Longtime ESPN announcer Mike Patrick has died at the age of 80.
ESPN confirmed Tuesday that Patrick died Sunday of natural causes in Fairfax, Va. His death was confirmed by Patrick’s doctor, as well as his hometown of Clarksburg, W.V.
Patrick began his broadcasting career in 1966 and went on to spend 36 years at ESPN, joining the network in 1982 before retiring in December 2017. He is perhaps best remembered as the play-by-play voice of “Sunday Night Football,” a role in which he served from 1987 to 2005. He was also a regular on the network’s coverage of college sports, including the ACC basketball tournament, the Women’s Final Four, and the College World Series.
Patrick claimed several historic accomplishments, as he was on the mic for the first NFL game ESPN ever televised in 1987. He was also on the television broadcast for ABC’s coverage of the “Music City Miracle” in 2000.
Despite Patrick’s many accomplishments, he may be best remembered for one irreverent moment that went viral before anyone knew what viral content even was. During overtime of a 2007 college football game between Georgia and Alabama, he very famously turned to baffled analyst Todd Blackledge and, without any provocation, asked him what Britney Spears was doing with her life.
Patrick retired from ESPN in 2017. His final call for the network was the 2017 Music City Bowl.
