The Voice of Notre Dame Fired

A press release came from Westwood One was released this afternoon announcing that the legendary "Voice of Notre Dame" since 1980 Tony Roberts has been axed. While there's not a lot of information about the circumstances of this unexpected change, it seems like there's some bad blood involved, as Tony's statement to the Chicago Tribune indicates:

"They fired me," Roberts said. "For no cause."

"It was a great run and I'm sorry it's over," said Roberts, who started broadcasting Irish games in 1980. "I always wanted to walk away from it under my terms."

It looks like there's a lot to this story that we aren't being told. It's disappointing because Tony's voice is permanently associated in my mind with the Irish, and it's going to be strange having a new announcer (the very capable and qualified Don Criqui) for the first time in my lifetime. We wish Tony the best of luck, and we'll be keeping an eye on this to see if any sordid details emerge.

In the meantime, you might want to shoot an e-mail to the contact at Westwood One listed on the press release and show some support for a Notre Dame legend. If you're like me, you probably feel like a stalwart for over a quarter century deserves slightly better treatment at the end of his career.