Keith Jackson, whose Southern drawl and homespun, folksy phrases endeared him to college football fans for more than half a century, died Friday night, ESPN reported. He was 89.
Jackson died surrounded by his family, according to NBC Sports' Todd Harris.
Born in Roopville, Georgia, on Oct. 18, 1928, Jackson was also the first play-by-play broadcaster for “Monday Night Football” when it debuted in 1970 and covered a wide range of sports. He was known for his signature phrase “Whoa, Nellie!” after a big play. Jackson said the origin of the phrase came from his great-grandfather. He also coined the phrase “Big Uglies,” and christened Michigan’s football stadium “The Big House,” ESPN reported.
Jackson called 15 Rose Bowl games and was credited with calling the New Year's Day game "The granddaddy of them all," The New York Daily News reported. The final game he broadcast from Pasadena was the 2006 game in which Texas rallied to defeat USC for the national title.
Jackson was named national sportscaster of the year five times, the Daily News reported.
Jackson spent four years in the Marines and later graduated with a journalism degree from Washington State University, where he broadcast the team’s games.
He joined ABC’s college football announcing team in 1966, but also called NBA games, auto racing and was a staple on ABC’s “Wide World of Sports.” He also announced World Series games, 10 Olympics and traveled to 31 countries, ESPN reported.
Jackson also had fun playing off his signature phrase, as this commercial for Miller Lite demonstrates:
Tributes to Jackson rolled in on Twitter:
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