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CINCINNATI - Dan Hoard, the play-by-play voice of University of Cincinnati football and men's basketball, has been named the Ohio Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association (NSSA).
Hoard has been a staple of the Cincinnati sports scene since arriving in 1996. He has consistently handled radio play-by-play duties on the Bearcats/IMG Sports Network since 2000 and also serves as the play-by-play broadcaster for the NFL's Cincinnati Bengals.
"It's a very pleasant surprise," Hoard said. "In a state where many of my favorite announcers work, including Marty Brennaman, Paul Keels, Tom Hamilton and Jim Donovan, it is a very humbling honor and I'm grateful to the NSSA members that selected me."
He is one of just three radio announcers to handle play-by-play duties for both an NCAA FBS football program and an NFL team, joining Gene Deckerhoff (Florida State & Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and Bill Hillgrove (Pittsburgh & Pittsburgh Steelers) in that category.
In addition to his play-by-play responsibilities, Hoard hosts both the Tommy Tuberville Radio show and Mick Cronin Radio Show weekly during the respective seasons on the Bearcats' flagship 700 WLW.
The NSSA announced its 2015 Hall of Fame class, comprised of Bill Raftery, Dick Schaap, Hal McCoy and Lesley Visser, as well as its national award winners yesterday. NBC Sports hockey announcer Mike "Doc" Emrick was named National Sportscaster of the Year, while Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci was named Sportswriter of the Year.
McCoy joins Hoard as the other award winner from Ohio, as the Dayton Daily News writer collected Ohio Sportswriter of the Year in addition to his Hall of Fame accolades.