Tag: Mick Hubert

Meet the new ‘Voice of the Gators’ Sean Kelley

It’ll be hard to fill the shoes of the legendary Mick Hubert, but Florida has found its new voice.

In May, legendary Florida broadcaster Mick Hubert called his last game after 33 years with the orange and blue. His retirement meant that the University of Florida now had to find its fourth “Voice of the Gators” in 82 years. That’s where ESPN Radio broadcaster Sean Kelley comes in.

The University Athletic Association announced Kelley as Hubert’s replacement on Wednesday and his resume certainly lives up to the standards set by the three men before him. Kelley has done play-by-play for the Tiger (Missouri) Radio Network, Tulane University (football, basketball and baseball) and the New Orleans Pelicans.

Kelley joined ESPN Radio in 2019 as its lead play-by-play announcer on national college football. He also called several college basketball and NBA games, including Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. His first assignment for the industry leader was Florida football’s 24-20 win over Miami in the 2019 season opener.

Kelley’s first game with UF will be the football season opener against Utah. He’s expected to call primarily football and men’s basketball games with other social interactions planned (podcasts, social media, etc.).

While he wasn’t looking to move on from ESPN, Kelley made it clear that the Florida job was too good to pass up. He’ll still be working events for ESPN Radio whenever UF’s schedule allows it, too.

“Florida is one of the elite of the elites with regard to intercollegiate athletics,” Kelley said. “That makes it not only a destination job for anyone in our business, it makes it a destination job for those who have reached certain heights in our business.”

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Legendary Voice of the Gators, Mick Hubert, calling it a career

Oh, my! Mick Hubert is saying farewell to Gator Nation. He’ll call his final three games for the Orange and Blue over the weekend.

For 33 years, Mick Hubert has served as the Voice of the Gators. He’s called some of the biggest moments in program history, and now he’s decided to call it a career, according to the University Athletic Association.

This weekend’s baseball regular-season finale will be Hubert’s final three games with the Orange and Blue. He and his wife Judi will move to Sarasota in the coming weeks to a home they purchased in 2019. While Hubert’s departure is undoubtedly shocking for many in Gator Nation — especially those who have only known one man as the Voice of the Gators — it’s something that’s been in the works for a while.

“That’s going to be it,” Hubert said. “This wasn’t the end of a five-year plan. I don’t know if I can explain how I knew, but I knew. I had been considering this for a little while. I just had to do some praying about it and enjoy every game.”

Up until a couple of years ago, Hubert thought he’d be doing this until he was at least an octogenarian. But time changes a person and he’s well at peace with his decision to walk away from the booth. With over 2,500 games called between football, men’s basketball and baseball, there’s little left to cross off the bucket list. He was there for all three of Florida’s football national championships, the back-to-back basketball championships and a College World Series win.

Ever the professional, Hubert never took a sick day and only missed a few basketball games because of the football schedule. He said that preparing throughout the week for football games was a joy for him and that he often felt like a fan when Saturday rolled around.

“I hope they heard the enthusiasm, and the credibility is important to me,” he said. “You need to be factual and credible, but you need to be enthusiastic. That’s what I always felt. I always wanted to take my audience on a roller-coaster ride of emotions. I also wanted to give them enough information so they could paint that picture in their mind.”

There are few who withstand the test of time in the play-by-play industry as well as Hubert has. Going out on his own terms at a time where he feels comfortable is about all you can ask for after three decades of dedicated service to a program.

It’s a bittersweet goodbye for everyone involved, but at least the fans get three more games with Hubert over the weekend.

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