An Eastern Michigan University athletic legend is in the
final leg of a long and illustrious career. He will not
make a basket or see any on-court action, but he will continue
to paint the radio picture of the game from press row.
Since 1963, John C. Fountain has been the "voice of EMU
Athletics."
Prior to the 2006-07 season, Fountain announced this would
be his last year of calling EMU football and basketball
games.
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A FOUNTAIN FINISH: John Fountain, the
"voice of
EMU athletics" since 1963, will finish
up his
broadcasting career here this month. Fountain
called
the play-by-play of football games through
2001 and
continued to do the same for men's and
women's
basketball games this year. |
Fountain first began his 44-year love affair with EMU
athletics in 1963 when he broadcast his first football
game for the then-Hurons. He was EMU's man-on-the-mike
for football games from 1963 until his retirement from
the football side of things after the 2001 season. Giving
up the football broadcasts was a tough decision for Fountain,
but he retained the men's and women's basketball play-by-play
duties until deciding that this year would be his last.
In all, he broadcast 1,150 EMU men's basketball games,
which represents 53 percent of all of the men's games in
the 109-year history of the sport at EMU.
While Fountain spent 44 years broadcasting EMU sports,
his career spanned 57 years. One of his more memorable
calls was Game 7 of the 1955 World Series between the New
York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers on a 10-second delay
recreation on the Armed Forces Radio Service from studios
in Tripoli, Libya. Brooklyn won its only World Series that
day.
WEMU 89.1 will air a special pre-game show Wednesday,
March 7, that will include some of Fountain's most memorable
game broadcasts, along with thoughts and well wishes from
colleagues and former players.
WEMU 89.1 will honor Fountain during a tailgate party
at Washtenaw Country Club Monday, March 12, from 6:30-8:30
p.m. Tickets for that party are $50 each and proceeds will
go to the Fountain Sportscasters Scholarship Fund at Eastern
Michigan University. For tickets, call WEMU at 487-2229.
