SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – Oh, what a bonanza of a career.
Joe Starkey, the voice of Cal football for almost half a century, announced on Thursday he will retire after the 2022 season.
Starkey, 80, enters his 48th and final season as the radio play-by-play broadcaster for Golden Bear football. The team's final game, in Berkeley on Nov. 25 against UCLA, will be celebrated as "Joe Starkey Day."
The iconic voice of the Bears is most recognized for his call of one of the most famous play in sports history, commonly referred to simply as "The Play." Cal during the 1982 season used five laterals on a kickoff return to score the winning touchdown against arch-rival Stanford in the final seconds, all while the Cardinal band came rushing onto the field as the inconceivable was unfolding.
"Harmon will probably try to squib it and he does," Starkey said during the famous call. "Ball comes loose and the Bears have to get out of bounds. Rodgers, along the sideline, another one – they're still in deep trouble at midfield, they tried to do a couple of – the ball is still loose, as they get it to Rodgers! They get it back now to the 30, they're down to the 20 – Oh, the band is out on the field! He's gonna go into the end zone! He got into the end zone!"
"And the Bears! The Bears have won! The Bears have won! Oh, my God! The most amazing, sensational, dramatic, heart-rending, exciting, thrilling finish in the history of college football!"
In addition to his work in Berkeley, Starkey also spent 22 legendary years San Francisco 49ers' radio play-by-play broadcaster until stepping down in 2008.
He also claims to have called the only live broadcast of the famous "Miracle on Ice" hockey game between the U.S. and Soviet Union in the 1980 Olympics.
Starkey told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review in 2003 that he was working the Olympics for KGO-AM but wasn't assigned to the hockey game so instead attended it as a fan. As the drama built, Starkey decided to call into KGO and told his bosses he was willing to risk his job to do unauthorized play-by-play of the third period live on the radio.
The station agreed and other West Coast stations picked up his feed as Starkey live broadcasted one of the greatest games in sports history. The rest of the country would not see or hear the official broadcast of the game until later that night because it aired on tape delay.
Starkey also called games for the San Jose Sharks, Minnesota Vikings, Denver Broncos, Colorado Rockies, Golden State Warriors and many more throughout his 50-year sportscasting career.
He was inducted into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame in 2009 and the Cal Hall of Fame in 2018. In addition, Starkey has been named the best play-by-play broadcaster in the state of California nine times.
"It has been an incredible privilege to have the best seat in the house to watch Cal football since 1975," Starkey said in a release on Thursday. "My first position in sportscasting was in 1972, and I have had some truly special assignments. But of all the places I have worked, the one constant has been Cal football."
"I can't begin to thank all of the Cal players, coaches, staff and professors who have made this fairy tale journey so incredibly satisfying. The University of California is a very special place and I couldn't be prouder to have made at least a small contribution of joy to this iconic academic institution."
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