such a list depending on how much time he puts in in this market, but for now, That's It, That's The List.

Broadcast News - Sports Division, Pittsburgh Sub-division

It was announced this week that the contract of Pittsburgh Penguins long time television play-by-play guy Paul Steigerwald, 62, was not being renewed by Root Sports, and that he would be replaced next season by NHL Network broadcaster Steve Mears, 37.  While this is not seen as a Bob Prince-type firing by the Penguins (older readers will get the reference), the Pens clearly had no objection to the move.  Steigerwald himself wrote a gracious "thank you" column that appeared in the Post-Gazette, and Mario Lemieux has found some cushy landing spot for Steigy in the Pens' front office PR machine, so everyone is happy, and we all wish Mears well in his new gig, although we all know how tough the Pittsburgh audience can be on a new play-by-play guy, regardless of the sport.

I think that the Penguins and Root Sports should be given  credit for this move as it represents some forward thinking on their part, and this is especially true when you look at the other sports broadcasting spots in Pittsburgh.  The Penguins are one of the five major sports "franchises" on the Pittsburgh sports scene, the other four being the Pirates, Steelers, Pitt Football, and Pitt Basketball.  The main play-by-play guy for three of those franchises is Bill Hillgrove, who will turn 77 this coming November.  Hillgrove has been doing Steelers games since 1994, Pitt football since 1974, and Pitt basketball since 1969.  It is not my intention to make this particular post a hatchet job on any one individual, but let's face it, if you've listened to any of Hillgrove's broadcasts for any one of those three teams in the last ten years or so, it is obvious that he is, well, let's just say way past his prime, and leave it at that.

It has surprised me that neither the Steelers nor Pitt have made any move to replace Hillgrove as The Voice of their franchises.  You would think that they would want to bring in a younger, fresher voice, someone who would not say things like "he's tackled by a guy in the Bengals backfield".  For his part, why would Hillgrove want to keep doing this at the age of 77?  In recent years, Pitt seems like they are grooming Larry Richert to succeed Hillgrove, and he, Richert, is 57 years old, and could be well into his sixties before Hillgrove's hands get pried off of the microphone. If Richert really wants that gig, he must feel like Prince Charles waiting for the Queen to die.

This goes on.  Dick Groat, Hillgrove's color analyst on Pitt basketball, will be 87 in November.  Pirates color analyst Steve Blass is 75, but at least he doesn't do road games any more.  Mike Lange, the Pens radio broadcaster, is 69 and has held that job since 1976.  Ray Goss has been doing Duquesne basketball on the radio longer than any of these guys and he is pushing 80 years of age.

These guys seem to have a stronger hold on their jobs that Supreme Court justices or the Pope.  It has to be very discouraging for a young guy trying to make it as a play-by-play guy in Pittsburgh. 

As I said at the outset, the Penguins are to be given credit for their forward thinking approach here, and I think that the Steelers, Pitt, and, to a lesser extent, the Pirates, need to be taking a similar view at their broadcasting talent.