Longtime broadcaster Pat Summerall passed away on Tuesday of
unknown causes. He was 82.
Summerall began working as a broadcaster for the NFL in 1962
for CBS, where he worked with Chris Schenkel, Jack Buck, and Tom Brookshier.
However, he is best known for his pairing with John Madden, which began in
1981, and continued with Fox until Summerall's retirement following the 2001
season (he did spot duty in 2002 and 2006). Over his career, Summerall called
16 Super Bowls with CBS and Fox, more than any other announcer.
He also called the Cotton Bowl for Fox from 2007-10, and has
covered PGA Golf and tennis.
He was awarded the Pete Rozell Radio-Television Award by the
Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1994. Beginning in 2006, the NFL presented the Pat
Summerall Award annually to "a deserving recipient who through their career has
demonstrated the character, integrity and leadership both on and off the job
that the name Pat Summerall represents."
Prior to broadcasting, Summerall had a 10-year
career as a placekicker for the Detroit Lions, Chicago Cardinals and New York
Giants.
Shortly after the news of Summerall's passing, tributes began to pour in from the broadcasting community.
"Pat was my broadcasting partner for a long time, but more than that he was my friend for all of these years. We never had one argument, and that was because of Pat. He was a great broadcaster and a great man. He always had a joke. Pat never complained and we never had an unhappy moment. He was something very special. Pat Summerall is the voice of football and always will be." - John Madden
"There is no one more closely associated with the great legacy and tradition of CBS Sports than Pat Summerall. His voice was synonymous with big events whether it was NFL football and the Super Bowl, the Masters or U.S. Open Tennis." - Sean McManus, Chairman, CBS Sports
"Pat Summerall was a hero to me. I treasured the gift of friendship that I had with him. I was his understudy for 10 years. He could not have been more generous or kind to a young broadcaster. He was a giant and one of the iconic figures in the history of the CBS Television Network." - CBS Sports' Jim Nantz
"In 1976 I was a junior in college and Chuck Will put me in the 18th tower as a spotter for Pat Summerall. He told me, 'You're not going to meet a finer man in this business than Pat Summerall.' And to this day, I never have. He was kind to everyone. When you were around him you never knew that he was the number one broadcaster. He taught me so much, not only about this business, but how to treat people. I'm sad on this day, but also smiling because I know he will be with his good buddy Tom Brookshier." - Lance Barrow, Coordinating Producer, CBS Sports, Golf and NFL
"Pat was a friend of nearly 40 years. He was a master of restraint in his commentary, an example for all of us. He was also one of the great storytellers who ever spoke into a microphone." - CBS Sports' Verne Lundquist
